Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?

Special Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?
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The wreckage of the Pan-Am 747 plane which was blown up en route to JFK airport by Libyan terrorists. (Tom Stoddart/Getty Images)
Special Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?
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Plane crash of a Boeing 747 of PanAm in Lockerbie 1988. (RDB/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
Special Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?
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An aerial view showing part of the wreckage of Pan Am Flight 103 which is now kept in the corner of a salvage yard near Tattershall, Lincolnshire. (PA Images via Getty Images)
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Updated 19 January 2025
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Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?

Could the trial of suspected Lockerbie bombmaker rewrite the narrative of Pan Am Flight 103?
  • The passenger jet exploded over the town of Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988, killing 270 people onboard and on the ground
  • Libyan intelligence officer Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi was the only person convicted over the attack, but new evidence has since come to light 

LONDON: The basic facts are undisputed, but controversy continues to surround the identity of those responsible for the terrorist bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, Clipper Maid of the Seas, over the Scottish town of Lockerbie on the night of Dec. 21, 1988.

Now, more than 37 years on from the tragedy that claimed the lives of 270 people from 20 countries, a third Libyan man is about to stand trial for his alleged part in the plot, offering possible closure to grieving families, but also likely reopening old wounds.

On Dec. 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103, a Boeing 747 jumbo jet en route from London Heathrow to New York JFK Airport, was a little over one hour into its flight, cruising at an altitude of 9,400 meters.




Pan Am's ill-fated Boeing 747-121 plane is pictured at Frankfurt International Airport in Germany in 1986. (Wikimedia Commons)

The cabin crew were moving down the aisles, serving drinks. Many of the 243 passengers would have been watching the in-flight movie, “Crocodile Dundee II,” which, in the days before seat-back screens, had begun to play on the drop-down overhead screens.

Moments later, a little after 7:02 pm, air traffic controllers in Scotland lost contact with the pilots and watched in horror as the aircraft’s radar image broke up into five distinct pieces fanning out across their screens.

A bomb hidden in a suitcase in the cargo hold had exploded with devastating effect. The jumbo disintegrated rapidly, and bodies and flaming aircraft parts began to rain down on and around the town of Lockerbie.




Plane crash of a Boeing 747 of PanAm in Lockerbie in 1988. (RDB/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

Even as the bodies of all 259 passengers and crew fell to earth, 11 residents of Lockerbie were killed in their homes by falling wreckage and a fireball caused when the aircraft’s fuel-laden wings gouged out a massive crater in a residential area.

Despite a search over a wide area of countryside that lasted six weeks, the bodies of 10 of Flight 103’s passengers were never found. Only the “fragmented remains” of 13 passengers could be identified in or near the crater.

As the media rushed to the scene, horror stories began to emerge. Corpses and body parts were strewn about the town and surrounding fields. Some of the dead were still strapped into their seats, sitting upright in rows of three and appearing asleep, rather than dead.

FASTFACTS

• Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over the town of Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988, killing 270 people.

• Investigators concluded Libyan agents had planted a bomb, hidden in a suitcase, on the Boeing 747.

• Libyan intelligence officer Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi was convicted in 2001 for his involvement in the attack.

A military helicopter pilot who joined the search later described finding one man clutching a book, and others still wearing their Walkman headphones.

Three children, siblings aged 6, 3 and 10 months, were found together, with the eldest two holding the baby’s hands.




Police try to identify victims of the Pan Am jumbo jet bombing and crash in the streets of Lockerbie. Bodies and parts of the plane were strewn over an area of up to 10 miles. (PA Images via Getty Images)

Adding to the distress of the bereaved, a paper published by a pathologist in an obscure medical journal revealed that, miraculously and shockingly, at least two of the passengers had probably survived the fall to earth with relatively minor injuries, only to die of exposure because rescuers found them too late.

Within a day, before a bomb had even been confirmed as the cause of the disaster, several groups had claimed responsibility, and at first, suspicion fell on the Syrian-based Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine — General Command.

But on Nov. 13, 1991, after a three-year joint investigation by Scottish police and the American FBI, indictments for murder were issued against two Libyans — intelligence officer Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi and Lamin Khalifah Fhimah, the station manager for Libyan Arab Airlines at Luqa Airport in Malta.




Libyan intelligence officer Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi was convicted in 2001 for his involvement in the attack. (Getty Images)

Investigators believed the bomb had originated from Malta, making its way to Flight 103 in London in an unaccompanied suitcase via a feeder flight from Frankfurt International Airport.

