Lockerbie bomber: Justice?
 

JUSTICE SERVED
John Wight

Scottish Justice Secretary, Kenny McAskill, today released convicted Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, on compassionate grounds.

Convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2001, 11 years after the bombing was carried, after a trial in the Netherlands conducted under the Scottish legal system, Megrahi has consistently protested his innocence of the biggest terrorist attack ever committed in Britain, when 270 people were killed on Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie on December 21, 1988. The victims comprised all 243 passengers and 16 crew members on board, along with 11 residents of the small Scottish town of Lockerbie below, located in Dumfries and Galloway.
Some of the relatives of the Scottish victims have consistently cast doubt over Mr Megrahi’s conviction. Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died in the bombing, recently told BBC radio. “I don’t believe the verdict is right. It would be an abominable cruelty to force this man to die in prison.” Other relatives remain circumspect, and on these grounds had called for the Megrahi’s latest appeal, which he dropped a few days before his release, to be heard. Pamela Dix, whose brother Peter died in the attack, was one of those. “I am not absolutely convinced of Megrahi’s guilt nor of his innocence,” she said. “We simply at this point do not know enough to be able to make that judgment.”

In contradistinction, victims’ families in the United States have called for Megrahi to complete his sentence in Scotland and remain convinced of his guilt. In this they’ve been joined by their government, which over the past week made strong representation to Kenny McAskill in the form of public statements, letters from Senators, and even a personal phone call from US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

On the 20th anniversary of the bombing in December 2008 award winning journalist, Hugh Miles, wrote an opinion piece for The Independent titled: Lockerbie: was it Iran? Syria? All I know is, it wasn’t the man in prison. In the piece, Miles analyses Megrahi’s conviction and some of the many unanswered questions surrounding it.

Whatever its ins and outs, this entire case, from the bombing in 1988 all the way up to Megrahi’s release today, reflects a shift in the geopolitical and strategic interests of the nations concerned. Back in 1988, Libya occupied the status of international pariah in the West. The Libyan Government, then as now led by Colonel Gadaffi, at one time funded and supported national liberation organisations and movements as disparate as the Provisional IRA and Black September, as well as various militant groups in sub-Saharan Africa. Relations between Libya and the West reached their nadir in the late eighties, when the Reagan administration sought to overthrow Gadaffi in the 180s as a result of his obdurate and unflinching support for the Palestinians, his support of Iran during the Iran-Iraq War, as well as his funding and support of rebel movements throughout the developing world.

The Lockerbie bombing in 1988 - which many commentators and analysts maintain was the work of Iran in conjunction with the Syrians, carried out in retaliation for the shooting down of an Iranian passenger aircraft over the Strait of Hormuz in July 1988 by US missiles - came just two years after the story broke that officials within US intelligence and the US Government had conducted secret arms deals with Iran in an attempt to obtain the release of American hostages being held by Iranian backed militias in Lebanon. The money paid for the weapons was used to fund Contra death squads then operating in Nicaragua. In March 1988, Colonel Oliver North and John Poindexter, a former naval officer and National Security Advisor within the Reagan administration, were convicted in relation to the scandal, known to the world and to history as Iran-Contra.

Many to this day believe that it was in the interests of the US Government to conceal Iran’s involvement in the Lockerbie bombing in order to conceal the extent of the Reagan administration’s involvement in the Iran-Contra affair, which Reagan vigorously maintained he knew nothing about.

Today Libya is no longer treated or perceived as a rogue state in the West. In fact, ever since renouncing Libya’s weapons of mass destruction programme in the wake of the US and British invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, Colonel Gadaffi has been rehabilitated as a leader the West can do business with. Given its prodigious oil reserves the official visits to Libya first by former Prime Minister, Tony Blair, in 2004, followed by former US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, in 2008, will therefore have come as no surprise.
Regardless of the geopolitical context surrounding the Megrahi case, Scottish Justice Secretary, Kenny McAskill, and the SNP Scottish Government are to be congratulated for refusing to bow to US pressure to allow the Libyan, who is suffering from terminal prostrate cancer, to die in a Scottish prison instead of being allowed to return to his family to see out his last days. Moreover, the decision taken by the Scottish Justice Secretary takes on added significance and weight in light of the supine stance of the British Government in relation to the extradition of computer hacker, Gary McKinnon, to the United States under an extradition treaty which emphasises Britain’s status not so much as a US ally but as a client state.

Today, with the release of Mr Megrahi on compassionate grounds, justice has been served.

http://www.socialistunity.com/?p=4556

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I read in a paper "Lockerbie bomber to walk" in a paper a few days ago, and I thought to myself that if someone had done such a terrible thing, they should at least serve their sentences. I never really gave it another thought that the man may be innocent, and I didn't know he had cancer. The article I read of course mentioned nothing other than a guilty terrorist walking free.

It now seems entirely plausible to me that he, and Libya, were just used to cover up more sinister dealings with Iran/Syria at the time. Still, I haven't got much to go on, and I don't pretend to know the full story. Interesting to think about though.

I was watching the news this morning and I felt really sad for the people who lost loved ones in that plane bombing. I don't feel I have the right to talk shit about other countries the way the U.S. news channels are though. Fuck our opinion, it doesn't matter. If the Scotts want to change that law, they can.

What I don't understand is why the U.S. can't arrest him and put him on trial right now. He did after all murder Americans as well.

If it were a non violent crime I could agree with releasing someone for being terminally ill with only a few months to live. A terrorist on the other hand... :\ I dont know. What if he looked at it as all the more reason to suicide bomb something?

That's an interesting point, shouldn't any country be able to prosecute someone who kills one of their citizens?

