Senators Urge Libya to Pay Victims' Families of Libyan Terrorism

[The Straight Story]

Senators Urge Libya to Pay Victims' Families of Libyan Terrorism

Washington, DC—Today, a coalition of eight Senators, led by Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ), sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice asking her to use an upcoming diplomatic visit to urge Libya to fulfill its obligations to American victims of Libyan terrorism. Lautenberg was joined by Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Norm Coleman (R-MN) and Chris Dodd (D-CT).

“Congress has made it clear that the U.S. is not ready for full normalization of relations with Libya,” the Senators wrote. “This was demonstrated in the Senate’s passage of the Fiscal Year 2008 State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill, which would block the construction of a new U.S. embassy in Tripoli and prevent support for energy investment there until these settlements are fulfilled. Several Senators have also vowed to block the confirmation of a new U.S. ambassador to Tripoli.”

In 2003, Libya agreed to compensate the victims of the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing that killed 270 people. In 2006, it agreed to compensate the victims of its 1986 bombing of the LaBelle discothèque in Berlin, Germany, which killed two Americans and wounded nearly 90 service members. To date, Libya has not fulfilled either commitment and other cases are pending against Libya, including the attack on Egypt Air Flight 648. One American citizen was killed in that attack and two were badly injured. Two Israelis and many Egyptians were killed.

The full text of the letter follows:

December 10, 2007

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Madam Secretary,

It has been reported that you are considering a visit to Libya, which would make you the highest ranking U.S. official to visit that country in more than fifty years. If you do decide to travel there, we assume this is because you are confident that the Libyan government will fulfill the settlement obligations it has made with American victims of Libyan terrorism.

As you know, Libya agreed in 2003 to compensate the victims of the 1988 Pan Am103 bombing that killed 270 people. In addition, it agreed in 2006 to compensate the victims of its 1986 bombing of the LaBelle discothèque in Berlin, Germany, which killed two Americans and wounded nearly 90 service members. To date, Libya has not fulfilled its commitments to these victims. There are also other cases, such as the Egypt Air Flight 648 case, that need to be resolved.

Earlier this year, we sent two letters to Deputy Secretary of State Negroponte outlining our concerns. Congress has made it clear that the U.S. is not ready for full normalization of relations with Libya. This was demonstrated in the Senate’s passage of the Fiscal Year 2008 State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill, which would block the construction of a new U.S. embassy in Tripoli and prevent support for energy investment there until these settlements are fulfilled. Several Senators have also vowed to block the confirmation of a new U.S. ambassador to Tripoli.

Since that time, despite making no progress on resolving these cases, the State Department has nonetheless chosen to increase the pace of normalization of relations with Libya. President Bush has nominated a new U.S. Ambassador to Libya, and in a major policy shift, the Administration chose to not oppose Libya’s accession to the United Nations Security Council. After the vote, the Libyan Ambassador to the U.N. confidently stated that “…our relations with the United States…are back to normal” and that the Pan Am affair is “behind us.” We hope you agree that this is not the case.

While the Administration’s actions in recent months have failed to show the requisite commitment to American victims of Libyan terrorism, we were encouraged by a September 30th Washington Post article that indicated you had “…suggested that (you) would travel to Libya if the government resolves outstanding problems, including final payments to the families of victims of Libyan terrorist attacks.” We encourage you to maintain this position.

Sincerely,

Frank R. Lautenberg
Robert Menendez
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Patrick Leahy
Barbara A. Mikulski
Norm Coleman
Chris Dodd
Charles E. Schumer

http://clinton.senate.gov/news/statements/details.cfm?id=288664&&

[rpannier]

1. And the rest of the world ought to demand the US pay for the victims of the terrorists

we supported that tortured and murdered thousands.