12 Sep 2009
Amid uncertainties and anger about the release of Lockerbie bomber, a report reveals that Britain and Libya have been sharing closing relations over the last six months.

The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday that a contingent of between four and 14 men from the Special Air Service (SAS) had been training Libyan forces in the past six months.

An unnamed SAS source told the paper that the training was related to an agreement struck with Tripoli over release of Abdel Basset al-Megrahi.

Last month, Scotland freed Megrahi on compassionate grounds to the anger of many relatives of the 1988 airliner bombing, which killed 270 people.

London says that the decision to free him was taken by the Scottish government and had not been done to improve Britain's trade links with the oil-rich Libya.

On Saturday, the British government confirmed the training, but asserted there had been no defense deal connected to the release of Megrahi.

Britain's Ministry of Defense and Foreign Office also announced that they could not comment on the work of the SAS.

However, a Foreign Office spokeswoman said, "We have ongoing cooperation with Libya in the field of defense, but to suggest that this is part of any deal related to Megrahi is simply untrue."

The spokeswoman claimed there had been defense cooperation with Tripoli since Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi renounced weapons of mass destruction in 2003.

presstv