Hillary: 'Megrahi should stay in prison'
Updated on 19 August 2009
Hillary Clinton increases the pressure on the Scottish government to keep Lockerbie bomber Abdel Basset al-Megrahi in jail.
Megrahi withdrew his appeal against his sentence earlier this week and speculation suggests he may soon be moved to his native Libya on compassionate grounds as he is suffering terminal prostate cancer.
But Mrs Clinton has called the Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill to say Megrahi should serve out his sentence in Scotland.
She said: "I just think it is absolutely wrong to release someone who has been imprisoned based on the evidence about his involvement in such a horrendous crime."
Megrahi cannot be returned to Libya under a prisoner transfer treaty if any legal proceedings are outstanding but that barrier was removed when he dropped the appeal against his sentence.
Three appeal judges in Edinburgh heard Megrahi's condition had worsened "very considerably" in recent days.
Defence QC Margaret Scott said: "Up-to-date medical reports from three eminent experts also concurred in the view that he has a very aggressive cancer, that his condition is grave and that the prognosis is extremely limited."
She said the case met the guidelines for compassionate release and "serious" health complications were "certain to arrive" in the very near future for Megrahi, who was now very weak and in distress with severe pain.
"His absolute priority in the little time he has left is to spend it with his family in his homeland," Ms Scott added.
"It's the appellant's belief that instructions to abandon his appeal will assist in the early determination of these applications."
