Libya starts compensation money transfer to victims, sanctions to be lifted next week

The UN Security Council decided yesterday to accept a French request to postpone voting on lifting UN sanctions imposed on Libya in order to give Paris extra time to end its negotiations with Tripoli concerning extra compensations demanded by families of the French planes victims, which France accused Libya of blowing up over Niger in 1989.

Meantime, Libya started yesterday transferring money it vowed place in a fund to repay as compensations for the families of the American Pan Am plane over Lockerbie village in Scotland and renewed its rejection of the French demands. The Libyan foreign ministry said that Tripoli "expresses regret and rejection of the declared French position which does not comply with the resolutions of the UN Security Council," adding in a statement that Paris has not asked Libya for compensations for the families of 'Ota' victims, rather for cooperation in the investigation and to collect evidences.

The statement added that France and Libya "reached an agreement to meet the French demands and investigation was completed in Libya by the French judge who was assigned to investigate in the case. France expressed its content over Libya's fulfillment of its obligations in Ota case," adding that the French position will hurt the families of "Pan Am" victims and deprive them of getting compensation demanded by the UN Security Council and will negatively reflect on the future of political and economic relations between the two countries.

Tripoli has started to transfer 2.7 billion dollars to a special account to the International Bank for Settlement in Switzerland. A US official said that the bank did not specify the time which it will take for making the transfer but expected it to be completed today ( Thursday), noting that "because the sum is so large it will not be possible to deposit it in one day."