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Morning News

Intense Global Reaction Follows Lockerbie Trial Verdict

Aired January 31, 2001 - 9:07 a.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go ahead and start with that split verdict in the bombing trial of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. One of the two Libyan defendants is a free man this morning. The other is a convicted murder, found guilty in the 1988 attack that killed 270 people.

We have CNN correspondents covering all angles of this story. Our Richard Blystone is live in Camp Zeist in the Netherlands, site of the proceedings. Kathleen Koch is live from Washington with reaction from the victims' family members. And we'll have a live report from our senior United Nations correspondent Richard Roth.

First, though, we want go to the Netherlands and CNN's Richard Blystone, where this verdict came down earlier today -- Dick, good morning.

RICHARD BLYSTONE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

Well, here's the judgment, all 82 pages of it. I haven't had a chance to read it all yet. But in the end, the judges found the prosecution's circumstantial case convincing beyond reasonable doubt in the case of Abdel Basset al-Megrahi and found it not sufficiently convincing in the case of Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah, accused of being the man who used his connections to help get the bomb aboard an Air Malta flight, where it began its fatal journey.

We heard from the chief prosecutor, Colin Boyd -- the lord advocate in Scottish terms -- saying little about the verdict, but saying it had been a remarkable piece of detective work all through and paying tribute to police forces, not only in Britain, Scotland, the United States, but also Sweden, Switzerland and Germany. He was followed by the chief of constable of the County of Dumfries and Galloway, where Lockerbie is situated, the place where Pan Am Flight 103 fell.

A little earlier today, we had the sentencing of Abdel Basset al- Megrahi. He will serve -- in view of his age, 48, and the two years almost that he has already served -- a minimum of 20 years before he is able to apply for a parole. That does not mean the parole would be granted.

Now, with me is an expert on this case: Clare Connelly of the Glasgow University Law School, the Lockerbie briefing team.

Clare, the meaning of this verdict: Was it a surprise to you, first of all?

CLARE CONNELLY, UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW: Certainly, the verdict wasn't a surprise, reflecting in the evidence heard in the case indicated that there was a substantial case against the first accused. The judges clearly accepted that that proved beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of the first accused.

However, in the second accused, there was a lot less evidence, both in terms of quantity and perhaps also in terms of severity of the weight of that evidence. And that has led to the second accused being acquitted.

BLYSTONE: And there is a big difference between a civil case and a criminal case in this regard.

CONNELLY: Well, absolutely. In a criminal case, the test is proof beyond reasonable doubt, whereas in a civil case, it's on the balance of probability. Therefore, as we have seen in the past, the failure of a criminal prosecution, for example, in the O.J. Simpson case, did not impede a successful civil case for damages following later on.

BLYSTONE: Now, does an appeal of the sentence or of the conviction seem likely?

CONNELLY: Well, there can be no appeal against sentence in this case. Conviction of the crime of murder attaches -- it attracts a mandatory life sentence which cannot be appealed. Therefore, any appeal can only be by the defense team and acting for al-Megrahi. And that would be against conviction. However, there is not an automatic rights of appeal in Scots' law.

BLYSTONE: Thanks very much, Clare Connelly of Glasgow University.

The convicted Megrahi has two weeks to launch an appeal. And he has no guaranteed right that he can -- excuse me, he has two weeks to announce that he will appeal, six weeks before he actually launches it. He has no automatic right to appeal. But if it's granted, it will be heard before five senior judges from the same Scottish High Court. It will be held here if the convicted man wants to be present -- otherwise, probably in Edinburgh Scotland -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Richard Blystone at Camp Zeist, thank you very much.

We continue our coverage, as the 270 people killed in the Pan Am jet crash, 189 of them were from the United States.

For reaction from some of their family members, we will go to Washington now and Kathleen Koch -- Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, just a few minutes ago, family members began having an opportunity to ask prosecutors in the Netherlands questions via closed-circuit TV about the trial, about the verdict and about the sentencing. Now, here in Washington, D.C., about 60 people gathered in this office building in downtown Washington, most of them family members. And they obviously were very pleased when the verdicts came down at 5:00 a.m. this morning. Family members tell me that there was cheering. There was clapping. Other family members embraced and shed tears. It was a very, very emotional moment for them.

And they say that what they want to know most now is whether this conviction can actually lead to charges being brought against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi who most family members believed actually ordered this bombing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUSAN COHEN, VICTIM'S MOTHER: She was the absolute light of my life. And this bloody murder Gadhafi has destroyed my life, as he destroyed her life. And I don't want see him rewarded. But I have a fear that he will be rewarded, because I am an American mother with a broken heart, and he is a monster with oil.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Now, Justice Department officials were also present this morning when the verdict was read. They actually lost one of their own attorneys in the 1988 bombing. And they say that they are still pursuing this case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB MUELLER, ACTING U.S. DEPUTY ATTY. GEN: The answer then, is the answer is, it is today. In order to bring an individual into court, we need evidence. We have, over the years, continued to try to accumulate evidence. At such point in time when we have evidence to bring into court any other individual who played any other role in this tragedy, we will indict and bring him into court.

And I say that, I believe, on behalf of not only the United States prosecutorial authorities, but also the Scottish authorities with whom we have worked closely over the years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Now, no amount of money, obviously, can compensate these families for the loss of their loved ones. But they are still pursuing more than 100 civil cases against the Libyan government, asking for some $10 billion in damages.

And families say that what they hope to accomplish is being able to convince any government that might consider sponsoring terrorism that it is just too high a price to pay. Obviously, they realize that even if they win, though, the civil cases against Libya, against Moammar Gadhafi, that the chances of actually collecting any money are very slim.

Reporting live in Washington, I'm Kathleen Koch.

KAGAN: Kathleen, thank you very much.

And now for a look at what this verdict could mean on the diplomatic front, let's turn to CNN senior United Nations correspondent Richard Roth -- Richard, good morning.

RICHARD ROTH, CNN UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

In 1999, the sanctions against Libya were suspended by the U.N. Security Council, primarily because Libya now indeed turned over the two suspects for trial -- now the situation a little less clear.

Many countries will push for a permanent lifting of the sanctions. The United States will oppose. Libya wants the sanctions now lifted, its ambassador this morning telling CNN that it had nothing to do with the Lockerbie bombing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABUZED DORDA, LIBYAN AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: Libyan officials, or Libya as a state is not accused in this incident and was not accused by the prosecutors in the Scottish court in the Netherlands. It was a case concerning two individuals. And today, one of them shown innocent and, unfortunately, the other one was convicted.

ROTH: Well, the families...

DORDA: The Libyan government has nothing to do at all with this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: Libya's ambassador says: Let's put everything in the past. Let's move forward.

Washington saying: not so fast. Libya still has to cooperate with investigators and officially renounce -- denounce terrorism and pay compensation to the families -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Richard Roth at the U.N., thank you very much.

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