It would be more than 11 years after the bombing before the trial of the two men began. In exchange for relaxing international sanctions, Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi agreed to hand them over for trial at a special Scottish court convened on neutral ground, in The Netherlands.

On Jan. 31, 2001, the judges announced their verdicts. Fhimah was acquitted of the 270 charges of murder against him, but Al-Megrahi was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment.




Lockerbie bombing defendant Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah, left, speaks to the media with Libyan leader Muammar Al Qadhafi after arriving in Tripoli on February 1, 2001, a day his acquital in the Lockerbie bombing trial. (Newsmakers/Getty Images)

Jailed in Barlinnie prison, Scotland, Al-Megrahi would serve only a fraction of his sentence. Following a diagnosis of terminal prostate cancer, on Nov. 2, 2009, he was released by the Scottish government on compassionate grounds and returned to Libya, where he died two years and nine months later.

But the case was far from closed.

From the outset, conspiracy theories swirled around the tragedy. Some latched onto the fact that several senior US intelligence officials and operatives had been on board the aircraft and accused rogue CIA agents of carrying out the bombing to cover up an illicit drugs operation.

Others pointed the finger at Iran, which certainly had a motive. On July 3, 1988, just five months before Flight 103, the American warship USS Vincennes had accidentally shot down an Iran Air passenger flight en route from Tehran to Dubai, with the loss of all 290 people on board.




A list of the nationalities of the Pan Am Flight 103 terror bombing. (Wikimedia Commons)

But the greatest challenge to the official version of events, which ended with the jailing of Al-Megrahi, came from an unexpected quarter — the father of one of the passengers who was killed on the flight.

Jim Swire, an English doctor who lost his daughter, Flora, came to believe that Al-Megrahi was innocent and that the evidence against him and Fhimah had been falsified. To the dismay of some of the other Lockerbie families, Swire campaigned for years on Al-Megrahi’s behalf, even traveling to Tripoli to meet him after his release.

This year, which marks the 37th anniversary of the downing of Flight 103, Swire’s campaign is the subject of two transatlantic TV dramatizations — the five-part “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth,” starring Colin Firth, and a BBC-Netflix drama series, “Lockerbie.”




The filming set for a TV drama about the Lockerbie bombing underway in West Lothian on March 20, 2024 in Bathgate, Scotland. Colin Firth plays Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora was killed in the blast. (Getty Images)

What both dramatizations will not cover, however, is the latest extraordinary chapter in the story.

Last month, Lockerbie relatives on both sides of the Atlantic received a sobering piece of news. A 20-meter-long section of the fuselage of the Clipper Maid of the Seas, which had been reconstructed as part of the original investigation, would be flying again, as cargo on board an aircraft transporting it to Washington D.C. as evidence in the trial of a third suspect accused of involvement in the downing of Flight 103.

On May 12 this year, a man identified in court papers as Abu Agila Mohammad Masud Kheir Al-Mariami, or simply Masud, will go on trial charged with having made the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103.

The original investigation identified a suspect called Abu Agela Masud, who at the time could not be traced. But according to an affidavit filed by an FBI special agent in December 2020, in 2017, the bureau received a transcript in Arabic of an interview conducted by Libyan security officers in September 2012 with a man identified as Masud.




Abu Agela Masud, a former colonel in Libya’s External Security Organization, who had allegedly admitted to building the bomb that brought down Pan Am Flight 103. (Alexandria Sheriff's Office photo)

According to the transcript, Masud, a former colonel in Libya’s External Security Organization, had worked as a “technical expert” for the ESO, “building explosive devices from in or around 1973 to in or around 2011,” when Qaddafi was overthrown.

In the interview, Masud had allegedly “admitted to building the bomb that brought down Pan Am Flight 103 and to working with Megrahi and Fhimah to execute the plot.”

Furthermore, Masud, who also “admitted his involvement in other plots against citizens of the US and other Western countries,” is alleged to have “confirmed that the bombing operation of Pan Am Flight 103 was ordered by Libyan intelligence leadership.”

According to the transcript, he also told his Libyan interrogators that “after the operation, Qaddafi thanked him and other members of the team for their successful attack on the US.”




People attend a memorial service for those who lost their lives in the 1988 Pan Am Flight 103 Lockerbie terror bombing, at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on Dec. 21, 2011. (Getty Images via AFP)

It is not clear why the transcript of the interview was shared with US investigators when it was but, as the FBI affidavit noted, the Libyan law enforcement officer who obtained Masud’s statement had “expressed a willingness to testify at a trial if the Libyan government agrees to make the officer available.”

