Megrahi's death reminds us how many question marks still hang over UK's worst terror attack

UK Political Editor

Monday 21 May 2012

THE death of the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing might close a chapter on Britain's worst terrorist atrocity but it does not close the book.

Custom byline text:

analysis michael settle

There are those who believe Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi was indeed involved in the Lockerbie bombing and that his conviction was safe, yet admit he could not have acted alone, while there are those who believe he was simply a hapless scapegoat and the real culprits are still to be identified and are possibly even at large.

Either way, Megrahi's death simply highlights how there are many questions that remain unanswered. In March, HeraldScotland published in full the 800-page report by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission after it had remained secret for five years. Click here to read it It confirmed in many people's minds that there should be a public inquiry into the Lockerbie case as several key items of evidence were made public for the first time. One, for example, referred to how key prosecution witness Tony Gauci – the Maltese shopkeeper who identified Megrahi as the man who bought clothes later found in the suitcase that contained the bomb – and his brother Paul had received secret payments of as much as $3 million by the US Department of Justice under its "reward for justice" programme. While Prime Minister David Cameron last night rejected any fresh inquiry into the conviction of Megrahi, investigations into the circumstances surrounding the bombing for which he was jailed continue. In fact, since December 1988 they have never been closed. Only three weeks ago, Frank Mulholland, the Lord Advocate, was in Tripoli with Robert Mueller, director of America's FBI, to discuss with the Libyan authorities the investigation into the Lockerbie bombing. In December, Mr Mulholland was in Washington meeting Mr Mueller and Eric Holder, the US Attorney General, to discuss ways of stepping up officials inquiries in Libya. At the time, the Lord Advocate noted how he wanted to "take advantage of the opportunity that has opened up with the fall of Gaddafi". A year ago, following his defection to Britain amid the Libyan civil war, Moussa Koussa, Gaddafi's former spy chief, was questioned by Scottish detectives about his knowledge of the Lockerbie bombing. He denied "involvement or knowledge of any kind" in the atrocity and is now still thought to be in Qatar. The Foreign Office insists he can still be called back to the UK to face any court proceedings but it appears increasingly doubtful this will ever happen. Then there is Saif al Islam, Gaddafi's English-speaking son, who might be best placed to reveal any Lockerbie secrets. While the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague wants him to be extradited to face a war crimes trial in Holland, those holding him in Libya insist Saif will stand trial in his home country and, if convicted, will face possible execution. Saif al Islam might not be the only defendant in any such trial. Last month, Mauritania was reported to have agreed to hand over Abdullah al Senussi, Gadaffi's intelligence chief. Not only does the ICC want to try him too for crimes against humanity but the French Government is keen to see him take the stand; Senussi is said to have been involved in the bombing of a plane in 1989 in which 54 French nationals died. MPs at Westminster yesterday made clear pressure had now to be exerted on the new Libyan Government to try to uncover the full truth about Lockerbie to help victims' families find some closure. Yet it might be that the last thing the new rulers in Tripoli want is to rake over the details of a sordid past. They would undoubtedly much prefer to concentrate on Libya's future.

Commenting & Moderation

We moderate all comments on HeraldScotland on either a pre-moderated or post-moderated basis. If you're a relatively new user then your comments will be reviewed before publication and if we know you well then your comments will be subject to moderation only if other users or the moderators believe you've broken the rules, which are available here.

Moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours. Please be patient if your posts are not approved instantly.

Megrahi's death reminds us how many question marks still hang over UK's worst terror attack

Commenting & Moderation

MOST READ

SPONSORED LINKS

MOST COMMENTED