by Bryan Del Monte,Human Events
Pan Am 103 Bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi now free in Libya
It is said that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. If that is true,then Kenny MacAskill,the Scottish Justice Secretary,has paved a super-highway to Hades in his misplaced effort to show compassion towards an unrepentant terrorist. MacAskill’s decision to release convicted terrorist,Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi,is yet another example of how President Obama’s lack of leadership in international affairs encourages our enemies and confuses our friends.
Al Megrahi is a convicted mass murderer,the only individual convicted in connection with the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie,Scotland. On that fateful day of December 21,1998,the Pan Am flight 103,Clipper “Maid of the Seas,” detonated violently over Lockerbie,killing all 270 on board,as well as 11 people on the ground. Prior to the attacks on September 11,the Lockerbie bombing was the deadliest terrorist attack against Americans and remains the single most deadly attack in Scotland.
For this act of violence,Al Megrahi received a sentence of life imprisonment by a Scottish judicial panel with the understanding that he would be ineligible for consideration for release for at least 27 years. He served 3123 days in prison —or roughly 11 days per victim. MacAskill claims it was compassionate to release him,because Al Megrahi is dying of cancer. Al Megrahi was released Libya,received a hero’s welcome,and will live out the rest of his life in relative comfort.