Gadhafi: Agreement Reached With Families of Victims From 1989 French Airline Disaster

TBO.com ^

[Sub-Driver]

Gadhafi: Agreement Reached With Families of Victims From 1989 French Airline Disaster By Salah Nasrawi Associated Press Writer

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) - Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi said Sunday a second agreement over compensation has been reached between his country and the families of 170 victims of a French airliner that exploded in 1989. "The Gadhafi charitable organizations have been dealing with the families to reach an agreement and they have reached an agreement," Gadhafi said during a speech broadcast live on state-run television on the eve of the anniversary of the 1969 coup that brought him to power.

The Libyan leader was referring to the Gadhafi International Association for Charitable Organizations, a body headed by one of his sons.

He did not reveal any other details about the compensation package.

In 1999, Libya provided $33 million to families of the passengers killed when a UTA airliner crashed over the Niger desert on Sept. 19, 1989. A French court earlier convicted six Libyans - including Gadhafi's brother-in-law - in absentia over the bombing.

However, France wanted to renegotiate for more compensation after Libya recently agreed to pay families of the 270 victims of the 1988 Pan Am bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, a total of $2.7 billion - or between $5 million and $10 million for each victim.

Gadhafi previously said the UTA "file was closed" after the $33 million was paid. But he said the French government was pressured by victims' relatives after it became clear that relatives of the Lockerbie victims would receive more money.

Libya, subsequently, came under international pressure to protect the French government from "further embarrassment," Gadhafi said.

Gadhafi spoke earlier Sunday by phone with French President Jacques Chirac. The French Foreign Ministry released a statement saying the French-Libyan contacts were continuing "in a constructive spirit."

During his speech, Gadhafi said Libya was compelled to agree to the Lockerbie deal so sanctions against his country could be lifted and its name removed from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism.

"What matters to us is honor. We don't care about money," he said. "The case of Lockerbie is now behind our backs. The Libyans have displayed wisdom and courage as well as efficiency in conducting this strategic conflict."

Following Libya's commitment this month to pay the Lockerbie compensation, accept responsibility for the bombing and renounce terrorism, Britain proposed to the U.N. Security Council to lift sanctions preventing arm sales and air travel to the north African country.

Gadhafi spoke at an auditorium before thousands of cheering Libyans, discussing such topics as the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, Libyan relations with America and the Arab world, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

International journalists who traveled to Tripoli to cover the 1969 coup anniversary were barred from attending the speech.

Gadhafi doubted America's ability to triumph in Iraq, whose people, he said, would fight to the death to expel foreign occupiers.

"If an Iraqi wants to die, he won't care about Libyan, Egyptian or American forces. He will attack any foreign forces on his lands, even if that land was close to Mecca (Islam's holiest shrine, located in Saudi Arabia)," he said.

In what appeared to be a veiled warning to the United States against considering military action in Libya after Iraq, Gadhafi said, "If they will come back to fight us, we will fight them back."

But Gadhafi said there were areas where Libya and the United States could see eye-to-eye, including their joint opposition to terrorism, dictatorships and religion being mixed with politics.

AP-ES-08-31-03 1922EDT

This story can be found at: http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAB6PXO1KD.html

[Sub-Driver]

They pay the $$ and no one goes to jail.........go figure

[vpintheak]

The only thing about this that pisses me off is that the Frogs got their way.