Lawyers for the family of the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing have issued a fresh please urging the UK government to release protected documents on the case.
Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was found guilty of the terrorist attack that killed 270 people in 1988, with the family now launching a posthumous appeal against the decision.
In a fresh statement, lawyers for the family urged disclosed documents to be released saying: "If the Government has nothing to hide, then it has nothing to fear from disclosing this material. We asked the Court for a specification for recovery of these classified documents and thus their disclosure."
The UK Government has claimed disclosure will cause ‘real harm’ to international relations and to the national security of the United Kingdom, however, members of the Megrahi family have asked the court whose public interest and security is being protected, some 31 years after the bombing.
The statement added: "The reputation of Scottish Law has suffered both at home and internationally because of widespread doubts about the conviction of Mr. Al Megrahi.
"It is in the interests of justice and restoring confidence in our justice system that these doubts can be addressed, but the only place to determine whether a miscarriage of justice did occur is in our appeal court.
"We claimed in court that the Crown failed to disclose CIA cables in respect of a key crown witness on the basis of an undertaking given to the United States Government.
"We claimed that there was systemic failure to disclose documents to the defence and that the Lord Advocate acted in a way which was incompatible with Mr. Al- Megrahi’s right to a fair trial.
"We believe the UK Government is refusing to declassify documents that we believe may support our ground of appeal that there has been a miscarriage of justice."
The Judges: Lord Justice General, Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Menzies have now given consideration to submissions from both the Mcgrahi appeal and those from the Crown Office and the Advocate General on behalf of the UK Government.
The court has authorised that Ali Abdulbasit Ali Almaqrahi, the son of the deceased Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi is to institute an appeal on behalf of his father as well as the appeal of ‘non-disclosure’ documents, including CIA Cables to be argued.
The court is continuing consideration of part of the appeal that the protectively marked documents which the UK Government maintain should remain ‘classified’ and are appointing a special counsel for this purpose to represent the appellant.
November 24th has been set as the date for the start of the appeal.
Speaking on the latest ruling, Aamer Anwar said on behalf of his clients: "Today was an important milestone for the Megrahi family on the road to try to establish that the verdict against their father was a miscarriage of justice. There can never be a time limit on justice.”
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