Lockerbie Incident: An Analysis
- IJLLR Journal
- Nov 24, 2024
- 2 min read
Shreeji Saraf, IILM University, Greater Noida
Introduction
The Lockerbie incident had happened on December 21, 1988. This incident involved three countries namely the United Kingdom, United States and Libya. The subsequent decisions or rulings made by the International Court of Justice with regard to this matter had escalated several significant questions with regard to the interpretation and application of international law. This paper aims to provide an analysis of the events that had taken place in this regard, the issues at stake, the legal framework and more.
Facts of the case
The Lockerbie bombing incident took place on December 21, 1988. On this date a bomb had exploded and destroyed a Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. This resulted in the death of all the present 259 passengers and crew members along with 11 residents of Lockerbie. There was evidence that was directing the involvement of Iran and Syria but the United States and Scottish investigators who relied on the fragments of the bomb found that two Libyan spies were responsible for the bombing. An arrest warrant was issued against the Libyan spies who were involved namely Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi and Lamen Khalifa Fhimah in the bombing incident.
Both the mentioned Libyan spies were convicted by the federal grand jury in some district of Columbia and they were accused by the Lord Advocate in Scotland. On 27th of November, 1991, the United States and United Kingdom jointly had issued a declaration stating that Libya should hand over the two suspects for the purpose of trial and provide relevant information related to the crime. They were even asked to pay appropriate compensation in relation to the crime.
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