The kidnapping of a former Libyan intelligence agent accused of preparing the bomb that brought down Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988 and his transfer to US custody was agreed to some three months after talks between the US government and Libyan officials, The Guardian. it has been said
Mohammed Abouagela Masud appeared briefly in court in Washington DC on Monday, accused of setting the timer for the bomb that destroyed the Boeing 747, which killed 270 people in the deadliest terrorist attack on British soil .
The US Department of Justice announced it had custody of Masud over the weekend, but did not provide details on how he had arrived in the US.
Libyan officials with knowledge of the case said Masud was captured at his home in Tripoli’s Abu Salim neighborhood on Nov. 17 by gunmen loyal to Abdel Ghani al-Kikli, an infamous local militia commander known as “Gheniwa “, and then handed over to a second militia. group that detained him for two weeks before final transfer to US government agents.
Analysts have expressed concern that the US’s choice of these notorious local partners in a clandestine operation to bring Masud to the US against his will could undermine efforts to promote the rule of law in Libya.
The officials said Trump administration officials had been in talks with local authorities to bring Masud to the United States for trial since 2019 and that those “conversations” had continued under President Joe Biden.
Until six months ago, Masud was serving a 10-year sentence for crimes committed as an intelligence agent under the regime of Muammar Gaddafi, who was ousted in 2011.
While in prison, Masud, who is about 75 years old and seriously ill, could have been transferred relatively easily to US custody by the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity (GNU), but was released earlier this year after serving his term.
“He was basically a free man. He … was at home. There was no warrant for him or anything of that nature. The Americans knew that of course,” a Libyan official said.
The lack of legal justification for Masud’s arrest initially appeared to have blocked US efforts, until powerful individuals within the GNU, believed to be the influential nephew of Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, offered to arrest Masud and hand him over. to the US government anyway.
“The Libyan leaders knew that the Americans were interested, regardless of whether the individual was detained or not. The legal process on the Libyan side was not of much concern,” said Jalel Harchaoui, an associate member of the Royal United Services Institute. .
Only a small number of senior officials in Washington, mainly in the Justice Department and the State Department, were aware of Masud’s intended fate, although the CIA and the White House are believed to have been notified.
After being kidnapped, Masud was transferred to a heavily armed paramilitary unit called the Joint Force in the port city of Misrata. The force was created a year ago by Dbeibeh to act as a personal Praetorian guard and is described by experts as “very well armed, small, very nasty and able to get things done”.
“It looks like it was … basically stored while they waited for the US to be ready and accept the gift,” Harchaoui said.
Around Dec. 1, US officials picked up Masud and flew his captive to Malta against his will, the officials said.
Masud’s nephew, Abdulmenam Marimi, told Reuters on Monday that the family only learned of his transfer to the United States through the media.
Start your day with the top stories from the US, plus the day’s must-reads from across the Guardian
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertisements and content funded by third parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Libya is divided between two administrations and is the site of a struggle for influence between countries such as Egypt, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Western nations. The GNU is based in Tripoli.
Dbeibeh’s term expired last December, and since then he has been under pressure to justify staying in power to the US and other Western allies.
“It is very likely that Masud was captured at the behest of the current Tripoli-based prime minister, who needs to strengthen his personal position with the US. The international community’s resentment towards him was growing. He is believed to have to deliver the country to the elections and must root out the networks of corruption, but there is no sign of genuine commitment on their part,” said Alia Brahimi, a North Africa expert at the Atlantic Council.
Earlier this year, Dbeibeh appointed al-Kikli, the notorious militia commander, to command a force given responsibility for arresting people in “national security” cases.
Al-Kikli, who has been repeatedly accused of human rights violations, controls the poor and populous neighborhood of Abu Salim, where Masud lived.
Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh appointed notorious warlord Abdel Ghani al-Kikli to arrest people like Masud in “national security” cases. Photograph: Islam Alatrash/SOPA Images/REX/Shutterstock
Amnesty International said earlier this year that militias under al-Kikli’s command terrorized people “through enforced disappearances, torture, unlawful killings and other crimes under international law.” Al-Kikli denied Amnesty’s accusations, saying he was “very interested in first applying Libyan law, which takes into account the standards of justice and human rights”.
Jake Sullivan, the US national security adviser, told reporters at Monday’s press conference at the White House: “Today is a good day because Masud will face justice for his alleged role in Lockerbie attack of 1988. I will say that this has been done in a lawful manner according to established procedures”.
In a statement, Michael Glasheen, acting deputy director in charge of the FBI’s Washington field office, said: “The lawful arrest and arraignment of the alleged bomb maker … is the product of ‘hard work and collaborations around the world’.
Tim Eaton, an expert at Chatham House in London, said Washington may have overruled concerned diplomats on the ground.
“The US has this idea that there is no moratorium on prosecuting those responsible for crimes against the United States … but this episode … is completely at odds with what the US wants in Libya. The camp is for democracy , accountability and transparency. You’d be hard-pressed to say that this was a transparent and accountable process,” Eaton said.
Harchaoui said many Libyans would be dismayed by the US’s choice of local collaborators.
“What will you think if you live in Abu Salim and you are afraid of this militia and then you find out that the most powerful state in the world is working with it, accepting its illegal operation and giving it legitimacy? How about the US?” he asked.
The Pan Am flight from Heathrow to New York’s John F Kennedy Airport exploded at 31,000 feet over Scotland on December 21, 1988. Two hundred and fifty-nine people on board died, while the fiery remains of the exploded plane killed another 11 on the ground in Lockerbie.
According to US legal documents, Masud was a key figure in the plot, along with Abdelbaset al-Megrahi and Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah. Al-Megrahi was jailed for life for mass murder by three Scottish judges at a special court in the Netherlands in 2001. Fhimah was later acquitted at trial.
Investigators say Masud met the other two in Malta, where a senior Libyan intelligence official had ordered him to fly with a prepared suitcase. The other two men asked him to set the timer and the suitcase traveled via feeder flights to the hold of the Boeing 747.
At the time, Gaddafi was at odds with the West, but under his leadership Libya later renounced terrorism and accepted responsibility for the 2003 plane bombing in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.
After the fall of Gaddafi, Masud, an explosives expert in the country’s intelligence service, was arrested by Libyan law enforcement. In 2017, US officials received a copy of an interview with Masud conducted by Libyan authorities shortly after his arrest.
In that interview, US officials said, Masud admitted to building the bomb used in the Pan Am attack and working with the two men charged earlier to plant it on the plane. He said the operation had been ordered by Libyan intelligence and that Gaddafi had thanked him and others after the attack, according to an FBI affidavit.
In late 2020, the United States Department of Justice announced charges against Masud. With Masud in Libyan custody, however, his prosecution remained largely theoretical.