US authorities announced on Dec. 12, 2022, that Masud was in custody on American soil, and had been charged in a Washington D.C. court. How he got there is uncertain, as there is no extradition treaty between the US and Libya.

Human Rights Watch claims Masud was “violently seized” from his home in the Abu Salim district of Tripoli on Nov. 17, 2022, by members of an “armed group” who arrived in unmarked cars, wore no insignia, and refused to identify themselves.




A wreath lies at the monument for the victims of Panam flight 103 in Lockerbie cemetery. (AFP)

But in a statement at the time, Michael H. Glasheen, acting assistant director in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office, said: “The lawful arrest and presentment in court of the alleged bombmaker … is the product of hard work and partnerships across the globe.”

Eight days later, the US embassy in Libya tweeted that Masud’s transfer to US custody “was lawful and conducted in cooperation with Libyan authorities.”

Depending on what emerges in court in May, Masud’s trial could prove fateful for Lamin Khalifah Fhimah. Although he was acquitted by the Scottish court in 1991, Fhimah remains a wanted man in America.

For those involved in the long search for justice for the victims of Flight 103 and their families, the trial is a last chance to “renew confidence in the justice process around the case,” in the words of Scotland’s public prosecution service.




Relatives place flowers at the memorial to the Pan Am Flight 103 Lockerbie bombing victims at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on December 21, 2011. (Getty Images via AFP)

“Scotland’s prosecutors and police, working with counterparts in the US, have remained steadfast in our commitment to uncovering the truth and holding those responsible accountable,” said Dorothy Bain, Scotland’s lord advocate, in a statement last month.

Although the original trial considered evidence from 227 witnesses over 72 days, and Al-Megrahi’s conviction was upheld twice at appeal, “I am aware that not everyone shares the same view of the Crown case,” Bain added.

“I have always believed in the power of the legal process as a tool for fairness and public trust. The forthcoming trial in Washington will bring the facts of this case before the public again, and the circumstances of what happened can be fully understood.”
 

 


Zelensky urges allies to ‘invest’ in mineral wealth

Zelensky urges allies to ‘invest’ in mineral wealth
Updated 08 February 2025
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Zelensky urges allies to ‘invest’ in mineral wealth

Zelensky urges allies to ‘invest’ in mineral wealth
  • “We have mineral resources. This does not mean that we give them away to anyone, even to strategic partners,” Zelensky posted on social media
  • “It is about partnership. Put your money in. Invest. Let’s develop this together and make money”

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday Kyiv wants its allies to invest in its mineral resources after US President Donald Trump asked for “rare earths” in exchange for military aid.
“We have mineral resources. This does not mean that we give them away to anyone, even to strategic partners,” Zelensky posted on social media, quoting answers he had given in an interview with Reuters news agency.
“It is about partnership. Put your money in. Invest. Let’s develop this together and make money,” Zelensky said.
Trump said this week the United States was “looking to do a deal with Ukraine, where they’re going to secure what we’re giving them with their rare earths and other things.”
Quoting his Reuters interview, Zelensky said Ukraine’s mineral wealth was worth “trillions of dollars,” citing its reserves of titanium and uranium, which he described as the largest in Europe.
He said it is very important for Ukraine to “keep all this” because these resources represent “security guarantees,” adding that he also did not want them to fall into Russia’s hands.
Trump’s call for a deal involving rare earths prompted criticism from the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday,
“We are helping (Ukraine) without asking to be paid in return. This should be everyone’s position,” he told the RND media group.
The US president said on Friday he would “probably” meet Zelensky next week in a location outside Ukraine.
Zelensky wrote on X on Friday that Ukraine and the US were “planning meetings and talks” and “working out the details,” without confirming there would be talks next week.
Trump has urged both Moscow and Kyiv to negotiate an end to the war, which is nearing a third year with Russia making steady advances in east Ukraine.
The US leader has said he is ready to meet Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, but no talks have been confirmed.


Amal Clooney takes up Oxford University professorship

Amal Clooney takes up Oxford University professorship
Updated 08 February 2025
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Amal Clooney takes up Oxford University professorship

Amal Clooney takes up Oxford University professorship
  • Blavatnik School of Government ‘delighted’ to appoint leading British-Lebanese barrister
  • She has won landmark legal cases representing victims of genocide, sexual assault, persecution

LONDON: Leading British-Lebanese human rights barrister Amal Clooney has become a professor at Oxford University.

