Lockerbie bomber drops second appeal

14/08/09 20:16 CET

world news

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The man jailed for carrying out the Lockerbie bombing has reportedly withdrawn his second appeal against his conviction.

Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, 57, who is dying of prostate cancer, must drop his appeal to be considered for repatriation under a prisoner transfer agreement signed by Britain and Libya. It follows intense media speculation that Scottish ministers were planning to release Megrahi on compassionate grounds, a move strongly opposed the U.S. government and many U.S relatives of those killed in the attack on the Pan Am plane. The court in Edinburgh will meet on Tuesday to consider the request to drop the appeal, according to his lawyers. All 259 people on board the flight died when it came down over the Scottish town in 1988. Eleven people on the ground were also killed.More about: Libya, Plane crash, Terrorism, United Kingdom

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Syrian bloodshed spreads to Aleppo

The upsurge in violence in Syria has spread to the northern city of Aleppo, where soldiers and civilians have been killed in separate explosions, according to state TV. It said a building used by military intelligence and a security forces as a…