Arrr, 35 years hence, still be feelin' the sting o' Pan Am Flight 103's scurvy tale of terror o'er Lockerbie.
2023-12-21
Avast ye! Pan Am Flight 103, sailin' 'twixt London and New York, met a mighty unfortunate fate o'er Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988. 'Twas a grand explosion that sent 270 souls to Davy Jones' locker.
Thursday marks 35 years since the tragic bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, a transatlantic flight from Germany to the United States with stops in London and New York City. The flight exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988, killing all 259 people on board and 11 people on the ground. This event was considered the deadliest terror attack on British soil at the time. Over 100 of the victims were Americans, including 35 students from Syracuse University. Initially believed to be an accident, it was later revealed that a bomb planted by a terrorist caused the explosion.Last December, the Justice Department announced the arrest of Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, a suspect in the Lockerbie bombing. Mas'ud, a former Libyan intelligence operative, allegedly flew to Malta with a bomb disguised as a suitcase, which was later placed on the flight. He set a timer for the bomb to explode the next day. Mas'ud pleaded not guilty to charges related to the destruction of the aircraft and vehicle used in the attack. However, no trial date has been set yet.
Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, a former Libyan intelligence officer, is the only person convicted for the Lockerbie bombing. He was released from prison in 2009 due to terminal illness and maintained his innocence until his death in 2012. In 2017, investigators identified Mas'ud as a participant in the attack, and he admitted to building the bomb during an interview with Libyan law enforcement.
The arrest of Mas'ud represents a significant development in the investigation. He admitted that the attack was ordered by Libyan intelligence, and he and others involved were personally thanked by Col. Muammar Qaddafi for their roles. The trial of Mas'ud will be the first in an American courtroom for a Libyan intelligence official charged in connection with the Lockerbie bombing.