Monday 10 September 2012

David Miliband on Megrahi

"Al-Megrahi was the man behind the bombing," and "Al-Megrahi's release [in the Lockerbie bombing case] was obviously wrong," says former UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband in an interview on Aljazeera English.

Mr Miliband has clearly not read John Ashton’s Megrahi: You are my Jury or Dr Morag Kerr’s Lockerbie: Fact and Fiction or watched Aljazeera’s documentary Lockerbie: Case Closed.

Until now David Miliband’s best-known contribution to the Lockerbie case was his signing of a public interest immunity (PII) certificate in the context of Abdelbaset Megrahi’s second appeal in an attempt to prevent disclosure of a document (relating to timers) that had been in the hands of the Crown since 1996 (before the Lockerbie trial) but which was never divulged to the defence (as the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission believes it should have been). His conduct in this matter was the subject of an editorial in the Sunday Herald headlined Miliband has made Lockerbie appeal a mockery of justice.

3 comments:

  1. Megrahi was "the man behind the bombing"? What's that even supposed to mean? He was supposed to have personally bought the clothes in the bomb suitcase, but the SCCRC report pretty much demolished that. It was a silly suggestion in the first place, given how flawed the identification was, and how ridiculous was the idea that the alleged "Mr. Big" would do that sort of errand-boy job himself.

    He was supposed to have been at the airport when the bomb was smuggled on board the plane, although there was no evidence he'd done anything that morning other than catch his own flight.

    Now, though, there is enough evidence available to show beyond reasonable doubt that the bomb was introduced at Heathrow. No wonder the cops got the wrong man. Not much use conducting an in-depth investigation on Malta if the bomber was in London that day.

    I think Miliband needs to get up to speed on the evidence, rather than dutifully regurgitating what the Crown Ofice or whoever is telling him.

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  2. It appears that Rolfe and Susan Cohen share closed minds on Lockerbie, because she is adamant that Megrahi was guilty and Rolfe is adamant that it was an IED - and both describe those who disagree as mad!

    I’m sure both are sincere and not mad, but it is normal to retain an open mind until a public enquiry is held.


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  3. It is normal to retain an open mind until one has seen sufficient evidence to allow a conclusion to be reached. I have seen sufficient evidence to allow the conclusion to be reached that the "Bedford suitcase" was the bomb, beyond reasonable doubt.

    This is evidence which the Crown chose not to lead at the trial. Go figure.

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