NM Exclusive: Lockerbie Families Decry Bomber's Release
Yesterday, the Scottish government released Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the only person to be convicted in the terrorist attack on Pan Am Flight 103, destroyed by a bomb in the air over Lockerbie, Scotland. NewMajority made contact with families of the murdered to hear their reactions.
A large majority of the American families believed it wrong that nobody other than al-Megrahi had been brought to justice. Western intelligence services all agree that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi ordered the attack. Family members insist that Gaddafi himself should have somehow been brought to justice. Peter Lowenstein, who lost his son Alexander, said: “[Gaddafi] should be in prison. He is the guilty culprit. It (the terrorist act) was initiated by the Colonel.” Bob Monetti, who lost his son Rick, concurred and explained that “he (Gaddafi) is a terrorist and people should not forget it.”
The families are offended that Gaddafi was allowed to rehabilitate himself internationally in return for surrendering the two operatives who (probably) placed the bomb. Family members were stunned when they found out that Gaddafi was going to be allowed to speak before the United Nations in September. Susan Cohen was particularly upset that President Obama shook Gaddafi’s hand.
All of the family members interviewed felt that Magrahi’s release is the exact reason why Guantanamo Bay terrorists should not be released to other countries. When the operatives were surrendered, a deal was struck: If convicted, the men would serve their sentence in a Scottish prison; Scotland in turn undertook to hold them for the duration of their sentence. Scotland has now broken its tacit deal with the United States. The Lockerbie families all agreed with Congressman Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) who stated that “Magrahi’s release shows what a bad idea it is to allow other countries to control the terrorists’ destiny… It’s foolish to surrender terrorists to other countries."