| Submit your comments on this article |
| Africa North |
| UK warns Libya not to celebrate Megrahi's release |
| 2010-08-21 |
| [The Nation (Nairobi)] A year after the Lockerbie bomber was released from a Scottish prison, Britain warned Libya not to celebrate the anniversary today, saying to do so would be "tasteless, offensive and deeply insensitive". Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi was thought to have only three months to live because of terminal prostate cancer when he was freed on compassionate grounds and returned to his homeland Libya to a hero's welcome. But he has defied his prognosis, to the dismay of the mainly American relatives of the 270 people who died when Pan Am Flight 103 blew up over the Scottish town of Lockerbie, four days before Christmas in 1988. Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond again defended his government's decision to free Megrahi in a round of interviews today, telling the BBC it acted "in good faith on the information that was available at the time". "No-one could have absolute certainty (about how long Megrahi would live)," Salmond said. "That was a reasonable expectation of his life expectancy." Earlier, the Foreign Office issued a strongly-worded statement urging Libya not to hold celebrations honouring the only man "convicted for the worst act of terrorism in British history". "Particularly on this anniversary, we understand the continuing anguish that Megrahi's release has caused his victims, both in the UK and the US," a spokeswoman said. "Any celebration of Megrahi's release will be tasteless, offensive and deeply insensitive to the victims' families." She added: "We have made our concerns clear to the Libyan government." Britain's ambassador to Tripoli, Richard Northern, has told senior Libyan government officials that any public events honouring Megrahi could damage warming ties between the two countries, the Guardian newspaper reported. Salmond added it would be "totally inappropriate" for Libya to celebrate the anniversary. Questions remain about the precise circumstances of the release, though, with US senators demanding more information on the case. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 They're NOT celebrating his release - they're celebrating your stupidity. Dhimmis. >:-( |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-08-21 20:04 |
| #2 Or get a really strong worded memo? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2010-08-21 08:40 |
| #1 Britain warned Libya not to celebrate the anniversary today, saying to do so would be "tasteless, offensive and deeply insensitive". But releasing him from prison wasn't ????? |
| Posted by: classer 2010-08-21 02:59 |