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Libya HIV case 'deal reached' Libya to rule on HIV medics case
(about 5 hours later)
A financial settlement has been reached in the case of six foreign medics convicted of infecting Libyan children with HIV, the Gaddafi Foundation says. Libya's Supreme Court is due to rule on the case of foreign medics on death row for infecting 438 children with HIV.
It says the compensation deal is acceptable to all parties and will end the crisis. Five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor have said they are innocent of giving tainted blood to the children at the Benghazi hospital in 1998.
The news comes as Libya's Supreme Court is due to rule on the final appeal of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor sentenced to death. The court is expected to uphold their death sentences but may leave a final decision to the High Judicial Council.
The medics say they are innocent of giving tainted blood to the children. The sentences may be commuted in exchange for a compensation package for the children's families.
Fifty-six of the 438 infected children at the Benghazi hospital in 1998 have since died. Fifty-six of the 438 children infected with tainted blood at the Benghazi hospital in 1998 have since died.
'End of crisis' Diplomatic efforts
"We have reached a compromise acceptable to the families," said Salah Abdessalem, director of the Gaddafi Foundation. The six medics were found guilty and sentenced to death twice, first in 2004 and again in 2006 following a court appeal.
"This accord satisfied all the parties and puts an end to this crisis," he said, adding that the details would be announced shortly. It is their final appeal in the case which has gripped public attention in both Libya and Bulgaria.
The foundation - a charity headed by the son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi - has been a mediator in the case.
So far there have been no comment from representatives of the Libyan families.
On Wednesday, Libya's Supreme Court is expected to uphold the death sentences to the foreign medics but may leave a final decision to the High Judicial Council.
There have been suggestions that the sentences may be commuted in exchange for a compensation package for the children's families.
Sentenced twice
The medics have argued that poor hygiene was to blame for the infections.
During their trial, one of the doctors who helped first isolate the HIV virus, Luc Montagnier, testified that the hospital epidemic began before the accused started working at the hospital.During their trial, one of the doctors who helped first isolate the HIV virus, Luc Montagnier, testified that the hospital epidemic began before the accused started working at the hospital.
But the six were found guilty and sentenced to death twice, first in 2004 and again in 2006 following a court appeal. In recent months, the European Union has stepped up diplomatic efforts to have the medics freed.
The case has gripped public attention in both Libya and Bulgaria. The United States has also been involved, with President George W Bush appealing for the release of the medics in June.
The European Union and the US have both been involved in the talks over a possible deal. On the Libyan side, the families of the infected children have demanded the maximum punishment.
The government in Tripoli is caught between its wish to repair ties with the West and to defend its own legal system, the BBC's Nick Thorpe says.
After the court's ruling, Libya's High Judicial Council could still order the medics release.
That would be the subject to an agreement on an international fund to provide compensation and medical care for the children.
On Tuesday, the Gaddafi Foundation - which has been a mediator in the case - said that a financial settlement had been reached to end "the crisis".
The foundation said the deal was acceptable to all parties, promising to give more details later on Wednesday.