Lockerbie bomber 'innocent'
2003-08-21 13:27
Cairo - A Libyan agent sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1988 bombing of a US airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland insisted he was innocent in an interview published on Thursday, despite a $2.7bn payout by Tripoli to the victims.
"I don't accept the court's verdict because I am certain of my innocence," Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi told the London-based Arabic daily Asharq al-Awsat.
He added he would "take all legal steps possible, notably by appealing" the verdicts before the Scottish courts.
Megrahi, who is being held in Barlinnie prison near Glasgow, was convicted of the bombing by a special Scottish court sitting in the Netherlands in January 2001.
His appeal was rejected in March 2002, but judicial sources later said Megrahi could lodge a final appeal before Britain's Privy Council.
According to Asharq al-Awsat, Megrahi's lawyer has prepared a "solid case", arguing that his client was denied a fair trial.
Commenting on the original verdict, Megrahi said it was "a surprise for everyone. Amin and I were sure we would be acquitted".
Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah, a second Libyan agent, was acquitted, but in the ruling the three Scottish judges said the evidence showed that Libya had played a role in the attack.
As for conditions in prison, Megrahi said "the guards are treating me better since they realized that I am a simple person and not an international criminal".
On Wednesday, Tripoli began paying out $2.7bn in compensation for the victims after last week accepting responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing in a letter to the UN Security Council paving the way for international sanctions on the country to be lifted.