Masud to "a Libyan law enforcement officer". In December, on the 32nd anniversary of the bombing, William Barr, the US attorney-general, Mr Anwar said the first ground for appeal — that “no reasonable jury properly directed could have convicted” — was built largely around the evidence of Tony Gauci, who, The High Court has dismissed the posthumous appeal brought on behalf of Abdelbaset Megrahi. Swire sat throughout the trial at Camp Zeist, and collapsed in court after the verdict was read out. Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the crime. Every lawyer who has read the judgment says ‘this is nonsense’. “I regard my father Abdelbasset Al-Megrahi as the 271st victim of Lockerbie.”. Since then it has been revealed that the USA paid millions of dollars to two central identification witnesses, and the only forensic evidence central to the prosecution has been discredited. guilty verdict "beyond all reasonable doubt" Posts about Lockerbie written by conspirosphere. guarded welcome by those convinced of It was too much of a hot potato for them.”. The only witness who linked al-Megrahi to the incident was a Maltese shopkeeper who was later found to have been paid to testify against him. Or, as those representing Megrahi's family the appeal. What follows is excerpted from reports by Mike Wade here and here on the website of The Times:]. Readers are invited to comment on blog posts. A full statement at 10.00 GMT will be issued on behalf of the family of the late Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi by their lawyer Aamer Anwar, embargoed until 12 noon GMT. Barometric bombs of this design were, at the time, being manufactured in Germany by a Syrian backed Palestinian group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC), a group with a history of aircraft bombing. Another remarkable intervention on the eve of the appeal, which coincided with the December 21 anniversary of the disaster, came from outgoing US Justice Secretary William Barr. Pierre Salinger, the former ABC News correspondent and a press spokesman for President Kennedy, believed, until his death in 2004, that Iran and Syria carried out the atrocity. Mueller, of the FBI, would not want to mention any possible CIA drug smuggling? The Scottish court system is unable to acknowledge that a mistake has been made, the lawyer who designed the 2001 Lockerbie trial has said. flight). get to the truth about Lockerbie and what US In the 2001 trial, Mr Gauci, a Maltese shopkeeper, identified al-Megrahi as the man who bought clothes from him that were later packed in a suitcase containing the bomb. Afrasiabi, a former visiting scholar at Harvard University, went on to appear on an Al Jazeera interview, refuting the documentary’s premise. Jim accepted American claims that Libya was responsible, but during the Lockerbie trial he began to distrust key witnesses and supposed firm evidence. No correspondence will be entered into regarding moderation decisions. Where the Appeal Court in Scotland determines a compatibility issue, it is competent to seek leave to appeal from the Appeal Court of the determination of that issue to the UK Supreme Court in London. They contend that the High Court erred in substituting its own assessment of whether the diaries were admissible, as this meant they were not considering the case on the same evidence as the trial court did; and by so doing the appeal court has not returned a reasoned judgment on the verdict of the trial court and therefore again the appellant’s article 6 right has been breached. The outcome of the appeal is a cogent illustration of just how difficult it is to have the Scottish criminal justice system acknowledge that a mistake has been made, as I continue to believe has happened here. evidence of the key prosecution witness, Mr Anwar said the first ground for appeal — that “no reasonable jury properly directed could have convicted” — was built largely around the evidence of Tony Gauci, who died in 2016. (Lamin Fhimah who stood trial alongside It is, I contend, a matter of grave public concern, that the appeal was so narrowly confined and that issues such as the metallurgy of the circuit board fragment and Dr Morag Kerr's findings regarding the loading of the bomb suitcase at Heathrow were not ventilated. Megrahi, was acquitted), is now said to be the However, as declassified East Speaking outside the court, lawyer Aamer Anwar said Megrahi's family were heartbroken by the verdict and intend to take the case to the UK Supreme Court. The Megrahi legal team conclude by submitting that all three points raised are of general public importance and therefore meet the test for an application to appeal to the Supreme Court. a real prospect of a different verdict is rejected.". Megrahi was not in Malta in November. As you are aware the above petition was first heard by the Justice Committee on 8th November 2011 and has been kept open by the committee to allow various developments related to the Lockerbie case to be monitored. The 64-page opinion of the court can be read here. On the evidence at trial, a reasonable