Washington,
D.C. – United States Senators Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Frank Lautenberg
(D-N.J.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) announced
today that they will introduce a Senate resolution condemning the release and
vile “welcome home” celebration held for Libyan terrorist and convicted
Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi. Al-Megrahi was released by the
Scottish Government on August 20 after serving eight years in prison for the
1988 attack on Pan Am Flight 103, which killed all 259 people on board and 11
people on the ground in the town of Lockerbie, Scotland. The Scottish
Government claimed the release was a compassionate gesture given al-Megrahi’s
failing health.
“The
victims’ families have had no peace since the day this evil act occurred and
now their wounds have been reopened,” said Schumer. “The hero’s welcome
Libya gave to this terrorist truly shocks the conscience and deserves a formal
rebuke. It is outrageous that the Libyan Government would so blatantly
disregard the suffering the families have endured for more than two decades. We
demand an apology for the gross homecoming celebration of al-Megrahi.”
“The
sick celebration when Mr. al-Megrahi landed in Libya added insult to injury for
the American victims of Qaddafi’s terrorism,” stated Lautenberg. “Mr.
al-Megrahi’s release by the Scottish government was painful enough for the
victims of Libya’s terrorism, but to see such a celebration for a murderer was
a shocking insult to decency. Passage of this resolution will send a
powerful message to the Libyan government and express the Senate’s condemnation
of acts of compassion shown to terrorists-especially those who have killed
Americans.”
“It
was tragically ironic that the man convicted of taking down an airplane and
ending 270 lives was able to arrive in a private jet to a hero’s welcome in
Libya. This charade was an injustice that added insult to injury for the
victims’ families. The international community should condemn this entire
episode,” Menendez said.
“The
‘Welcome Home’ ceremony sponsored by the Libyan government was a low point for
the global community and our efforts to promote peace and combat terror,”
Gillibrand said. “The families of Pan Am Flight 103 were forced to relive the
horrific loss of their loved ones, while the man who was responsible was
welcomed home a hero. The government of Libya should apologize to these
families.”
On
December 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103, enroute from London’s Healthrow Airport
to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, exploded over the town of
Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all 259 on board and 11 people on the
ground. Many NewYorkers and New Jersey residents were among the 189
Americans killed in the bombing. In 2001, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi was
convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.
On
August 20, the Scottish Government released al-Megrahi, who is currently
suffering from prostate cancer and is predicted to have three months to
live. Upon his return, thousands of young men, who had been transported
by the Libyan government, gathered at the airport in Tripoli to greet the
terrorist. They waved banners and threw flower petals after al-Megrahi
was escorted from prison by Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi, the son of the Libyan
leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.