Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi dies

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the only person convicted over the 1988 Lockerbie bombing above Scotland which killed 270 people, has died at his home in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Megrahi, 60, was convicted by a special court in the Netherlands in 2001. He was released from prison in Scotland in 2009 on compassionate grounds. He was suffering from cancer and was said to have only months to live.

When he arrived back in Tripoli, he received a hero’s welcome. His release sparked the fury of many of the relatives of the victims of the Lockerbie disaster. The US – whose citizens accounted for 189 of the dead – also criticised the move. But others believed he was not guilty of the bombing.