U.K. officials greased Lockerbie bomber's release, report finds

[sabra]

Source: MSNBC

Facing 'commercial warfare' by Libya, Brits pressured Scots to free 'unrepentant terrorist'

WASHINGTON — Intense political pressures and "commercial warfare" waged by the regime of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi led to last year’s release of the "unrepentant terrorist" who blew up Pam Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, according to a new report prepared by four U.S. senators.

The report is being released Tuesday, 22 years to the day after a terrorist bomb exploded aboard the Pan Am airliner, killing 270 people — including 189 Americans — in one of the deadliest acts of domestic terrorism prior to 9/11.

An advance copy of the report – titled "Justice Undone: The Release of the Lockerbie Bomber" — was provided to NBC News.

The report finds that senior officials under former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown quietly and repeatedly pressured Scottish authorities to release Abdel Baset Ali al-al-Megrahi, the former Libyan intelligence officer convicted of the bombing.

They did so in order to protect British business interests in Libya, including a $900 million BP oil deal that the Libyans had threatened to cut off, as well as a $165 million arms sale with a British defense firm that was signed the same month al-Megrahi was freed from prison, the report states.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40760074/ns/us_news-security/

[KansDem]

1. It's all about "business" anymore, isn't it?

Dick Cheney escapes accountability in Nigeria with a $250 million payoff from Halliburton, and now Abdel Baset Ali al-al-Megrahi escapes full accountability in order to shore up "business interests" between Libya and BP.

Where's our former "B" film actor turned clueless statesman and his slogan, "I'm from the Corporation and I'm here to help"

[Wilms]

4. You may want to research the evidence tampering by the FBI.

It may make you wonder what really happened.

Just sayin'.

[dipsydoodle]

2. It remained Scotland's decision.

.

[rfranklin]

3. As Captain Renault said " I am shocked"

Terror is only taken seriously when it can be used to terrorize the populace for political purposes.

[Nihil]

5. There were some lies that *even* Blair & Brown couldn't stand repeating.

> The report finds that senior officials under former British Prime Ministers
> Tony Blair and Gordon Brown quietly and repeatedly pressured Scottish authorities
> to release Abdel Baset Ali al-al-Megrahi, the former Libyan intelligence officer
> convicted of the bombing.

They knew that the forthcoming appeal would have cleared Megrahi and led to a
*serious* bout of "So WTF really happened?" ... a bout that neither they nor
the various security agencies (UK & US) would have had a chance of surviving.

The decision was made (correctly IMO) by the Scottish authorities but with the
definite (if sotto voce) approval of the UK government.