Libya has agreed to assume responsibility for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, but only after assurances from London and Washington that it will not lead to legal action being taken against its government, the Financial Times reported Thursday.
US officials said families of the bombing's US victims have been invited to the State Department Friday for a briefing on an apparently imminent deal in which Libya will take responsibility for the attack.
"All sides understand this (admission) shall not be considered proof or evidence to be used against the Libyan government," a London-based lawyer familiar with the case, Saad Djebbar, was quoted as saying in the Times report.
The report comes after Libya on Wednesday signed an accord with families of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing victims, clearing the way for financial compensation totaling about 2.7 billion dollars, according to a letter from a family lawyer received in New York.
Tripoli will not be admitting that the state committed the crime but only accepting blame because one of its officials was convicted of the bombing, the paper added. (Albawaba.com)
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