Libya has given British police the go-ahead to visit the country to conduct investigations into the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and the murder of PC Yvonne Fletcher.The British foreign minister Alistair Burt announced the breakthrough after talks during a two-day visit to Libya with the country's interim interior minister Fawzy Abdela'ali.
Mr Burt said he expected British coppers to carry out the investigation, and that the libyan government is aware of how important such investigation is.
Libya's National Transitional Council, NTC, had refused earlier requests for the officers to travel to Libya. Now Mr Abdela'ali has been reported by Mr Burt as having agreed to the early return of the Dumfries and Galloway police in relation to the Lockerbie tragedy that killed 270 people.
Mr Burt also confirmed that the Libyan minister had also made a similar promised for the British to investigate the killing of WPC Yvonne Fletcher who was bumped off outside the Libyan embassy in London in 1984. "We are very keen that the Metropolitan police should return to continue their investigation," Burt said.
When it comes to the shooting of WPC Fletcher, detectives in London are keen to interview former Libyan diplomats who were stationed in the embassy at the time of the shooting, even though chief suspect Abdulqadir al-Baghdadi who is alleged to have fired the shots, is now dead. He died in August. Another suspect, Abdulmagid Salah Ameri is also said to have died.
Mr Burt said no dates have as yet been set for the visit of the British Sherlocks to Libya re the two cases, but he had no doubt that they would be allowed to go to Libya.
He expects this to be soon however, although he thought that the new Libyan government right now must be very busy and "has a lot on their plate."
Meanwhile,
...back at the laboratory the fumes had dispersed, to reveal an ominous sight...
Scottish Sherlocks again want to interview Abdelbaset aal-Megrahi, tossed in the slammer for the Lockerbie bombing in 2001 but released over two years ago by the Scottish government in August 2009 on compassionate grounds when doctors said he had terminal prostate cancer. He currently lives in Tripoli, and is reportedly close to death.
In the meantime, Mr Burt has said that Libya has being offered the chance for security training from the Metropolitan police and the army, and that British security and education consultants were being encouraged to bid for work in Libya.