She will be a visiting professor of practice in international law at the Blavatnik School of Government, The Times reported.

The 47-year-old is an Oxford graduate, having studied law at St. Hugh’s College. She said she was honored to return to her alma mater as a professor.

The Blavatnik School of Government said it was “delighted” to appoint Clooney, adding that her expertise will enhance research and teaching at the school.

Clooney has won landmark legal cases representing victims of genocide, sexual assault and persecution at some of the world’s top courts, including the International Criminal Court.

She co-founded the Clooney Foundation for Justice with her husband in 2016. It provides legal aid for free speech and women’s right cases in more than 40 countries.

Clooney has published two textbooks on international law, and was a visiting professor at New York City’s Columbia Law School.

“It is a privilege to have this opportunity to engage with the next generation of global leaders and to contribute to the vibrant academic community at Oxford,” she said.

“I look forward to collaborating with both faculty and students to advance access to justice around the world.”


India’s installed solar capacity surpasses 100 GW

India’s installed solar capacity surpasses 100 GW
Updated 08 February 2025
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India’s installed solar capacity surpasses 100 GW

India’s installed solar capacity surpasses 100 GW
  • Growth fueled by local solar module production
  • Country targets 280 GW solar capacity by 2030

NEW DELHI: India has announced that its installed solar power capacity has exceeded 100 GW as it aims to generate 500 GW of electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030 under its Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement.

As of Jan. 31, India’s total installed solar capacity stood at 100.33 GW. Another 84.10 GW are under implementation and an additional 47.49 GW under tendering, according to data shared by New and Renewable Energy Minister Pralhad Joshi on Friday.

“India’s energy journey over the past 10 years has been historic and inspiring. Initiatives like solar panels, solar parks and rooftop solar projects have brought about revolutionary changes,” Joshi said in a statement.

“Today India has successfully achieved the target of 100 GW of solar energy production. In the field of green energy, India is not only becoming self-reliant but is also showing the world a new path.”

According to the ministry’s data, India’s solar power sector has increased capacity by 3,450 percent over the past decade, rising from 2.82 GW in 2014. That growth has been fueled by local solar module production, which in 2014 had a capacity of only 2 GW.

“Over the past decade, this has surged to 60 GW, establishing India as a global leader in solar manufacturing,” Joshi said in his statement. “With continued policy support, India is on track to achieve a solar module production capacity of 100 GW by 2030.”
Solar energy is the dominant contributor to the country’s renewable energy growth, accounting for 47 percent of the total installed renewable energy capacity.

“India’s milestone of 100 GW installed solar capacity is a testament to its rapid clean energy transition, proving its ability to scale renewable infrastructure ... However, challenges remain: grid integration, financing gaps, and the continued dependence on coal for baseload power highlight the complexities of India’s energy future,” Binit Das, renewable energy program manager at the Centre for Science and Environment in New Delhi, told Arab News.

“As the country pushes toward its 280 GW solar target by 2030, addressing these hurdles will be key to ensuring a truly sustainable and resilient energy system,” Das added. “To truly achieve energy independence, India must complement solar with robust storage, hybrid solutions, and emerging technologies like green hydrogen and offshore wind. A diversified, resilient strategy is key to unlocking the full potential of renewables.”

 


South Korean tech giant to display Saudi-tailored AI models at LEAP 2025

South Korean tech giant to display Saudi-tailored AI models at LEAP 2025
Updated 08 February 2025
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South Korean tech giant to display Saudi-tailored AI models at LEAP 2025

South Korean tech giant to display Saudi-tailored AI models at LEAP 2025
  • Naver is South Korea’s largest search engine and internet portal provider
  • Company is one of few globally with a comprehensive AI value chain

SEOUL: South Korea’s tech giant Naver is going to present special Saudi-tailored artificial intelligence technologies at the LEAP 2025 conference, which will start in Riyadh on Sunday.

Organized by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, LEAP is the largest tech event in the Middle East. This year, the four-day event is expected to draw nearly 700 startups, more than 1,000 expert speakers, 1,800 tech brands and 170,000 visitors.

Naver is among the few companies globally that has a comprehensive AI value chain, spanning data centers, cloud infrastructure and AI technologies. Its LEAP 2025 exhibition is themed “AI for Saudi Arabia, Powered by Naver” and will feature services currently provided in South Korea, with a focus on their potential adaptation for the Kingdom’s market.

