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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/...On_Thursday%2C_Scottish_Govt_Says

8:47pm UK, Wednesday August 19, 2009

The fate of convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi will be revealed on Thursday.

Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi

The Scottish government has made a decision on his future and will announce it at 1pm.

Sky sources say al Megrahi - who is terminally ill with prostate cancer - will be released back to Libya on compassionate grounds.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has been considering two separate applications - one for Megrahi to be moved to Libya under a prisoner transfer agreement.

And a separate application for him to be given compassionate early release to go home to die with his family.

The timing of the announcement in Edinburgh appears designed with an American audience in mind.

It takes place at 8am New York time - when it can expect wide breakfast-time media coverage.

News of the potential release of al Megrahi has already sparked much controversy in the US.

A Scottish government spokesman said: "We have a strong justice system in Scotland and people can be assured that the Justice Secretary's decisions have been reached on the basis of clear evidence and on no other factors."

More news:

http://www.theherald.co.uk/nation...ie_bomber_ruling_on_thursday.php?

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD...omber/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

If the Scottish Government has already told America of their decision and Salmond and MacAskill are still denying this surely they are misleading us Scots:

http://dailymaghreb.blogspot.com/...rahi-to-be-freed-from-prison.html
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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

£120 million private jet on standby to fly Megrahi home:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6802746.ece

It has been suggested to me that the reason Megrahi was absent from his court hearings is:

scotkaz · Joined: 28 Aug 2008 Posts: 527

according to the BBC news I just heard that Mr Mergahi will find out this lunchtime if/when he will be released.

Lockerbie bomber to be told fate

Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi is set to learn whether he will be allowed to return to Libya.

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill is likely to announce his release on compassionate grounds, the BBC revealed last week.

Megrahi, 57, who has served eight years of a life sentence for killing 270 people in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight, has terminal prostate cancer.

Some 189 Americans were among those who died in the airliner explosion.

Mr MacAskill has been under intense pressure from the US government to keep Megrahi behind bars, with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton saying his release would be "absolutely wrong".

Earlier, a letter from seven US senators including Edward Kennedy and John Kerry had urged the Scottish Government to block Megrahi's bid for release.

Brian Taylor BBC Scottish political editor Scottish ministers must hope discontent is primarily aimed at the option of prisoner transfer and not the more likely avenue of compassionate release.

That, I would suggest, is likely to be a tough sell.

US opinion may simply find it difficult to understand why a man convicted of involvement in the death of 270 people, including US citizens, has been released.

Mr MacAskill said on Wednesday he had informed families and other interested parties that he had reached his decision on the applications for compassionate release and a prisoner transfer.

He will announce his decision at 1300 BST at the Scottish Government's ministerial headquarters in Edinburgh.

A spokesman for the administration insisted the decision had been reached "on the basis of clear evidence and on no other factors".

BBC correspondent Peter Hunt said Megrahi was described as having only months left to live.

"Given this prognosis, it's thought that the perpetrator of Britain's biggest terrorist atrocity - who two days ago abandoned his appeal against his sentence - has now spent his last night in a Scottish jail.

"It's expected he will be allowed to return home to die," he added.

It is thought preparations for Mr Megrahi's possible release were being made in time for him to be home with his family in Libya by Ramadan, which starts on Friday.

Chancellor Alistair Darling, standing in for the prime minister while Gordon Brown is on holiday, said it was a decision for the Scottish Government.

On Tuesday, judges at the High Court in Edinburgh who accepted Megrahi's application to drop his appeal were told the Libyan's health had recently worsened very considerably.

Megrahi has recently been serving his sentence at HMP Greenock, in the west of Scotland, after being convicted of the bombing under Scots law at a specially convened court in the Netherlands in 2001.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/scotland/8211003.stm

Published: 2009/08/20 03:27:24 GMT

http://news.scotsman.com/politics...-bomber-Megrahi-set-to.5572026.jp

scotkaz · Joined: 28 Aug 2008 Posts: 527

Wullie

If they are giving out news about him being released today, then I would not be surprised if he has already been removed from Greenock.

I cannot see them releasing him in the glare of the many media who must be outside Greenock prison. Could be wrong though.

Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

Scotkaz

The Media have been at Greenock since yesterday.

Aint it strange that when his family find out he has cancer they all give up their big house in Newton Mearns and move back to Tripoli.

One would have thought they would have wanted to spend as much time with him as possible.

He should never have been forced to abandon his appeal before being given compassion
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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

How fitting Kenny MacAskill starts his announcement by paying tribute to the Police, Courts and Prosecution Services and claims he stands by the conviction of Megrahi.

This is a show of where his loyalties lie.

Megrahi Is free but still guilty, How Sad.
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Angeline · Joined: 02 Oct 2008 Posts: 148

Having just heard McAskill's speech, I have no words to express my emotions.
Ashamed that this farce was carried out in my name, and the name of everyone in Scotland.
Horrified that the dropping of the appeal was referred to as "his (Megrahi's) decision - what choice did he really have?
Utterly disgusted that the dropping of the appeal left McAskill free to refer to Megrahi as having shown no remorse, etc, etc, knowing full well the extent of the doubts over this conviction
and robbed of any sense that Scottish Justice can ever now be seen to have been properly done in this case.
The families of 270 people may never now know the truth about what happened to their loved ones, and the rest of us face the future in the knowledge that those in positions of power, who are supposed to represent our interests, are free to do as they please, regardless of truth, honesty, fairness or justice.
A dark day indeed for Scottish justice.

The only saving grace in all of this is that Mr Megrahi is now free, albeit under a cloud. I wish him and his family the very best in the weeks and months to come.
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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

Angeline

My sentiments exactly.

Scottish Justice will never recover from this fiasco.

His statement that he stands by the conviction certainly has no substance given that the SCCRC investigated for years visiting other countries along the way and investigating thoroughly and they concluded he had possibly suffered a Miscarriage of Justice.

Pity we never got to hear the rest of his appeal grounds.

MacAskill also said he had a duty to listen to Megrahi's representation.

What happenend to this right when my MSP Bill Kidd asked for a meeting to discuss my case.

Where was my right to be able to put my representations regarding the actions of SCCRC and my fight for justice having never had an appeal in this country "My Country" born and bread.

Like you Angeline I am ashamed MacAskill has acted in my name Oppressively
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Big Wullie · Joined: 25 Apr 2007 Posts: 1149 Location: Glasgow

Our Police would not be able to protect Megrahi if he was released in Scotland said MacAskill.

What does this say about all the Witness's under protection by the Scottish Police Forces.

Indeed what does this say about the Security of our Country

How long does a Jet take to come from Libya ?

They already knew yesterday he was being released and not just at 1 pm today as kenny MacAskill states.

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