Slaughter of civilians brought a resignation from Mustapha Abdel Jalil, who had been Libya's Minister of Justice. Now he says he has proof that Gaddafi ordered the bombers, including Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, to take down an airliner.
Pan Am Flight 103 out of Heathrow on December 21, 1988, exploded in mid-air killing 259 people on the plane and another 11 on the ground in Scotland.
Jalil's allegation of recorded comversations has reopened controversy over Blair and Brown working to release the bomber. President Obama weighed in to brand Gaddafi's current actions criminal. The American Sixth Fleet is now positioned in the Mediterranean with two aircraft carriers, close enough to be of use.
Details BTF. al-Jazeera liveblog mirrored and linked :::
If you want to know what is happening then al-Jazeera is # 1:
11.49pm: Britain's foreign office came under fire after two planes scheduled to bring back nationals stranded in Libya remained grounded on Wednesday, eight hours after they were due to depart for Tripoli.
11.32pm: The UN leader welcomed moves by the UN Human Rights Council to set up a "possible international inquiry into events in Libya."
11.25pm: The UN secretary general warned that Libya was now at a dangerous juncture. The "current situation is unpredictable and could go in any number of directions, many of them dangerous," Ban Ki-Moon told a press conference.
11.16pm: Some of the 3, 000 Turks who had taken refuge at a sports stadium in Benghazi have been able to evacuate the country on a ferry. But there are still at least 20, 000 Turkish nationals remaining inside the north African state.
11.11pm: UN head, Ban Ki-Moon, makes a statement on Libya, saying the international community needs to speak with one voice.
11.07pm: US president Barack Obama is expected to speak at 22.15GMT (12.15am Libyan local time). Watch Al Jazeera's Live coverage here.
"We will be looking for tougher language from president Obama on this issue," Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane said from Washington.
11.01pm: "Life is normal, the ports, schools and airports are all open. The problem lies in the eastern regions," Saif Gaddafi told Libyan television while touring the station's offices.
"Life is normal ... Brothers, Libyans should come together in this national battle," he said.
10.54pm: Gaddafi will play a major role in any regime formed in Libya, but new blood will need to take over direct control and introduce reform, Saadi Gaddafi, a son of the embattled leader told the Financial Times (FT).
He also said his brother Saif Gaddafi was working on a new constitution and would make an announcement soon; but he gave no further details, the FT said.
10.42pm: Antonio Patriota, Brazil's foreign minister, expressed great concern about the situation in Libya, but added that it was "a positive thing" that there has not yet been any violence directed at foreigners in the country.
10.38pm: More than 2, 000 people have been killed in Benghazi alone over the past few days, a French doctor told Le Point Magazine. The doctor also said that those attacking anti-government protesters included foreign mercenaries from Chad and Niger.
10.36pm: The Red Crescent said on Wednesday that more than 5,700 Tunisians and Libyans had fled across the border over the past two days. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri filed this report from Tunisia.... [link to video ] GO TO AL-J PAGE for 23rd
THIS BLOG COVERS 24 HOURS. THERE IS A LINK TO FEBRUARY 24th.
al-J for February 23rd
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We knew previously that Gaddafi had ordered the operation that bombed a Berlin night club. Now, echoing reports out of Switzerland:
Libya's former justice minister has told a Swedish newspaper Libyan leader Moamar Gaddafi personally ordered the bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie in 1988..
Mustapha Abdel Jalil stepped down as justice minister on Monday in protest against the ongoing violence against anti-government demonstrators in Libya.
He told Swedish daily newspaper Expressen Mr Gaddafi gave personal orders for the flight to be bombed, and that he has proof.
Libyan man Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the bombing but released by Scottish authorities 18 months ago on compassionate grounds after doctors said he was suffering from terminal cancer.
* * * from Christian Dem in NC's diary :::
Several of the victims aren't at all surprised to hear that Qaddafi may have personally given the order.
Bob Monetti, of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, whose 20-year-old son Richard was killed in the bombing, said he's glad to hear a former official say what's been clear to him all along.
He said officials and the media, especially in the UK, have been denying that.
'Ever since the trial, which was held in a totally obscure location in Holland and was covered by nobody, there's been a drumbeat in the UK about how this is a trumped up thing and Libya had nothing to do with it,' he said.
'If you went to the trial, there was no question about who did it and why, and who ordered it.' Mr Monetti said.
There's been talk that the White House is considering sanctions against Libya. But if this is at all true, then sanctions may not even cover this. If Qaddafi gave the order, then Lockerbie was a crime against humanity, and he and every government official involved belong in jail.
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The former minister says Mr Gaddafi ordered Megrahi to carry out the bombing and then worked hard to secure his release so his own role in the plot remained secret.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/...
From the Daily News:
"It's been horrible - all these years of waiting for justice," said Susan Cohen of Cape May, N.J., whose daughter, Theodora, was only 20 when the plane exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland.
"I'm watching all of this now and it's extraordinary what's happening - and it's wonderful," she said. "No thanks to our government. I got no justice from anyone, but now I'm getting it as a gift from the Libyan people."
http://www.nydailynews.com/...
Indeed, a gift from the Libyan people.
Only fair for Scotland to return the favor.
Release of the bomber has remained a sore point. Mr Cameron said he was ‘profoundly sorry’ for the suffering caused to those who lost relatives in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.
The Prime Minister quoted from one Foreign Office paper, dated January 2009:
"We now need to go further and work actively but discreetly to ensure that Megrahi is transferred back to Libya under the PTA [prisoner transfer agreement] or failing that released on compassionate grounds."
Mr Cameron added: "Frankly, this tells us something that was not made clear at the time. It goes further than the account that the former prime minister and the former foreign secretary gave. We weren’t told about facilitating an appeal, about facilitating contact or game plans."
Doubtful that we will see Gaddafi hauled before the dock. Best, now, is that everyone connected with him is getting a dose of shame.
Domestically, in the United States, this revelation will weigh toward freezing Gaddafi's assets.
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And we are still in the dark as to what is happening with the ships of the Sixth Fleet. "Big E" sailed through the Suez Canal just last weekend, so there are surely sufficient fighter planes available to enforce a No Fly Order over Libya.
That would be good news. A justification for having spent $667-million to refurb "Big E" despite that this is intended to be her last voyage on a standard tour rotation.