EA Soundcheck: Scott Lucas talks to BBC World Service about Lockerbie

Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, convicted of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, was released from a Scottish jail today. Appearing with David Maddox of The Scotsman, I spoke with the BBC World Service's World Update about American objections to al-Megrahi's release, including the impact on US-UK relations (very little), US-Scotland relations (even less), and the real significance (US domestic politics and Hillary Clinton's move for power within the Obama Administration).

[UPDATE 21 August: Unfortunately, the BBC does not keep archived programmes of World Update so yesterday's programme is now in Broadcast Heaven (or Hell). Thanks to all those who listened!]

War on Terror Reminder: Torture is Also a British Thing

 

In recent weeks, we've paid close attentions to allegations of abuse by Iranian authorities in the post-election conflict. Perhaps as a timely reminder, Duncan Gardham writes in The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday that "torture" is not the exclusive practice of Tehran:

 

[Britain's] Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights said the structures for supervision were woefully deficient and accused ministers of refusing to give adequate answers to its detailed questions about torture.

It said "ministers are determined to avoid Parliamentary scrutiny and accountability" over allegations of complicity in torture, and concluded: "In view of the large number of unanswered questions... there is now no other way to restore public confidence in the intelligence services than by setting up an independent inquiry."

The committee urged ministers to publish the instructions given to security service officers on the detention and interviewing of detainees overseas.

Ministers have refused to give oral evidence to the committee on allegations of torture or have given only general answers to detailed questions about the treatment of individual detainees.

Seven former Guantanamo detainees, including Binyam Mohamed, are suing MI5, MI6, the Attorney General, the Foreign Office and the Home Office over their treatment.

The BBC, freed from its caution by the Parliamentary report, is adding a claim by Craig Murray, the former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan: he was told in March 2003 that Britain had accepted torture as part of its campaign in the War on Terror.