Year later, Obama administration seeks return to Scottish prison for Lockebie bomber
By APFriday, August 20, 2010
Obama seeks reimprisonment for Lockerbie bomber
VINEYARD HAVEN, Mass. — The Obama administration asked Friday that the only person convicted for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 be returned to a Scottish prison.
John Brennan, President Barack Obama’s counterterrorism adviser, told reporters accompanying the vacationing leader that the U.S. has “expressed our strong conviction” to Libyan officials that Abdel Baset Al-Megrahi should not remain free. The comments came on the first anniversary of Al-Megrahi’s release.
Brennan criticized what he termed the “unfortunate and inappropriate and wrong decision,” and added: “We’ve expressed our strong conviction that Al-Begrahi should serve out the remainder — the entirety — of his sentence in a Scottish prison.”
Al-Megrahi was ordered in 2001 to serve 27 years in prison for the bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, but was freed on Aug. 20 of last year on compassionate grounds. He was said to suffer from cancer and had just months to live.
The bombing killed 259 people onboard — mostly Americans — and 11 on the ground.
