The arrest of Abu Agila Masoud Al-Marimi, a former Libyan intelligence operative, has been described by the U.S. Attorney-General Merrick Garland as a “milestone on the path to justice” for victims of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.
In a speech at the 34th memorial service of the bombing attack on Wednesday, Garland said the U.S. “took a significant step forward on that path toward justice” by extraditing Al-Marimi from Libya.
“Thanks to tireless work across generations — the alleged bombmaker has been indicted, arrested and now is in United States custody and facing charges,” he said, addressing families of victims.
“We mark this milestone on the path to justice because of dedicated agents, investigators and prosecutors on both sides of the Atlantic,” Garland added. “And we reaffirm that no amount of time or distance will diminish our commitment to seeing justice done — no matter how long it takes.”
Al-Marimi, who appeared in a U.S. courtroom two weeks ago, was kidnapped from his home in Tripoli’s Abu Salem neighbourhood around 1am on 17 November by armed gunmen sent by a notorious local militia commander. He was then held by another militia for two weeks before being handed over to U.S. agents.
Since the extradition was reportedly made in cooperation with a Libyan militia, many Libyan and international human rights organizations have questioned the legality of Al-Marimi’s arrest and subsequent transfer to the U.S.
“We have long called for accountability for crimes [including the Lockerbie attack] under international law but this has to be done in a manner that respects due process and upholds fair trial rights,” Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, told The Guardian last Sunday.
On the other hand, the U.S. Embassy in Libya has maintained that Al-Marimi’s transfer was “lawful and conducted in cooperation with Libyan authorities”.
Amnesty International says Libya’s handover of Al-Marimi to US was illegal