Today's Channel 4 News Lockerbie revelations

[What follows is the text of an item posted tonight on John Ashton’s website Megrahi: You are my Jury:]

There follows the text of a press release issued this afternoon by Channel 4 News. I shall be releasing the documents upon which the report is based on this blog at 7.30 pm. [RB: The documents in question have now been released by John Ashton. They can be accessed here. An introduction to them by Mr Ashton can be read here.]

REVEALED:

Secret CIA testimony identifies true Lockerbie mastermind

Strictly Embargoed: 6.00pm Friday, 20 December 2013

Please credit Channel 4 News with all content used

Documents released for the first time today reveal that both high-level Syrian officials and the CIA independently stated that a Syrian-based Palestinian group, not Libya, was responsible for the Lockerbie bombing.

An exclusive report to be broadcast on Channel 4 News reveals that a deep cover CIA agent was told by up to 15 high-level Syrian officials, and the CIA itself, that a Syrian-based Palestinian group, rather than Libya, was responsible for Lockerbie.

The documents which will feature in tonight’s programme, were made in two US court depositions by CIA agent Dr Richard Fuisz in late 2000 and early 2001.

Fuisz stated that in 1989 he was briefed by the CIA that the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command had carried out the bombing. More importantly, he added that, between 1990 and 1995, 10 to 15 senior Syrian officials also told him that the group was responsible. He said that the officials interacted with the PFLP-GC’s leader, Ahmed Jibril, ‘on a constant basis’ and that he was the mastermind behind the bombing.

Fuisz gave a deposition at the request of defence lawyers for Abdelbaset al-Megrahi and Lamin Fhimah, who were, at the time, on trial for the bombing. However, the revelations came too late to be used at the trial, which ended within days of the second hearing. Three unnamed CIA officers and a US department of justice lawyer were present throughout the hearings, ensuring that Fuisz was prevented from answering many of the questions.

The PFLP-GC were the original prime suspects in the bombing. Declassified US intelligence documents claim that the group was paid by the Iranian government to avenge the 290 lives lost when Iran Air flight 665 was accidentally shot down by a US battleship of over the Persian Gulf a few months before Lockerbie. Members of the PFLP-GC were arrested in West Germany two months before Lockerbie. During the raids the police recovered a Toshiba radio-cassette player containing a barometric bomb. Forensic investigators determined that the Lockerbie bomb had also been contained in a Toshiba radio-cassette player.

The transcripts of the hearings, and related documents, are being released by Scotland’s Shame author John Ashton, who found them earlier this year in the Libyans’ legal files. Mr Ashton has been involved a Channel 4 News item about the new evidence, which will be broadcast tonight.

Mr Ashton said today: ‘This evidence is yet another indication that the real Lockerbie bombers got away and that Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was wrongly convicted. The British and American governments declared in 1991 that Libya was solely responsible for the bombing, yet for years after senior Syrians were saying that the PFLP-GC was responsible. It seems it was an open secret that the real bombers lay outside Libya.’

[An accompanying article on Mr Ashton’s website can be read here.]

Lockerbie bombing: Megrahi relatives want to appeal

[This is the headline over a report published this evening on the BBC News website.  It reads as follows:]

The family of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi has told the BBC they want to appeal against his conviction.

Megrahi died at his home in Tripoli in May last year from terminal cancer. He had always protested his innocence.

His brother Abdel-Hakim Al-Megrahi said the family "wanted the truth to be revealed".

He also said he was hopeful the Libyan government would help to fund the appeal.

In an interview with the BBC's Libya correspondent Rana Jawad, he said: 

"Yes, we want to appeal and we wish for the truth to be revealed and this is not just for our own benefit but also for the benefit of the families of the victims and for public opinion.

"We need to know who committed this horrible crime. But, as you know, we as a family cannot afford to pay for the appeals process.

"God-willing, the Libyan government will do this, but it has to be launched by the family first. As a family, we want to appeal; we want the Lockerbie files to reopen to know who is responsible.