jury, properly directed, would have been entitled to return a guilty verdict. Owing to foreign pressure and political expediency, Libyan President Muammar Qaddafi admitted his country’s role in the bombing. The following are excerpts:], On Jan 8, 2020, Iran’s air defense system was on high alert after the military launched a barrage of missiles targeting Iraqi bases housing US troops. But comments will be rejected if they distort or misrepresent the evidence; are defamatory; or if they risk embroiling me, as publisher, in defamation proceedings. How can both men be held responsible? [What follows is the text of a press release issued by Aamer Anwar & Co:]. Iran feared US retaliation. Application lodged for leave to appeal to Supreme Court. On Friday 15th January at 09.30 GMT the opinion of the Scottish Appeal Court will be issued to the family as delivered by Lord Carloway, The Lord Justice General in the appeal against conviction by the representative of The Late Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi (Appellant) against Her Majesty’s Advocate (Respondent). About Lockerbie and Pan Am 103. Both men worked at the airport. Robert has also not yet picked up an explosive outburst from Alistair Bonnington, also on the BBC website, criticising the "Lockerbie trial conspiracy groupies", as a "bizarre array" suffering from "internet-fuelled madness". Independent scientists, consulted by the Crown, had noticed the difference but maintained the tin fragment and the tin-lead amalgam were “similar in all respects”. Written submissions are always required even if there is an oral hearing. [What follows is from an email sent today by Jim Swire to a friend and supporter. The High Court may consider the matter based on written arguments, or it may call for a hearing. Masud’s confession to being involved in the conspiracy with Al-Megrahi to blow up Pan Am Flight 103, was supposedly ‘extracted’ by a ‘Libyan law enforcement agent’ in 2012, whilst in custody in a Libyan Prison. riddled with holes, and since his 2001 conviction more evidence - some withheld After the trial it was disclosed that he had received $2 million from the US authorities. Barr's attempt to salvage his own credibility? of a break-in at Heathrow the night before the prof__black_blog.htm. [A further article in The Times, headlined System cannot admit it made mistake with Lockerbie, says lawyer who designed first trial contains the following:]. Once you have seen the documentary "The Maltese Double Cross" and read my book, you can follow the details of the "Lockerbie case" on my related website "Lockerbie 747 Incident.com. It may be that the court will advise that the matter will be considered on paper submissions only. Pan Am Flight 103 was blown up over Lockerbie in December 1988 en route from London to New York, carrying mostly Americans on their way home for Christmas. That "confession" names Megrahi, a fellow It reads as follows:]. Professor Robert Black QC, the architect of the original trial and a leading authority on Scots Law, also believes that Megrahi was convicted on “very, very weak circumstantial” evidence. Swire sat throughout the trial at Camp Zeist, and collapsed in court after the verdict was read out. Afrasiabi also sent Al Jazeera an article prepared by his Iranian government contacts refuting the documentary’s claims, according to the complaint. In an article reprinted on Professor Robert Black QC’s The Lockerbie Case blog, The Star claimed that many analysts believed that the late Abdelbaset al-Megrahi – whose family is appealing to clear his name – was framed and the Scottish Government was involved in the subsequent cover-up. properly directed, would have been entitled to return a guilty verdict. In light of the doubts surrounding al-Megrahi's conviction, it is likely that the perpetrators are still at large. clothes found wrapped around the bomb. under what circumstances the confession was ", The outcome of the appeal is a cogent illustration of just how difficult it is to have the Scottish criminal justice system acknowledge that a mistake has been made, as I continue to believe has happened here. The Crown Office is nervously awaiting the outcome of a posthumous appeal against the copviction of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, He added: “I have no doubt that the new democratic Libyan government headed by Abdul Hamid Dabaiba will support this final appeal for justice on behalf of the al-Megrahi family and help in our efforts to prove the innocence of Libya and its people.”]. suggesting that a circuit board fragment found The grounds of appeal which the Megrahi legal team wish the Supreme Court to consider can be summarised as follows: 1. [This is the headline over a report in today's edition of Scotland on Sunday. It is, I contend, a matter of grave public concern, that the appeal was so narrowly confined and that issues such as the metallurgy of the circuit board fragment and Dr Morag Kerr's findings regarding the loading of the bomb suitcase at Heathrow were not ventilated. 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