Kenny MacAskill, the former Scottish justice secretary, has expressed his firm belief in the involvement of Libyan national Abu Agila Masud in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.
MacAskill, who faced criticism for releasing Abdelbaset al-Megrahi the only person convicted for the disaster that killed 270 people on compassionate grounds in 2009, has now spoken out about another suspect.
Despite controversy over al-Megrahi’s release due to terminal cancer diagnosis, prosecutors have insisted that he did not act alone in the attack.
With Abu Agila Masud set to face trial in the US next year, MacAskill told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland: “I have always believed he is the bomber.”
On the anniversary of the tragedy, he remarked: “He was always viewed as the man who was the bomber because of his what you might call military skills, so he has been taken by the United States, Libya handed him over.”
“He has returned and will face trial in America, I believe he will be convicted, and he is the bomber.”
MacAskill also noted: “Megrahi himself didn’t have the skills to do so, but that doesn’t mean Megrahi didn’t have a role in the operation.”
While Mr MacAskill faced backlash from US families affected by the tragedy over his choice to grant Megrahi compassionate release, the former justice secretary maintained that his decision had adhered to Scottish “followed the values and laws we uphold in Scotland”.
Having been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer, medical experts informed Mr MacAskill in 2009 that Megrahi’s life expectancy was mere months.
Consequently, Mr MacAskill authorised his release in August 2009 – although Megrahi eventually passed away nearly three years later, in May 2012.
Mr MacAskill explained: “We do have rules for compassionate release which exist in Scotland. It is dealt with by medial experts, the report came in that he had a prognosis of three months. It was on that basis I released him.”
“He was no threat to Scotland, he was a sick man, he lived considerably longer than the prognosis but I think there is reasons for that.”
Furthermore, he stated: “I followed the values and laws we uphold in Scotland and sent him home to see out the rest of his life.”
Back in 1988, a catastrophic explosion occurred when Pan Am flight 103 was destroyed above the Scottish town. The devastating attack took the lives of 259 passengers and crew members, in addition to 11 people on the ground.
Masud allegedly played a role in constructing the bomb and will face a Washington trial come May 2025 to address the three charges levied against him, which he vehemently denies. Scotland’s most senior prosecutor, Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC, recently reflected on the upcoming trial, stating that it would allow a comprehensive understanding of the tragic incident.
She shared: “The original trial at the Scottish court in the Netherlands considered Crown evidence from 227 witnesses over 72 days. Megrahi was convicted and that decision has been upheld twice at appeal.”
“The forthcoming trial in Washington will bring the facts of this case before the public again and the circumstances of what happened can be fully understood.”
Further, Scottish Secretary Ian Murray commented on the sombre anniversary of the Lockerbie bombing: “Thirty-six years on from the terrible tragedy of the Lockerbie bombing, it is right that we take time to remember those who lost their lives, and indeed all those affected by what happened that night.”
“Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the 270 who perished in the air and on the ground, and all those in the town who saw such devastation rain down on them.”
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