[This is the heading on a press release issued this evening by the Crown Office. It reads as follows:]
Scottish police and prosecutors have visited Libya to discuss the furtherance of the Lockerbie investigation.
A four-person delegation from the Crown Office and Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary, accompanied by an FBI delegation from Washington, met with senior officials from the Libyan Government in Tripoli on 25 February. [RB: The press reports mentioned below in which Libyan justice ministers are quoted as saying that the Lockerbie case is closed are dated 28 February and 1 March.]
The Lord Advocate, Frank Mulholland QC, said:
"As announced by the Prime Minister on 31 January, visas were granted for Scottish police and prosecutors to travel to Tripoli to meet with their counterparts in progressing the investigation into the Lockerbie bombing.
"Senior officials from Crown Office, Dumfries and Galloway Police and the FBI attended a series of meetings in Tripoli with Ministers and senior officials from the Libyan Government to discuss the ongoing investigation.
"The purpose of the meetings was to discuss US and Scottish requests for co-operation in the ongoing investigation and to agree how these would be progressed. The discussions were positive and it is hoped there will be further progress as a result.
The Libyan authorities did raise the issue of compensation, as today's press reports have indicated, and it was reiterated by the joint delegation that the investigation was focussed on identifying others involved in this act of state sponsored terrorism.
"As the investigation remains live, and in order to preserve the integrity of that investigation, it would not be appropriate to offer further comment".
[The STV News website reports this story under the perceptive headline Libya dismissive of efforts to reopen Lockerbie bombing inquiry.]
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