08 Sep 2009

Colonel Qaddafi's son has said Libya will resist compensation demands from the families of IRA victims, as scandals over the event rumble on.

Seif al-Islam Qaddafi said on Monday that Libya would contest any claims for compensation over Tripoli's supply of weapons and explosives to the now-defunct Irish Republican Army (IRA).

"Anybody can knock on our door and ask for money. But you go to the court, we have lawyers," Seif told Britain's Sky News television.

His comments came a day after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown personally vetoed a campaign seeking compensation for victims of the IRA, who killed more than 1,000 people during their battle for sovereignty.

The premier found himself in hot water over his refusal, which is said to have jeopardized giant British oil deals with Libya.

In a move to quiet the raging scandals, Brown promised to set up a dedicated Foreign Office team to assist IRA victims, adding that the Tripoli embassy staff would also help them seek direct talks with Qaddafi, when they travel to Libya.

Libya has already paid 1.5 billion dollars to compensate victims of terrorism, including the Lockerbie bombing, following its normalization of ties with Washington and the West.

Britain's improving relations with Libya have come under close scrutiny after the early release of a former Libyan agent -- Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi -- convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie airliner bombing, in which 270 people were killed.

The 'terminally ill' Megrahi -- the only man convicted over Britain's worst terror attack -- was released from a Scottish jail on August 20 on grounds of compassion and returned to Libya.

However, official reports say that the prisoner transfer agreement was part of a wider set of negotiations aimed at advancing lucrative oil deals with the oil-rich African country.

Brown has denied the reports saying last week that "there was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double dealing, and no deal on oil" involved in Megrahi's release.

Muammar Qaddafi's influential son has meanwhile accused Britain of "disgusting behavior" over the Lockerbie case.

"They are trying to use this human tragedy for their own political agenda," he said. "It is completely immoral."

presstv