BP Admits Lobbying for Libyan Prisoner Exchange

Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's son Seif al-Islam, right, raising the hand of freed Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, upon his arrival in Tripoli last year.

After several U.S. Senators demanded in an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the release of Pan Am 103 bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, BP has released a statement denying that the company had any specific role in his release, but acknowledging that they lobbied the British government to enter into a prisoner transfer agreement with Libya. A doctor (who now says he was paid by the Libyans) had predicted that Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, would be dead in three months, but he's reportedly living in luxury in Libya.

In a statement, BP said, "BP told the UK government that we were concerned about the slow progress that was being made in concluding a Prisoner Transfer Agreement with Libya. We were aware that this could have a negative impact on UK commercial interests, including the ratification by the Libyan government of BP's exploration agreement. The decision to release Mr. al Megrahi in August 2009 was taken by the Scottish Government. It’s not for BP to comment on the decision of the Scottish Government. BP was not involved in any discussions with the U.K. Government or the Scottish Government about the release of Mr. al Megrahi."

Senators Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) are demanding an investigation, and in a letter to Senator John Kerry, Gillibrand formally requested a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. "We have seen an abundance of circumstantial evidence that the British and Scottish governments may have circumvented justice and organized his release in order to secure a lucrative oil drilling concession for British Petroleum,” wrote Senator Gillibrand. “If true, this would be outrageous and demands immediate scrutiny. One hundred ninety Americans, including many students and families from New York, died in the Lockerbie bombing.”

Bert Ammerman, the former head of the Victims of Pan Am Flight 103 group, tells NBC, "This is ugly. It is immoral. It is unethical. It is illegal. And there's no question there is a connection between the BP oil agreement with Libya and the release of al Megrahi." BP stands to earn as much as $20 billion from the deal, which was sealed shortly after Megrahi's release. Ammerman also wants an investigation into what the Obama administration knew about the alleged deal before it happened.

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By John Del Signore in News on July 15, 2010 5:46 PM

Comments [rss]

Bubba

Good old Tony Blair...

bcat

Blair? Seriously? Who hasn't been Prime Minister since 2007?

Bubba

The memorandum of understanding regarding prisoner transfer that Tony Blair entered into in the course of the "deal in the desert" in May 2007, and which paved the way for the formal prisoner transfer agreement, was intended by both sides to lead to the rapid return of Mr Megrahi to his homeland. This was the clear understanding of Libyan officials involved in the negotiations and to whom I have spoken.

http://lockerbiecase.blogspot.com/2009/09/release-of-megrahi.html

Bubba

http://tinyurl.com/36kjtcb

Bubba

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3566545.stm

RoboticInsides

Why are you guys criticizing BP? Come on, they should be able to do whatever they want to sell the world black gold! They should even be able to take over the world's prison systems to use prisoner as bargaining chips. They should take over all nations' armed forces to wage war when it benefits them. They should continue to impede progress on renewal resources, environmental legislation, and oil spill clean ups. They should do whatever they want for their money and we should have no say in it, or else, we are taking away their freedoms.

Guest_of_a_Guest

I wonder how many other Libyan prisoners were in United Kingdom prisons at the time BP pushed for this agreement. Certainly, al-Megrahi was the most visible, and Libya had actively sought his transfer previously.

BP's attempt to distance itself from the probable outcome of that agreement is despicable. I would say even worse than if they just admittede, "yes, we thought it was a risk, but we couldn't pass up those profits."

Mr Mel

This means that $20 Billion that BP set aside after ruining the lives of a few million Americans will be replaced by their oil drilling in Libya, this is Blood Money pure and simple. Those Senators and members of Congress that are defending BP have to be exposed for what they are-Traitors.

blink

$20 billion? It was reported that the cleanup will run about $1 trillion dollars, so the $20 billion figure is chump change in comparison, but that's the deal the US Government made with BP, while our tax dollars take care of the other $980 billion dollars. And Obama is still BP's bitch.

Politburo

BP is, by law, on the hook for all cleanup costs.

The $20 billion fund is for economic damages, e.g. a fisherman who can no longer work, a restaurant that has lost business. The law capped those damages at $75 million.

Please have a basic grasp of the facts.

tingo

All hope is lost.

Between the bankers, the oil companies, the private security companies, kickbacks, corporate-run mass media...

grandzu

Citizens interests are so far down the list on a politician's radar, its disgusting.

jaycjay

"denying that the company had any specific role in his release, but acknowledging that they lobbied the British government to enter into a prisoner transfer agreement"

So then... they're saying that they did play a specific role: lobbying the government to enter a transfer agreement.

jaycjay

Re-reading that, I guess it's not surprising. BP has shown that their are masters at doubletalk.

jaycjay

Er... they are.

Mordicai

Haha ha ha oh man what the hell; this is one of those times you have to doubletake to make sure it isn't an Onion headline. Are you kidding me?