“If there is no such thing as ‘the Truth’ about the past, and therefore, a fortiori, if there is no obligation to seek such truth, we are left only with clashing opinions. (…) But, if there is such a thing as the ‘Truth’ about the past, and if one party claims to possess it, yet without sufficient grounds, the possibility remains of questioning that claim and showing it to be mistaken or inadequate.”

Miroslav Volf — The End of Memory

May 11 2020 – Over the last two decades, I have written over a hundred pieces about the Lockerbie tragedy. In recent years, many people have asked me to write just a short story that summarizes my thoughts on this affair. This master of procrastination has always managed to avoid this painful task… Until today. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY

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RELATED POST: Lockerbie & Pan Am 103 Quotes

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“The right to search for the truth implies also a duty. One must not conceal any part of what one has recognized to be the truth.”

Albert Einstein

UPDATE (May 11 2021) — On January 15 2021, Lord Carloway — The Lord Justice General in the appeal — delivered the opinion of the Scottish Appeal Court. The decision is available online. Without surprise to the readers of this blog, the Court has upheld the verdict of the trial court.

As I had written in this post on May 11 2020:

“But let us go back to the SCCRC decision. To many observers, it marks the beginning of Justice. I am afraid that I share neither their joy, nor their hopes. The Devil is in the detail. And a careful reading of the SCCRC statement of reasons indicates that all hopes of Truth and Justice have already been annihilated. The upcoming appeal is basically a joke.”

Although Intel Today had correctly predicted the outcome of this third appeal, the judges have nevertheless found a way to amuse me.

In January 2001, the three Lockerbie judges wrote [Court Opinion] :

[1] At 1903 hours on 22 December 1988 Pan Am flight 103 fell out of the sky. The 259 passengers and crew members who were on board and 11 residents of Lockerbie where the debris fell were killed. The Crown case is that the cause of the disaster was that an explosive device had been introduced into the hold of the aircraft by the two accused whether acting alone or in concert with each other and others.

[2] It is not disputed, and was amply proved, that the cause of the disaster was indeed the explosion of a device within the aircraft. Nor is it disputed that the person or persons who were responsible for the deliberate introduction of the explosive device would be guilty of the crime of murder.

Twenty years later… Posted on the official website “Judiciary of Scotland” on January 15 2021, the first sentence of the Megrahi decision summary reads:

“Mr Megrahi was convicted in January, 2001 of the murders of 270 people after a bomb was planted on a passenger plane which flew from London to New York. The plane disintegrated over the town of Lockerbie on 22 December 1988.”

On November 2 2016, the UK Government [Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS)] decided to withhold all Lockerbie air accident investigation reports [dating from 1990 Jan 01 to 1992 Dec 31] until at least 2026, and possibly indefinitely.

The last chapter of my book begins with this sentence:

“Pan Am Flight 103 disintegrated in flight over Lockerbie on December 21 1988 — not December 22 — because of a massive structural failure due to well-known issues of metal fatigue in section 41 and 42 of the Boeing 747, not because of an explosive device.”

I have always known that I would have to be patient and wait at least until 2026 to prove that no bomb was involved in the disintegration of Pan Am Flight 103.

But surely, after one trial, two decisions by the SCCRC and three appeals, the judges could at least agree on the correct date of this tragedy. Is it too much to ask?

Obviously, the FBI and the US DoJ are no better with timelines. On December 21 2020 (the 32nd anniversary of the Lockerbie tragedy), the US DoJ announced new charges against a third former Libyan intelligence operative for his role in the destruction of Pan Am Flight 103.

In this final post (link below) about the new development, I have summarized my conclusions regarding the new indictment.

RELATED POST: LOCKERBIE — Analysis of the New Indictment [Intel Today Conclusions]

A serious analysis of the FBI affidavit shows that the new charges are highly problematic for the Bureau and the US DoJ.

In her affidavit, FBI agent Rachel F. Otto writes:

“I have also determined, from my review of other evidence, and speaking with other investigators from Scotland and the FBI, that MASUD’s confession is corroborated, as laid out in greater detail below, by evidence gathered by Scottish and American investigators in the years following the bombing, as well as evidence gathered and provided by other countries.”

This statement is totally incorrect. As I have explained, these new charges fully contradict the initial indictment as well as some of the facts which were established even before the Lockerbie tragedy.

Just one question. Was the CIA even consulted regarding the drafting of this FBI document?

Obviously, my work is finished. But I have still a few anecdotes to tell. Stay tuned!

END of UPDATE

“U.S. Department of State has authorized a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of those responsible for the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 and the murders of the 270 victims.”

Rewards for Justice [retrieved May 11 2020]

***** Lockerbie — Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…! *****

QUICK NOTES — To make it easier for the readers to retrieve various chapters of this book, I have created a special page  “Lockerbie” where all the links to the chapters will be listed with a brief description. You can access that page directly as it appears at the far right of the top bar of this blog.

