UK to table Libya vote
Britain has planned a United Nations Security Council vote to lift sanctions against Libya which would release $2.7 billion to the families of the 270 victims killed in the Lockerbie bombing.
UN Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry said the vote was scheduled for next Friday, despite an ongoing dispute between France and Libya over compensation for the families of 170 people killed in the bombing of a UTA flight over Niger.
The sanctions, including an air and arms embargo and a ban on some oil equipment and financial assets, were implemented in 1992, strengthened in 1994 and suspended in 1999 after Libya turned over two suspects for the bombing trial.
Libya wants the embargoes permanently lifted.
France veto
Still, France has threatened to use its UN veto against Libya unless the North African country expedites the payment of agreed compensation into an escrow account in a deal mimicking that struck by the UK.
The families of those killed in the UTA bombing are likely to get far less than the Lockerbie relatives. Unidentified sources familiar with the talks said the amount proffered was between $500,000 and $1 million per family, AFP said.
The compensation claims came after a Paris court found six Libyan officials guilty in absentia for the UTA bombing and sentenced them to life in prison.
The British and American families of the victims of the Lockerbie bombing are expected to receive $5 million to $10 million each.