"He said the family were sure the Libyan government would help to fund the appeal because clearing his brother of committing the atrocity would also be "an acquittal for all Libyans and Libya".

"At the moment, it is perhaps difficult for the Libyan government to help us," he added.

"But we hope, and we are very optimistic, that when the government stabilises it will help us because the Lockerbie problem is not an individual or family issue, but rather a Libya problem."

"My brother Abdelbaset could not have committed this heinous crime. He could never hurt any single person, let alone 271 innocent victims".

Abdel-Hakim Al-Megrahi insisted his brother had not been a Libyan intelligence officer, and claimed he had instead been a graduate in aviation engineering who had been employed by Libyan Airlines.

He added: "However, if he was used [as a scapegoat] for this problem [Lockerbie] - it's possible that he was used because the Gaddafi regime used to use any Libyan. In truth Libya was like a farm for Gaddafi and his sons and as Libyan nationals, we were like slaves - we couldn't say "no". We couldn't, this is the truth.

"But I assure you, and with reference to all the universities my brother studied in, be it in the US, Britain and Pakistan - he is a graduate of aviation engineering."

Megrahi was found guilty at a trial in 2001, and jailed for life. His co-accused Al-amin Khalifa Fimah was acquitted.

Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died when the Pan-Am flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie in 1988, said earlier this week that some families of those who died may seek a fresh appeal against Megrahi's conviction.

Mr Swire believes that Megrahi was wrongfully convicted of the atrocity.

But Scottish and US investigators stand by the evidence presented at his trial and are pursuing other potential suspects.

In a BBC interview on Monday, the Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland said "the conviction stands".

"We were ready to meet the arguments and challenges that Mr Megrahi and his lawyers were placing before the court," he said.

"If there's any further evidence, if anyone's got any concerns about it, they should make it known to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission."

The 25th anniversary of the bombing, which claimed 270 lives, will be marked in ceremonies in the US and the UK on Saturday. 

[An application to the SCCRC by members of Megrahi's family would have considerably higher chances of avoiding the problems and pitfalls that I mentioned earlier today than an application by relatives of Lockerbie victims.]

Lockerbie: US intelligence maintained doubt about Libya's role

This is the headline over a report published today on the Exaro News website.  A sub-heading reads “Secret documents show how US privately retained view that Iran was behind bombing” even after Libya was being publicly identified by the US and UK as responsible for the attack.

The relevant intelligence documents were discussed and analysed more than two years ago by Dr Davina Miller in her seminal article Who Knows About This? Western Policy Towards Iran: The Lockerbie Case which featured at the time on this blog.

A new SCCRC application: problems and pitfalls

[In the light of recent speculation that a further application may be made to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission with a view to securing a third appeal to the High Court of Justiciary against the conviction of Abdelbaset Megrahi, I set out the legislative provisions that are in force, or are likely to be in force when any such application comes to be considered. 

The Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Act 2010 (the Cadder Act) currently provides as follows:]

7 References by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission

(1) The 1995 Act [the Criminal Procedure (Scotland Act 1995] is amended as follows.

(2) In section 194B (SCCRC's power to refer cases to the High Court), in subsection (1), before “the case” insert “ , subject to section 194DA of this Act, ”.

(3) In section 194C (grounds for reference)—

(a) the existing words become subsection (1), and

(b) after that subsection, insert—

“(2) In determining whether or not it is in the interests of justice that a reference should be made, the Commission must have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings.”.

(4) After section 194D, insert—

“194DA High Court's power to reject a reference made by the Commission

(1) Where the Commission has referred a case to the High Court under section 194B of this Act, the High Court may, despite section 194B(1), reject the reference if the Court considers that it is not in the interests of justice that any appeal arising from the reference should proceed.

(2) In determining whether or not it is in the interests of justice that any appeal arising from the reference should proceed, the High Court must have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings.

(3) On rejecting a reference under this section, the High Court may make such order as it considers necessary or appropriate.”.

