Little has been made public about the background of the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing.
Little has been made public about the background of the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing.
Born in Tripoli on April 1, 1952, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi is thought to have learned to speak English in America, where he studied in the 1970s.
A former director of Libya's Centre for Strategic Studies, he also used to be the chief of airline security for Libyan Arab Airlines.
He is thought to have visited the UK on a number of occasions - the first trip was to Cardiff in 1971, when he stayed for nine months as a student.
He visited London when he worked for the Libyan airline, staying in a hotel in Hounslow.
When Megrahi was paraded before the world's media in 1992 to disprove numerous reports that he and his co-accused had been executed by the Libyan authorities, journalists described him as surprisingly quietly spoken and "gentle".
His public comments then and in the intervening years have been infrequent and simple, consistently denying any involvement in the atrocity.
He told TV interviewers in 1991: "We feel very much for the suffering of the victims' families. We are victims as well. We are suffering just like them."
Megrahi predicted to another reporter in 1992: "I want to send this message to the British people, the American people and the international community: one day I will be found not guilty.
" I am sorry for the people of Lockerbie and one day you will see that."
When he was convicted in 2001, Lords Sutherland, MacLean, and Coulsfield recommended that he serve a minimum of 20 years "in view of the horrendous nature of this crime".
The sentence was merely a recommendation. In November 2003, the punishment part of his sentence was set at 27 years, meaning he will not be eligible for parole until he is 74 years old. In June 2007 he was granted fresh leave to appeal.
However, last month his defence team pushed for him to be released on interim liberation following the news that he is terminally ill with prostate cancer.
When judges turned down the request, Megrahi, in a statement issued through his solicitor, said: "I am very distressed that the court has refused to grant me bail and denied me the chance to spend my remaining time with my family.
"I wish to reiterate that I had nothing whatsoever to do with the Lockerbie bombing and that the fight for justice will continue, regardless of whether I am alive to witness my name being cleared.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people of Scotland and elsewhere who have taken the time to send me cards and letters of support. Their kindness has touched me and helped me at this difficult time."
Although the court last month refused to grant bail to Megrahi at this stage, he still has the option of applying again to the court at a later date or applying to Scottish ministers for release on "compassionate" grounds.
However, the judgment on November 14 made clear that he does not yet fit the main criterion for such a request - that of having fewer than three months to live.
It is not known how ministers will react to such a request.
