Washington: US President Barack Obama has asked Libya to keep Abdel Basset Mohamed al-Megrahi, the main convict of the Pan-Am Flight 103 that killed 207 people including 189 Americans, under house arrest even as politicians cutting across party lines expressed their outrage over his release.
"We are now in contact with the Libyan government, and want to make sure that if in fact this transfer has taken place, that he`s not welcomed back in some way, but instead should be under house arrest," Obama said in a radio interview as Megrahi reached his home in Libya.
Expressing his displeasure over the release of Megrahi by the Scottish Government, Obama said his administration has been in contact with them indicating that the US would object to this. "We thought it was a mistake," he said.
"We have also obviously been in contact with the families of the Pan Am victims, and indicated to them that we don`t think this was appropriate," he said.
The former Libyan intelligence officer was convicted in 2001 of taking part in the bombing on December 21, 1988, and sentenced to life in prison for Britain`s deadliest terrorist attack. The airliner exploded over Scotland and all 259 people aboard and 11 on the ground died when it crashed into the town of Lockerbie.
He was sentenced to serve a minimum of 27 years in a Scottish prison. But a 2007 review of his case found grounds for an appeal, and many in Britain believe he is innocent. He served only eight years.
Bureau Report
