MaNuMaNiAc
08-21-2009, 12:30 PM
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/08/21/scotland.lockerbie.bomber/index.html
UK minister condemns Lockerbie bomber's 'hero's welcome'
Story Highlights
NEW: UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband condemns Al Megrahi's "hero's welcome"
Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi has terminal cancer, allowed to go home to die
He's serving life term for bombing Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland in 1988
White House says in a statement that it "deeply regrets" the decision
LONDON, England (CNN) -- It was "deeply distressing" and "deeply upsetting" to see the convicted Lockerbie bomber get a hero's welcome in Libya, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Friday.
Just hours after being freed from a Scottish prison where he was serving a life sentence, Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi walked off a plane in his native country to a cheering crowd that waved flags and honked horns.
"Obviously, the sight of a mass murderer getting a hero's welcome in Tripoli is deeply upsetting, deeply distressing," Miliband told BBC radio Friday morning. He added that personally, "I find it deeply distressing of course, as well."
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had specifically asked Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi not to give al Megrahi a celebratory welcome, Brown's office at 10 Downing Street said.
Brown wrote a letter to Gadhafi, delivered to the Libyan Foreign Ministry on Thursday, asking the Libyans to act with sensitivity with regard to al Megrahi's return.
The letter was private and therefore won't be released to the media, a Downing Street spokeswoman said.
Al Megrahi, 57, was convicted in 2001 of planting a bomb on Pan Am flight 103 which exploded over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988 killing all 259 of those aboard the plane -- including 189 Americans -- and 11 people on the ground.
He suffers from terminal prostate cancer and has three months to live, Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch MacAskill deliver his announcement » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
MacAskill released al Megrahi on compassionate grounds, saying he was going home to die. His decision was highly controversial, drawing criticism from the United States and dividing family members of the 270 Lockerbie victims.
Both Brown and Miliband made clear that the decision to release al Megrahi was for the Scottish government to make. But Miliband said Libya must now act responsibly.
"I think it's very important that Libya knows, and certainly we have told them, that how the Libyan government handles itself in the next few days after the arrival of Mr. Megrahi will be very significant in the way the world views Libya's reentry into the civilized community of nations," Miliband said.
"It is in our interests to stand up for our own principles in the interests of international relations," he said. "Where Libya is willing to abide and engage in the international system in a way that does the right thing for those international principles, we will engage with Libya (http://topics.edition.cnn.com/topics/libya)."
Al Megrahi always maintained his innocence, complaining that he had to spend years in prison for something he did not do.
"The remaining days of my life will have to be spent under the shadow of the wrongness of my conviction," he said in a statement issued Thursday through his attorney. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch Lockerbie bomber maintain his innocence » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo) He also offered sympathy to the families of the victims.
The U.S. government responded Thursday to al Megrahi's release, saying it "deeply regrets" the decision.
"As we have expressed repeatedly to officials of the government of the United Kingdom and to Scottish authorities, we continue to believe that Megrahi should serve out his sentence in Scotland," the White House said in a statement. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch President Obama say release is "mistake" » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a similarly worded statement.
"Today, we remember those whose lives were lost on December 21, 1988, and we extend our deepest sympathies to the families who live each day with the loss of their loved ones due to this heinous crime," Clinton said.
And the FBI said in a statement it was "deeply disappointed" over the decision to release al Megrahi.
"In a case of mass murder over Lockerbie, Mr. Megrahi served less than 14 days per victim," FBI director Robert Mueller said in the statement.
The justice secretary said he decided not to transfer al Megrahi to a Libyan prison, even though a prisoner transfer agreement exists between the United Kingdom and Libya, but instead chose to set him free on compassionate grounds.
Families of the Lockerbie victims have been sharply divided over whether al Megrahi should ever be released. iReport.com: My uncle never got to say goodbye (http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-317424)
(http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-317424) Susan Cohen, who lost her 20-year-old daughter, was adamant about her position, calling al Megrahi a "mass murderer" and his release "appalling."
"Are we so devastatingly weak now, have we lost all our moral fiber that you can say that Megrahi can be released from prison for a compassionate release? Where was his compassion for my daughter? Where was his compassion for all those people," Cohen told "American Morning." Bert Ammerman, whose brother died in the bombing, called al Megrahi's release "ludicrous."
"First of all, he got his compassionate release when he got life imprisonment and not capital punishment, which Scotland doesn't have," Ammerman told CNN. He should have remained in prison, then after his death, his body could have been returned to Libya (http://topics.edition.cnn.com/topics/libya), he said.
"Two, he's going to be going back, even if he has terminal cancer, as a hero, and he's going to be received as a hero in Libya," Ammerman said.
"Three, let's cut through all this information. He's being released because big business in the United States, Great Britain want the oil in Libya, and that's what's driving this whole wagon," he said.
Can anyone find a single fucking redeeming quality in these people?? I mean their idea of a hero is a fucking coward that detonates a bomb on an airplane killing hundreds of innocent men, women and children.
