Remember that “compassionate” release of the man responsible for the Lockerbie explosion of the Pan Am jet? Allegedly he had only a few months to live because of prostate cancer, well miracle of miracles he is still alive. It was as we all suspected – a bribe to Scotland that the feckless Scottish government grabbed at.
by Claire Smith
The Scottish Government was offered a “parade of treats” by the Libyan government in order to secure the release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, according to the latest papers released by WikiLeaks.
Cables from US diplomatic staff reveal that Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, also made explicit and “thuggish” threats to halt trade deals with Britain if Megrahi died in jail – and that senior diplomats feared reprisals on British citizens.
The newly-leaked papers show that ministers, including then foreign secretary Jack Straw, believed that Megrahi could have five years to live – contrary to claims by the Scottish justice secretary, Kenny MacAskill, that he had only months to live.
A spokesman for First Minister Alex Salmond last night dismissed the information contained in the reports as “tittle-tattle”, and said the Scottish Government completely stood by its decision to release Megrahi.
However, he claimed that the leaked cables revealed the former UK government was “playing false on the issue” and that “we were the only ones playing with a straight bat”.
[…]
However, when Mr MacAskill finally announced a “compassionate release” – to a storm of protest the following August – the US ambassador said the Scottish Government had been unprepared for the international backlash. Washington’s ambassador to London, Louis Susman, reported: “It is clear that the Scottish Government underestimated the blowback it would receive in response to Megrahi’s release and is now trying to paint itself as the victim.
“The Scottish Government severely underestimated both US government and UK public reaction to its decision… Alex Salmond has privately indicated that he was ‘shocked’.”
Robin Naysmith, who served as the SNP’s representative in Washington, was also said to have confirmed that Mr Salmond was shocked by the US outcry.
“Naysmith underscored that Scotland received ‘nothing’ for releasing Megrahi, while the UK government has gotten everything – a chance to stick it to Salmond’s SNP and good relations with Libya,” said one leaked cable.
A spokesperson for Mr Salmond last night insisted that the revelations did not contradict earlier statements that there was no commercial reason for Megrahi’s release.
Read the rest here: Gaddafi ‘offered Scots treats’ to free Megrahi
Tags: Claire Smith, Lockerbie, Scotland
