Megrahi move ‘vindicated’

The Scottish Government insists it has been “vindicated” two years to the day since the controversial decision to release the Lockerbie bomber from jail on compassionate grounds.

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was said to be three months from death when freed from Greenock jail on August 20, 2009. Two years on, Megrahi is still alive in his home country.

A spokesman for Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond said senior figures in the American, British and Scottish jurisdictions have all agreed that the decision was taken in good faith. “Two years of extensive scrutiny vindicates the position that the Justice Secretary released al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds.”