These include an AI-powered tutor, an AI-driven electronic medical records service that converts conversations with patients to text-based documentation, and Naver Works, a tool that can summarize, translate, and generate emails.

The Korean company will present the potential localization of these technologies in Saudi Arabia’s education, healthcare, media and labor sectors.

“We aim to present AI models tailored specifically for Saudi Arabia, ensuring that the Kingdom maintains its own sovereign AI capabilities,” Han Dong-geun, Naver’s public relations officer, told Arab News.

“We already have two data centers and have cloud business know-how. And we also have AI experience in the form of LLMs (large language models). And so we want to introduce this value chain at LEAP 2025. AI development needs all three of these components, and we have all these capabilities.”

Naver has consistently emphasized the importance of sovereign AI, warning that the expansion of generative AI — driven primarily by US and Chinese tech companies — could threaten the technological independence of other countries.

The company believes its HyperCLOVA X — a Korean-based LLM, which is a type of AI program that can generate and understand text — is an example of a self-sufficient AI ecosystem that could serve as a model for Saudi Arabia’s own AI development.

“South Korea is the third country in the world to develop its own LLM ... We want to collaborate with Saudi Arabia and share our know-how and experiences to develop a custom AI model that preserves Saudi Arabia’s AI sovereignty,” Han said.

Saudi Arabia is emerging as the key Middle East market for the Korean tech giant, which is accelerating its foray into the region.

In 2023, the company won a $100 million contract to develop a digital twin platform — a software system that creates and manages a virtual replica, or “digital twin,” of a physical asset, process, or system, enabling users to monitor its real-time behavior and simulate various scenarios.

Last year, it also signed a memorandum of understanding with Aramco Digital and the Saudi Data and AI Authority to collaborate on the first Arabic LLM project, and partnered with Saudi Arabia’s National Housing Company to advance smart city projects and urban planning.

Naver is South Korea’s largest search engine and internet portal provider. Its business portfolio includes cloud services, AI, e-commerce, fintech, and digital content. The company logged a net income of $1.3 billion in 2024, according to regulatory filings.


Suspected militant attack kills 32 in Mali

Suspected militant attack kills 32 in Mali
Updated 08 February 2025
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Suspected militant attack kills 32 in Mali

Suspected militant attack kills 32 in Mali
  • The death toll was initially put at 10 but soon rose to 32
  • “We have more than 30 bodies from the scene,” said a hospital source in Gao

DAKAR: A suspected militant attack on a convoy escorted by Malian soldiers and Russia’s Wagner mercenaries has killed 32 people in northern Mali, officials said on Saturday.
The attack took place on Friday between the northern cities of Gao and Ansongo, they said.
The death toll was initially put at 10 but soon rose to 32.
“We have more than 30 bodies from the scene,” said a hospital source in Gao.
“The militants ambushed a civilian convoy escorted by Malian soldiers and Wagner mercenaries,” a local official told AFP, requesting anonymity.
“There are civilians and soldiers among the dead.”
A medical source said many of the dead and wounded had been transferred to Gao, the main city in northern Mali.
A source from a transport trade union said: “According to a transporter who managed to escape, militants ambushed the convoy’s escort and opened fire on everyone at random to cause the largest number of victims.”
Another local official told AFP: “The Malian soldiers and Wagner (mercenaries) were in around 10 vehicles protecting a convoy of 22 minibuses with civilian passengers, six large buses and eight lorries.”
“At least five lorries were destroyed by Daesh militants.”
Daesh has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Malian army has not officially commented on the reported attack.
“We control the situation on the ground between Ansongo and Gao,” a military source said.
The route between Ansongo and Gao has seen several attacks in recent months blamed on militants or bandits.
Another local official said the civilian victims were mainly foreigners traveling to a gold mine in Intahaka, the main gold mining region in northern Mali.
The country is one of Africa’s top gold producers, though production has plunged recently.
Mali has faced serious security problems since 2012 linked to violence both by groups linked to Al-Qaeda and Daesh and by local criminal gangs.
In January the Malian army said it had arrested a top Daesh leader and killed several ” militant” fighters in an operation in the Gao region.
It named the suspect as Abou Hach, a “wanted terrorist long known to the intelligence services.”
The impoverished west African country has been plunged into instability by a series of coups since 2012 and has struggled to deal with the security crisis in the north.
Its military rulers have broken ties with former colonial ruler France and turned politically and militarily toward Russia.