***** Lockerbie — Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…! *****

Why now? Like anyone else, the current pandemic has certainly forced me to rethink my priorities in life.

No one lives forever. You may as well try to finish one or two good things before your time is up.

Then, a couple of irreversible events occurred and convinced me that I am now – sadly and unfortunately – the best person on earth to explain this horrific three decades long saga.

Flashback — In the summer 2007, I was reading about various terrorist organizations.

During that research, I realized something really odd about the Wikipedia page regarding Pan Am Flight 103.

On July 26 2007, I published a piece regarding suspicious edits made to some articles on Wikipedia. I came to the conclusion that Western Intelligence Agencies were editing sensitive information on Wikipedia.

Jimmy Wales, the founder of the ‘people’s encyclopedia’, first insulted me but he soon had to admit that my analysis was perfectly correct. There was simply no denying it.

On March 11 2020, the SCCRC decided to refer the Lockerbie case back to the High Court of Justiciary for determination.

As a result of the Commission’s decision, Mr. Megrahi’s family is now entitled to instruct an appeal against his conviction.

Today (May 11 2020), I consulted the Pan Am Flight 103 Wikipedia page for the first time in 10 years. And the situation has not improved…

Amazingly, the page does not even mention the recent decision of the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission [SCCRC].

So basically, as a result of my work, Western Intelligence agencies went from covert edits to overt censorship. How great is that?

I am not sure how to feel about this media of disinformation. Let us just say that, perhaps, silence is better than obvious and transparent lies? Maybe…

But let us go back to the SCCRC decision. To many observers, it marks the beginning of Justice. I am afraid that I share neither their joy, nor their hopes.

The Devil is in the detail.

And a careful reading of the SCCRC statement of reasons indicates that all hopes of Truth and Justice have already been annihilated. The upcoming appeal is basically a joke.

In the light of these facts, I must find the strength to tell my story. What actually happened to Pan Am Flight 103?

Please, do not expect a pretty, nicely written story. I am not in the mood for that. Actually, the style will be more ‘Panzer tank attack’ than akin to a subtle game of chess.

And that is fine by me. As another Ludwig [Boltzmann] one said:

“If you are out to describe the truth, leave elegance to the tailor.”

So starting next Monday, and every Monday after that for the next 10 weeks, I will post one chapter of my book “Lockerbie — Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…!” free for all of you to read, learn and enjoy.

I am a bit sarcastic in my old age. In truth, among the few who will read the book, not many will learn, and most will not enjoy it at all. Truth rarely makes friends.

Many years ago, former FBI Richard Marquise – the man who led the US side of the Lockerbie investigation — told me that if I ever find out who was behind this horrific crime and who their accomplices were, he would still recommend that the US department of Justice investigate and prosecute these bastards.

The Lockerbie verdict is a spectacular miscarriage of justice. But that nonsensical verdict did not just put an innocent man in jail.

Those responsible for this travesty of Justice have committed a much greater sin. They have allowed the true culprits to stay free, free to kill again.

These monsters do not burn out. They never do. They never will. As long as they are not stopped, they will kill, and kill, and kill again…

Those responsible for the Lockerbie tragedy had killed before December 21 1988. And they killed many innocents after Lockerbie.

And tomorrow, they will kill innocents again, and again, until they are terminated, one way or another.

That is why I write this book.

PS – I do not really expect Richard Marquise to keep his end of the bargain. Nor do I expect to pocket the U.S. Department of State 5 USD millions Reward for the person who can name the Lockerbie culprits. And that is just fine. This old man is just out to describe the truth. And nothing else matters.

REFERENCES

Lockerbie — Rewards for Justice [retrieved May 11 2020]

“Believing that al-Megrahi and Fhimah did not act alone in causing a bomb to be loaded onto Pan Am Flight 103, the U.S. Department of State has authorized a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of those responsible for the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 and the murders of the 270 victims.”

The FBI appears to ignore two facts. Firstly, the verdict regarding Fhimah is NOT GUILTY.

Secondly, it is widely expected that the upcoming appeal — which is not even mentioned by the Rewards for Justice website — will quash the guilty verdict against Megrahi.

In other words, the FBI is simply two (bad) apples short of a picnic!

And the FBI seems to have a very bad memory. The Bureau has obviously forgotten that there never was even a suggestion as to the method allegedly used by Megrahi and Fhimah to cause a bomb to be loaded onto Pan Am Flight 103.

Opinion of the Court [82] : “the absence of an explanation as to how the suitcase was taken into the system at Luqa is a major difficulty for the Crown case (…)”

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Lockerbie – Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…!

One Year Ago — Lockerbie – Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…!