Doesn't make sense to me, but then again, I really do not know much about differing countries legal systems.

Yeah, it happens all the time. This guy though. He is the son of a very important man who has stuff we want.

After reading up some, it appears that the original investigation and prosecution was a joint US & UK operation.

I'm sure we can at least detain him until he dies. He needs to die in prison, not in the comfort of his fathers palace while people praise him for killing innocents.

Who the hell is his father anyway? That was something I couldnt dig up.

Hes not Gaddafi's kid is he?

I thought it was http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muammar_al-Gaddafi, but now I think I'm wrong. But Gaddafi is going to take care of him till he dies whether he is or isn't related to him. The news this morning called him his father, but I was awake all nigt and could have been hallucinating.

I'm thinking about all the characters Boogie and Chojin bombed and banned for this section to be left with this malingering lack of intellect.

So, are you in here to talk about the topic? You can keep all your little personnel issues in your awesome fuck you thread. After all, you learned how to quote.

Im pretty sure Gaddafi isnt his father. But he did send his private jet to pick the guy up. I think all Lybians look to the guy as a hero.

Yeah, I find nothing that binds the 2 by blood. Either I misheard them or more likely they reported incorrect info.

How fucking hilarious would it be if this guy blows up another plane first thing after getting out?

Im really thinking suicide bombing. Its gotta be a lot less painful of a death than prostate cancer.

>:

WTF? This isn't a 'Let's see what we can do to get that terrorist back in gaol' thread.



The Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution is a branch of the Iranian military. But the Revolutionary Guards of Libya are also strangely linked to the name. Although I guess this is all poiuntless talk, since Libya accepted responsibility when it compensated families.

But Megrahi has always said he was innocent, so just because he is Libyan doesn't mean that he was the one that did it.

Some more interesting reading from wikipedia, because wikipedia is always true:

A circuit board fragment, allegedly found embedded in a piece of charred material, was identified as part of an electronic timer similar to that found on a Libyan intelligence agent who had been arrested 10 months previously, carrying materials for a Semtex bomb. The timer allegedly was traced through its Swiss manufacturer, Mebo, to the Libyan military, and Mebo employee Ulrich Lumpert identified the fragment at al-Megrahi's trial. Mebo's owner, Edwin Bollier, later revealed that in 1991 he had declined an offer from the FBI of $4 million to testify that the timer fragment was part of a Mebo MST-13 timer supplied to Libya. On 18 July 2007, Ulrich Lumpert admitted he had lied at the trial. In a sworn affidavit before a Zurichnotary, Lumpert stated that he had stolen a prototype MST-13 timer PC-board from Mebo and gave it without permission on 22 June 1989, to "an official person investigating the Lockerbie case". Dr Hans Köchler, UN observer at the Lockerbie trial, who was sent a copy of Lumpert's affidavit, said: "The Scottish authorities are now obliged to investigate this situation. Not only has Mr Lumpert admitted to stealing a sample of the timer, but to the fact he gave it to an official and then lied in court".

In a documentary entitled "Lockerbie revisited" aired on April 27, 2009, the film's director and narrator, Gideon Levy interviewed officials involved with the case. Former FBI laboratory scientist Fred Whitehurst described the FBI laboratory itself as a "crime scene", where an unqualified colleague Thomas Thurman would routinely alter his scientific reports. The interviews also revealed that the timer fragment had never been tested for explosives residue due to "budgetary reasons". Thurman, who led the forensic investigation and identified the fragments' Libyan connection, confirmed that it was the "only real piece of evidence against Libya" and when asked of the importance of the timer in the conviction of al-Megrahi, FBI Task Force Chief Richard Marquise stated, "It would be a very difficult case to prove ... I don't think we would ever (have) had an indictment".

Investigators also discovered that an unaccompanied bag had been routed onto PA 103, via the interline baggage system, from Luqa airport on Air Malta flight KM180 to Frankfurt, and then by feeder flight PA 103A to Heathrow. This unaccompanied bag was shown at the trial to have been the suitcase that contained the bomb. In 2009 it was revealed that security guard Ray Manley had reported that Heathrow's Pan Am baggage area had been broken into 17 hours before flight 103 took off. Police lost the report and it was never investigated or brought up at trial.




The news of potential release has sparked rage and admonitions from families of the US victims with their lawyers examining if a legal challenge can be mounted to block it. This contrasts with the families of British victims who, in general believe Megrahi to be innocent and support his release. When interviewed, the father of one victim stated that even if Megrahi was guilty, releasing him on compassionate grounds was the right thing to do and that Americans should "get real".

That's right America, get real.

Block it? It has already happened and the dude is already back in Lybia. Even if they did have legal ground to stand on there is no way Lybia will give him back. Even if they pretended they would, they would just drag it out the few months till the guy dies. "Get real" is right.

On a related note, if your parents murderer was on his death bed, would you mind if he spent his last few days with his family?

I would want my parents murderer to have to spend the rest of his days eating with a super duty weiner fork.

i'd want my parents murderer to spend the rest of his days eating flaming dongs

I would want the murderer to spend his last few days with me.

;)

lol JUSTICE HAS BEEN SERVED WITH THIS HEAPING SPOONFUL OF COMPASSION.

I hate this kind of shit really. Like this one dude in town got all drunk and decided he was gonna race some guy and he ended up killing some old lady and being paralyzed. They tried to say, "Hasn't he suffered enough?" "Isn't his paralysis enough of a punishment?"

I like how they've turned this case from something about jail time to something about basically, a death sentence. If we send him to jail, then he is going to die in jail. if you read the article, people are making similar arguments for his release that people would make against capital punishment. "We might be sending an innocent man to jail, who will then die."

anyway im tired :(