UK minister condemns Lockerbie bomber's 'hero's welcome'
Story Highlights
NEW: UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband condemns Al Megrahi's "hero's welcome"
Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi has terminal cancer, allowed to go home to die
He's serving life term for bombing Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland in 1988
White House says in a statement that it "deeply regrets" the decision
LONDON, England (CNN) -- It was "deeply distressing" and "deeply upsetting" to see the convicted Lockerbie bomber get a hero's welcome in Libya, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Friday.
Just hours after being freed from a Scottish prison where he was serving a life sentence, Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi walked off a plane in his native country to a cheering crowd that waved flags and honked horns.
"Obviously, the sight of a mass murderer getting a hero's welcome in Tripoli is deeply upsetting, deeply distressing," Miliband told BBC radio Friday morning. He added that personally, "I find it deeply distressing of course, as well."
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had specifically asked Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi not to give al Megrahi a celebratory welcome, Brown's office at 10 Downing Street said.
Brown wrote a letter to Gadhafi, delivered to the Libyan Foreign Ministry on Thursday, asking the Libyans to act with sensitivity with regard to al Megrahi's return.
The letter was private and therefore won't be released to the media, a Downing Street spokeswoman said.
Al Megrahi, 57, was convicted in 2001 of planting a bomb on Pan Am flight 103 which exploded over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988 killing all 259 of those aboard the plane -- including 189 Americans -- and 11 people on the ground.
He suffers from terminal prostate cancer and has three months to live, Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch MacAskill deliver his announcement » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
MacAskill released al Megrahi on compassionate grounds, saying he was going home to die. His decision was highly controversial, drawing criticism from the United States and dividing family members of the 270 Lockerbie victims.
Both Brown and Miliband made clear that the decision to release al Megrahi was for the Scottish government to make. But Miliband said Libya must now act responsibly.
"I think it's very important that Libya knows, and certainly we have told them, that how the Libyan government handles itself in the next few days after the arrival of Mr. Megrahi will be very significant in the way the world views Libya's reentry into the civilized community of nations," Miliband said.
"It is in our interests to stand up for our own principles in the interests of international relations," he said. "Where Libya is willing to abide and engage in the international system in a way that does the right thing for those international principles, we will engage with Libya (http://topics.edition.cnn.com/topics/libya)."
Al Megrahi always maintained his innocence, complaining that he had to spend years in prison for something he did not do.
"The remaining days of my life will have to be spent under the shadow of the wrongness of my conviction," he said in a statement issued Thursday through his attorney. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch Lockerbie bomber maintain his innocence » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo) He also offered sympathy to the families of the victims.
The U.S. government responded Thursday to al Megrahi's release, saying it "deeply regrets" the decision.
"As we have expressed repeatedly to officials of the government of the United Kingdom and to Scottish authorities, we continue to believe that Megrahi should serve out his sentence in Scotland," the White House said in a statement. http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch President Obama say release is "mistake" » (http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo)
(http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=UK+minister+condemns+Lockerbie+bomber%27s+%2 7hero%27s+welcome%27+-+CNN.com&expire=-1&urlID=409055217&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fedition.cnn.com%2F2009%2FWORLD%2F europe%2F08%2F21%2Fscotland.lockerbie.bomber%2Find ex.html&partnerID=212106#cnnSTCVideo) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a similarly worded statement.
"Today, we remember those whose lives were lost on December 21, 1988, and we extend our deepest sympathies to the families who live each day with the loss of their loved ones due to this heinous crime," Clinton said.
And the FBI said in a statement it was "deeply disappointed" over the decision to release al Megrahi.
"In a case of mass murder over Lockerbie, Mr. Megrahi served less than 14 days per victim," FBI director Robert Mueller said in the statement.
The justice secretary said he decided not to transfer al Megrahi to a Libyan prison, even though a prisoner transfer agreement exists between the United Kingdom and Libya, but instead chose to set him free on compassionate grounds.
Families of the Lockerbie victims have been sharply divided over whether al Megrahi should ever be released. iReport.com: My uncle never got to say goodbye (http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-317424)
(http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-317424) Susan Cohen, who lost her 20-year-old daughter, was adamant about her position, calling al Megrahi a "mass murderer" and his release "appalling."
"Are we so devastatingly weak now, have we lost all our moral fiber that you can say that Megrahi can be released from prison for a compassionate release? Where was his compassion for my daughter? Where was his compassion for all those people," Cohen told "American Morning." Bert Ammerman, whose brother died in the bombing, called al Megrahi's release "ludicrous."
"First of all, he got his compassionate release when he got life imprisonment and not capital punishment, which Scotland doesn't have," Ammerman told CNN. He should have remained in prison, then after his death, his body could have been returned to Libya (http://topics.edition.cnn.com/topics/libya), he said.
"Two, he's going to be going back, even if he has terminal cancer, as a hero, and he's going to be received as a hero in Libya," Ammerman said.
"Three, let's cut through all this information. He's being released because big business in the United States, Great Britain want the oil in Libya, and that's what's driving this whole wagon," he said.
Can anyone find a single fucking redeeming quality in these people?? I mean their idea of a hero is a fucking coward that detonates a bomb on an airplane killing hundreds of innocent men, women and children.