[In other words the SCCRC, in determining whether it is in the interests of justice to refer a conviction to the High Court, must have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings. Likewise, even if the SCCRC refers a case, the High Court itself may refuse to hear the appeal as not being in the interests of justice, having regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings.

However, the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill currently before the Scottish Parliament and due to complete Stage 1 of its parliamentary progress on 28 February 2014, will make the following changes to the law:]

82 References by SCCRC

(1) The 1995 Act is amended as follows.

(2) In section 194B—

(a) in subsection (1), for “section 194DA of this Act” there is substituted “subsection (1A)”.

(b) after subsection (1) there is inserted—

“(1A) Where the Commission has referred a case to the High Court under subsection (1), the High Court may not quash a conviction or sentence unless the Court considers that it is in the interests of justice to do so.

(1B) In determining whether or not it is in the interests of justice that any case is disposed of as mentioned in subsection (1A), the High Court must have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings.”.

(3) The title of section 194B becomes “References by the Commission”.

(4) Section 194DA is repealed.

[In other words, if this Bill is enacted the SCCRC, in determining whether it is in the interests of justice to refer a conviction to the High Court, must still have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings.  But if the Commission makes a reference, the High Court will no longer have the power to refuse to hear the appeal on “finality and certainty” grounds; though, once the appeal has been heard, the High Court must have regard to the need for finality and certainty in the determination of criminal proceedings before deciding that it is in the interests of justice to allow the appeal and quash the conviction.

There is, of course, a further problem, even if the SCCRC referred the conviction back to the High Court.  Abdelbaset Megrahi is dead. Who would conduct any posthumous appeal on his behalf?  The relevant statutory provision is section 303A of the 1995 Act:]

(1) Where a person convicted of an offence has died, any person may, subject to the provisions of this section, apply to the High Court for an order authorising him to institute or continue any appeal which could have been or has been instituted by the deceased.

(2) An application for an order under this section may be lodged with the Clerk of Justiciary within three months of the deceased’s death or at such later time as the Court may, on cause shown, allow. (...)

(4) Where an application is made for an order under this section and the applicant—

(a) is an executor of the deceased; or

(b) otherwise appears to the Court to have a legitimate interest,

the Court shall make an order authorising the applicant to institute or continue any appeal which could have been instituted or continued by the deceased; and, subject to the provisions of this section, any such order may include such ancillary or supplementary provision as the Court thinks fit.

(5) The person in whose favour an order under this section is made shall from the date of the order be afforded the same rights to carry on the appeal as the deceased enjoyed at the time of his death and, in particular, where any time limit had begun to run against the deceased the person in whose favour an order has been made shall have the benefit of only that portion of the time limit which remained unexpired at the time of the death.

(6) In this section “appeal” includes any sort of application, whether at common law or under statute, for the review of any conviction, penalty or other order made in respect of the deceased in any criminal proceedings whatsoever.

[If a successful application to the SCCRC were made eg by a relative of a Lockerbie victim, would the High Court regard such a person as having “a legitimate interest”? It is fervently to be hoped that the court would not refuse to recognise someone like Dr Jim Swire as having a legitimate interest. But there can be no guarantee of this.  These obstacles go some way towards explaining why the institution by the Scottish Government of an independent inquiry into the Lockerbie investigation and prosecution and the conviction of Megrahi has been and remains my preferred option.]

Crown Office accused of a cruel and cynical strategy of delay

[What follows is the text of an item posted earlier this week on the Lockerbie Truth website of Dr Jim Swire and Peter Biddulph:]

It is now two years and two months since Gaddafi was slaughtered by Libyan rebel forces.

Since that day, formerly secret files held in Gaddafi's compound and state security offices have been pored over by the CIA, FBI and British MI6.

All were, and still are, studying the actions of Gaddafi's regime and his state security services headed by Moussa Koussa.

Focusing on Lockerbie, retiring FBI Chief Robert Mueller confirmed yesterday: "We have FBI agents working full-time to track down every lead, as we have since it occurred 25 years ago."  

