This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk_politics/8219960.stm
The article has changed 15 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 6 | Version 7 |
---|---|
PM 'repulsed' at bomber welcome | PM 'repulsed' at bomber welcome |
(20 minutes later) | |
Gordon Brown has said he was "repulsed" by the welcome given to the Lockerbie bomber on his return to Libya. | Gordon Brown has said he was "repulsed" by the welcome given to the Lockerbie bomber on his return to Libya. |
In his first comments since the freeing of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, Mr Brown said he was "angry" about the jubilant scenes as he left the plane in Tripoli. | |
Mr Brown said he had had "no role" in the Scottish government's decision to liberate Megrahi, and declined to say whether or not he supported the move. | |
Opposition leaders have accused the PM of a "deafening silence" on the issue. | Opposition leaders have accused the PM of a "deafening silence" on the issue. |
Megrahi, found guilty of killing 270 people in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, received a rapturous welcome in Tripoli last week and later met Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. | |
'Absolutely clear' | |
Mr Brown said: "I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya." | |
He added that he had made it "absolutely clear" to the Libyan leader when they met in July at the G8 summit in Italy that the decision was a matter for the Scottish government alone. | |
I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya Gordon Brown class="" href="/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/8219717.stm">Bomber document release promised | |
He said the UK could not interfere in what was a "quasi-judicial process" and could have "no control over the final outcome". | |
Mr Brown stressed that his "first thoughts" were with the families of victims of the Lockerbie atrocity but said he was still committed to working with countries such as Libya to fight terrorism. | |
"I want to make it absolutely clear, however, that whatever decision was made on compassionate grounds by the Scottish Parliament, our resolve to fight terrorism is absolute." | |
The Scottish National Party administration's decision to approve Megrahi's release has been condemned by the relatives of some Lockerbie victims and by politicians in Edinburgh, Westminster and Washington DC. | The Scottish National Party administration's decision to approve Megrahi's release has been condemned by the relatives of some Lockerbie victims and by politicians in Edinburgh, Westminster and Washington DC. |
Public concern | Public concern |
The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have urged Mr Brown to comment on the case, which they argue could do serious damage to relations between the UK and US. | The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have urged Mr Brown to comment on the case, which they argue could do serious damage to relations between the UK and US. |
Tory leader David Cameron said the decision was wrong and the public were entitled to know Mr Brown's views on a matter of "great public concern". | |
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg said it was "absurd and damaging" that Mr Brown had not made his views known on the decision. | |
British officials previously revealed they had written to the Libyan government urging that Megrahi be given a low-key reception. | |
Ministers have denied the decision to free Megrahi, who served seven years of his life sentence for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, was linked to trade deals with Tripoli. | Ministers have denied the decision to free Megrahi, who served seven years of his life sentence for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, was linked to trade deals with Tripoli. |