THE son of the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset ali Mohmed al-Megrahi is warning the UK faces an unprecedented wave of terror from Libya.
Khaled al-Megrahi said his homeland had been deserted by western powers allowing terror groups to seize control of much of the country.
In a chilling warning from his home in Tripoli, while fighting between Islamic State (IS) and government troops raged outside his window,he said the UK brought the Manchester Arena attack on itself by leaving a power vacuum after ridding Libya of despot Colonel Gaddafi in 2011.
The UK and US carried out air strikes designed to protect civilians during the 2011 uprising. But after Gaddafi was killed, Libya was plunged into chaos with rival militias taking over and fighting one another.
Last Monday’s suicide attack was carried out by 22-year-old Salman Abedi, who was born in the UK to Libyan refugee parents.
Mr Megrahi, 32, whose father was the only man convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, warned the streets of the Libyan capital were awash with young terror hopefuls like Abedi eager to die as “martyrs”.
He said his country had descended into civil war, adding: “The militants will kill each other here and then come to each city in the west. It is only a sea between us. A lot of Libyans are hungry, have no money and no justice. If the West continues its stance you will see a lot of the militants coming to the UK. The West knows what’s happening in Libya but they only want to watch and see. You make Libya like this.
“You will see a lot of terrorists in the UK and everywhere. It was Manchester, but tomorrow it will be some other place.”
Professor Paul Rogers, a Middle East expert at the University of Bradford, said: “It’s a terrifying mess. There are huge numbers of arms around and you have groups moving through to get into Europe.
“It’s made it very easy for a brutal group like ISIS to have a presence there.
Last week, it was claimed Abedi’s father Ramadan fought with an US-outlawed terror group against the Gaddafi regime in 2011 and was joined in Libya by his son during that conflict.
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