Gaddafi's files were readily available at the end of the Libyan conflict. For example, Human Rights Watch trawled through them more than a year ago to reveal Gaddafi's brutal regime of imprisonment and torture.

We might also ask what, throughout these two years, has emerged by way of evidence regarding the Lockerbie bombing of December 21st 1988?

If evidence had been found to add to the prosecution case surely the intelligence services would have made it public by one means or another?

And yet they have remained silent. It is therefore a fair conclusion that they have so far found nothing.

For the Scottish Crown Office, however, this is not enough. They persist in pure hope, hope that something, just something, might possibly, hopefully emerge to justify their denial of the truth:-

Namely:

1. The key forensic witness in the Lockerbie trial, Allen Feraday, gave false evidence about the fragment of bomb timer said to have been found at Lockerbie, and

2. The only identification witness, Maltese shopkeeper Tony Gauci, had secretly badgered the US and Scottish police throughout a two year investigation, for the US offer of "unlimited monies" in exchange for his evidence.

Whatever might be discovered by further searches in Libya, one thing is clear: it is not enough to record "witness statements". The Lockerbie trial record is littered with dozens of such, all regarded by the judges as mere hearsay.

What justice requires is hard facts.  And these, in the conviction of Al-Megrahi, have proved to be non-existent.  

The Scottish Crown tactics are now clear. They possess a cruel and cynical strategy of delay. And by such delay a belief that campaigners who wish to find the truth of Lockerbie will soon be dead or infirm.

They have pursued this strategy over the thirteen years that have elapsed since the trial. A further five or ten years would be an easy achievement.

Their latest move is to negotiate with Libya for the appointment of "two Lockerbie investigators", in the hope that something might turn up.

We quote: "Scottish investigators have said they hoped the Libyan revolution, which deposed Col Muammar Gaddafi in August 2011, would open up new lines of inquiry."

So, for the Americans and the Scottish Crown Office it's all a matter of hope. Or is it, as many are now beginning to believe, a cynical attempt to kick the ball once again into the green green grass of Libya?

Libyan and Scottish views on appointment of Libyan prosecutors to Lockerbie investigation

[Yesterday’s edition of The Tripoli Post carries a report about the appointment of two Libyan prosecutors to join the “ongoing Lockerbie investigation”. It is perhaps significant that this report, unlike those in most of the UK media, draws attention to the doubts that exist about the responsibility of Megrahi and Libya for the Lockerbie bombing.  The article reads as follows:]

Libya is said to be ready to let US and British investigators to question Gaddafi's former intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senoussi over the Lockerbie bombing, with Libyan Justice Minister Salah Margani saying his government will allow the investigators to question him, over what they believe is his complicity in the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland, in which 270 people died.

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, who died last year, is the only person convicted in the attack, but many questions surrounding the bombing have once again arisen and remain unanswered that could in the end prove that Meghrahi might have been innocent of the crime. If Libya were responsible for the atrocity, al-Senoussi could be a critical source of information.

[Salah] Margani [the Libyan Minister of Justice] has been reported telling Britain's ITV News that it was "the intention" to allow investigators to question al-Senoussi. However, Britain's Foreign Office would not comment.

Meanwhile, a few days ago, an Egyptian terrorist, Mohammed Abu Talb - who is serving life in prison for a series of bombings, has been revealed as a likely suspect in the devastating attack. He has been named in a private investigation called Operation Bird.

The investigation - put forward as a report by Forensic Investigative Associates in London – alleges that he was behind the blast that took place on board Pan Am Flight 103. According to the The Sunday People and Exaro it also accuses the CIA of covering up Talb's role in the atrocity.

The [investigation] is reported to have been commissioned by lawyers for Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, who was jailed in 2001 for masterminding the bombing.

If the report is correct, it means al-Megrahi - who died of cancer aged 60 last year after being controversially freed from jail in 2009 – may, as many believe, have been wrongly imprisoned.

Investigators claim key pieces of evidence in the case against al-Megrahi - including a fragment of circuit board for a timer - were faked.

