The High Court in Edinburgh helped to clear the way for the Lockerbie bomber to return to Libya yesterday when it granted his application to abandon his appeal against conviction.
The White House responded by declaring that Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi should remain in Scotland to serve out his life sentence. Robert Gibbs, President Obama’s spokesman, said: “It’s the policy of this Administration . . . that this individual should serve out his term where he’s serving it right now.”
Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Secretary, is considering two requests from the Libyan authorities that would result in al-Megrahi’s repatriation. One is for a prisoner transfer, and the other is for his release on compassionate grounds, as he is suffering from advanced prostate cancer. The minister told his Cabinet colleagues yesterday that he would make an announcement “soon, certainly by the end of the month”.
Mr MacAskill has been under intense diplomatic pressure over the fate of al-Megrahi, 57, who is serving a life sentence with a minimum term of 27 years for his part in the 1988 atrocity, which killed 270 people.
Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, called the Justice Secretary last week to insist that the Libyan serve the rest of his sentence in Scotland, and seven senior US senators, including Edward Kennedy and John Kerry, sent a letter to Mr MacAskill expressing concern over his potential release.
Last night Mrs Clinton made clear her strong views on the matter. “I just think it is absolutely wrong to release someone who has been imprisoned based on the evidence about his involvement in such a horrendous crime,” she said. “We are still enouraging the Scottish authorities not to do so and we hope that they will not.”
Alex Salmond, Scotland’s First Minister, broke his silence yesterday on al-Megrahi’s possible release saying he believed that Mr MacAskill would “make the right decision for the right reasons”. He added: “There will be no consideration of international power politics or anything else. It will be taken on the evidence in the interest of justice.”
According to a poll carried out at the weekend, 60 per cent of Scots think that al-Megrahi is guilty, and almost half — 49 per cent — want him to remain in a Scottish jail. Forty per cent thought that he should be transferred to Libya, and 11 per cent said that he should be released on compassionate grounds.
In court yesterday Margaret Scott, al-Megrahi’s QC, said that his cancer was terminal and his health had recently “worsened very considerably”. She also said he believed that dropping his appeal would speed up a decision over his future, allowing him to die in Libya.
“Up-to-date medical reports from three eminent experts also concurred in the view that he has a very aggressive cancer, his condition is grave and the prognosis is extremely limited,” Ms Scott said. “His absolute priority is to spend what little time he has left with his family and to die united with them in his homeland.”
After setting out the two requests before Mr MacAskill, Ms Scott said that al-Megrahi had abandoned his latest attempt to clear his name “to assist in the early determination of these applications”.
The end of the Libyan’s appeal effectively removes one of the last obstacles to a prisoner transfer, which cannot take place while there are live legal proceedings. Although an appeal by the Crown against his sentence is continuing, it could be dropped by simply giving notice to the court.
موضوع: Edinburgh clears way for Lockerbie bomber Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi’s move to Libya 
الأربعاء 19 أغسطس - 18:43:29