Lockerbie: UK police in Libya to seek answers

SCOTTISH police, ­prosecutors and FBI investigators have ­arrived in Libya, it emerged last night. They landed hours after the country’s justice minister insisted that the matter was ­“settled” and it was wrong to dwell on the past.

However, police will still be keen to try and speak to members of the former intelligence service, including Abdullah ­Senussi, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s brother-in-law, who is believed to be the holder of the country’s secrets.

Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland, QC, said: “As announced by the Prime Minister on 31 January, visas were granted for Scottish police and prosecutors to travel to Tripoli to meet with their counterparts in progressing the investigation into the Lockerbie bombing.

“Senior officials from the Crown Office, Dumfries and Galloway Police and the FBI attended a series of meetings in Tripoli with ministers and ­senior ­officials from the ­Libyan ­government to discuss the ­ongoing ­investigation.

“The purpose of the meetings was to discuss US and Scottish requests for co-operation in the ongoing investigation and to agree how these would be ­progressed.

“The discussions were positive and it is hoped there will be further progress as a result. The Libyan authorities did raise the issue of compensation, as today’s press reports have indicated, and it was reiterated by the joint delegation that the investigation was focussed on identifying others involved in this act of state sponsored terrorism.”

However, Salah al-Marghani, the justice minister, said: “The matter was settled with the Gaddafi regime. I am trying to work on the current situation rather than dig into the past.”