Libya would pay hundreds of millions of dollars to compensate US victims of terrorism under a tentative agreement that hinges on action by the US Congress, sources familiar with the accord said on Wednesday.
The US and Libya worked out the tentative deal to resolve all outstanding cases of what Washington regards as past Libyan terrorist acts that killed or injured Americans.
If carried out, the deal could end the legal liability to Libya stemming from multiple lawsuits by families of the US victims and it could herald a further warming in ties between Tripoli and Washington.
Relations between the two nations have dramatically improved since Libya’s 2003 decision to abandon its pursuit of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.
Under the deal, Libya would set aside US$536 million to pay the remaining claims from the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and US$283 million to compensate those killed and injured in the bombing of a West Berlin disco in 1986, said attorney Jim Kreindler, whose law firm represents 130 Lockerbie victims.
Two-hundred-and-seventy people died when a bomb destroyed a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988. The Berlin disco bomb killed three and injured 229.
The deal would also set aside additional funds to compensate victims of other incidents blamed on Libya, possibly bringing the total payout to more than US$1 billion.
To implement the tentative agreement, however, Congress would have to relieve Libya of the effects of a law enacted this year making it easier for terrorism victims to collect damages by having the assets of target governments frozen.
“It’s not locked in,” a senior US official said of the tentative agreement. “Congressional action would help us enormously to make sure it happens.”
Meanwhile, the release of two Swiss nationals in Libya may herald an end to a 15-day crisis between the two countries sparked by the arrest of Muammar Qaddafi’s son, a Swiss ministry official said on Wednesday.
“This would seem to be the end of the crisis ... [but] the situation is ongoing,” a spokesman for the Swiss ministry of foreign affairs said.
But it was still too early to say if bilateral relations were back on track, he said.
The Swiss pair were freed late on Tuesday on bail and are now in the care of the Swiss embassy in Tripoli, according to the embassy, although they do not have permission to leave Libya.
The two had been detained in the wake of the July 15 arrest of Hannibal Qaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammer, on suspicion of assaulting hotel staff. His wife was also detained.
The Qaddafis, who have denied the allegations, were released on bail two days after they were detained, as Libya began a string of retaliatory measures.
Tripoli announced it was suspending oil shipments to Switzerland, stopped issuing visas to Swiss nationals, and shut the offices of two Swiss companies, food giant Nestle and engineering group ABB, in the Libyan capital.
A beauty queen who pulled out of the Miss South Africa competition when her nationality was questioned has said she wants to relocate to Nigeria, after coming second in the Miss Universe pageant while representing the West African country. Chidimma Adetshina, whose father is Nigerian, was crowned Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and was runner-up to Denmark’s Victoria Kjar Theilvig in Mexico on Saturday night. The 23-year-old law student withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition in August, saying that she needed to protect herself and her family after the government alleged that her mother had stolen the identity of a South
BELT-TIGHTENING: Chinese investments in Cambodia are projected to drop to US$35 million in 2026 from more than US$420 million in 2021 At a ceremony in August, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet knelt to receive blessings from saffron-robed monks as fireworks and balloons heralded the breaking of ground for a canal he hoped would transform his country’s economic fortunes. Addressing hundreds of people waving the Cambodian flag, Hun Manet said China would contribute 49 percent to the funding of the Funan Techo Canal that would link the Mekong River to the Gulf of Thailand and reduce Cambodia’s shipping reliance on Vietnam. Cambodia’s government estimates the strategic, if contentious, infrastructure project would cost US$1.7 billion, nearly 4 percent of the nation’s annual GDP. However, months later,
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un renewed his call for a “limitless” expansion of his military nuclear program to counter US-led threats in comments reported yesterday that were his first direct criticism toward Washington since US president-elect Donald Trump’s electoral victory on Oct. 6. At a conference with army officials on Friday, Kim condemned the US for updating its nuclear deterrence strategies with South Korea and solidifying three-way military cooperation involving Japan, which he portrayed as an “Asian NATO” that was escalating tensions and instability in the region. Kim also criticized the US over its support of Ukraine against a prolonged Russian invasion.
Texas’ education board on Friday voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools, joining other Republican-led US states that pushed this year to give religion a larger presence in public classrooms. The curriculum adopted by the Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by elected Republicans, is optional for schools to adopt, but they would receive additional funding if they do so. The materials could appear in classrooms as early as next school year. Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the lesson plans, which were provided by the state’s education agency that oversees the more than
RSS