[Here is what the Scottish Crown Office has to say about the appointment of the Libyan prosecutors in a message to relatives of Lockerbie victims:]

We can confirm that following a series of meetings and correspondence with senior representatives of the Libyan Government, the Libyan Attorney General has appointed two prosecutors to the case. They will work with the UK and US prosecutors and law enforcement agencies in the ongoing investigation into the involvement of others with Abdelbaset al-Megrahi in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103.

This is obviously a very welcome development and we are working with our Libyan colleagues to arrange a meeting as soon as practicable.

As the investigation remains live, and in order to preserve the integrity of that investigation, we cannot offer any further comment but will endeavour to keep you all updated whenever possible.

We are all thinking of you as the 25th anniversary of the loss of your loved ones approaches.

Lockerbie: Salmond confirms court can still review Megrahi's conviction

[This is the headline over a report published this afternoon on the Herald Scotland website.  It reads as follows:]

Abdelbaset al Megrahi's conviction for the Lockerbie bombing could still be reviewed even after his death, Scotland's First Minister has confirmed as the 25th anniversary approaches.

The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) can refer cases back to court even after the death of the convicted individual, Alex Salmond told MSPs.

Megrahi protested his innocence until his death in May last year, three years after he was sent home to Libya on compassionate grounds following a diagnosis of terminal prostate cancer.

SCCRC reviews can be requested post-mortem by the family of the convict or by the families of the victims.

Megrahi's family in Libya "could be risking their lives" if they pursue a fresh appeal against the conviction, according to Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died in the bombing in December 1988.

Dr Swire will attend a meeting of the UK Families Flight 103 group in the new year to consider whether to appeal against the conviction on behalf of the UK families.

The US Victims of Pan Am Flight 103 group does not share the British families' belief that Megrahi may have been innocent, with many publicly opposing the campaign to reopen the case.

The UK families will also consider whether a public inquiry is the best route to get answers at their meeting next year, although Dr Swire conceded that approach may ultimately fail.

Their hopes for an inquiry were dealt a fresh blow today by the First Minister, who insisted that a court of law is the only place to test Megrahi's conviction, but he also confirmed the court route was not completely closed.

Speaking at First Minister's Questions, SNP MSP Christine Grahame, convener of Holyrood's justice committee, said: "I am a signatory to the Justice for Megrahi campaign, concerned that the wrong man and possibly the wrong nation was in the dock.

"Will the First Minister write to the Prime Minister requesting a joint inquiry into all aspects of the atrocity?

"If the Prime Minister does not agree, will his Government take the lead and instigate an inquiry into the devolved issues such as the policing and the Crown Office actions, which might at last kick-start a full UK inquiry, which is what I would suggest the victims' families really require?"

Mr Salmond said: "There are live investigations into the crime to see if others can be brought to account.

"The Scottish Government has not written to the UK Government asking for a joint inquiry.

"Mr al Megrahi was convicted in a court of law, and the conviction was upheld by the appeal court.

"We have made it clear that our view is the only place that Mr al Megrahi's conviction could be upheld or overturned is in a court of law.

"There are established procedures in place as part of the checks and balances in our justice system that allow the SCCRC to consider referring a case back to court.

"It is important to note that the processes can be used even after Mr al Megrahi is deceased."

He said the debate over Megrahi's conviction should not overshadow the commemorations of the bombing on Saturday, 25 years to the day since it happened.

"The local community in Lockerbie will be commemorating the tragic events of a quarter of a century ago," he said.

"I will be attending a wreath-laying ceremony in memory of all of those who were lost in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 on Saturday.

"There will be ministerial attendance at the evening service at the church, the commemorative service at Westminster Abbey in London and the memorial service at Arlington national cemetery in Washington.

"One of the themes of the memorial event in Washington is to look forward, and that will involve students in Lockerbie and Syracuse University which lost 35 students in the tragedy.

"The Scottish Government will make a contribution of £60,000 towards the fund that allows Lockerbie students to study at the university in the US."