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Lockerbie: What happens next?

Q: Does acquitted Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah face any further criminal proceedings?

A: Presiding judge Lord Sutherland told Fhimah: "In view of the verdict of the court you are now discharged and free to go." Once somebody is found not guilty they cannot be tried on those charges again.

Q: Will Abdel Baset Al-Megrahi appeal against his conviction?

A: Libyan officials, including its ambassador to the U.N., have said he will lodge an appeal. However, it is not an automatic right. Under Scots law, he has until February 14 to lodge an appeal after which his defence team has six weeks in which to deliver the full note of appeal detailing the grounds on which it is based.

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Q: Who will hear the appeal?

A: If the appeal is allowed, the case proceeds to an appeal hearing in the High Court of Justiciary, to be heard by five judges at Camp Zeist. However, the Scottish High Court is no longer the final arbiter on criminal matters in Scotland, and an appeal could go as far as the Privy Council, which sits in Downing Street, London.

Q: On what grounds can he appeal?

A: The Law Society of Scotland said the most likely basis for an appeal would be for the defence to claim that the verdict represented a miscarriage of justice. This would possibly revolve around the theory that a vital piece of evidence in the prosecution's case was "inadmissible" and should not have been put before the trial judges.

Q: What would constitute a miscarriage of justice?

A: Firstly, where the appeal judges feel the conviction is unsafe because, for example, of the quantity or quality of the prosecution evidence, or, secondly, where there was some serious procedural irregularity.

Q: How much of his life sentence will he serve?

A: Assuming that Megrahi lodges an appeal, and he loses it, the trial judges recommended that he serves at least 20 years in prison before being eligible for parole.

Q: Where will he serve his sentence?

A: Unless an appeal succeeds, Megrahi will serve his sentence in a Scottish jail. Although for security reasons it has never been officially stated where anyone convicted of the Lockerbie bomb would serve their sentence, it is known that for many years after the bombing Glasgow's Barlinnie jail set aside, and then decommissioned, a special wing. Wherever he is held, Megrahi will kept apart from other inmates, and U.N. observers will be allowed to monitor his welfare.

Q: What will relatives of the victims do next?

A: Many of the relatives of the victims of the bombing, especially those in the U.S., have vowed to continue their campaign to bring all those responsible for the bombing to justice. The British and U.S. governments say they will work together to ensure that Libya pays compensation to the families, currently estimated to be £470 million ($700 million). The American relatives are expected to pursue a civil law suit to recover more than $10bn damages from the Libyan government.

Q: Is the criminal investigation now closed?

A: U.S. Acting Deputy Attorney General Bob Mueller told CNN: "This case is not closed. The investigation continues, it has continued since the plane went down and it will continue until every individual who we can identify who played a role in this tragedy is brought to justice."

Q: What will happen to U.N. and U.S. sanctions?

A: The U.N. resolutions state that, before sanctions can be lifted, Libya must: 1 Cease all forms of terrorism; 2 Hand over the two suspects for trial; 3 Disclose all it knows about the Lockerbie bombing; 4 Accept responsibility for the actions of Libyan officials; 5 Pay appropriate compensation; 6 Co-operate with the French investigation into the 1989 bombing of a UTA passenger plane over Niger, in west Africa.

While accepting that Libya has complied with some of the requirements, London and Washington say Libya must meet the remaining conditions, particularly 4 and 5. A White House spokesman said the verdict "does not in itself signify an end to U.N. Sanctions against Libya." He confirmed Britain and America would now approach Libya to discuss what the next steps should be.

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The Lockerbie Inquiry
The Lockerbie Trial
The Scottish Law Commission
US Department of State
British Government
The Lockerbie Verdict

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