Lockerbie Our Story: Who were the bombers responsible and how many people died
The tragedy has been featured in two UK limited series this year
It's one of the worst disasters in modern times.
Now a new documentary about the Lockerbie bombing is coming to the BBC.
Lockerbie Our Story, will air tonight (June 3).
But who were the bombers responsible and how many people died in the disaster?
The documentary tells the story of passenger jet Pan Am 103 which was blown up over the small Scottish town of Lockerbie.
The disaster was the UK’s largest crime scene and remains the deadliest terrorist attack on British soil.
The documentary sees families and loved ones, most of whom are speaking for the first time, tell the deeply personal stories of six victims.
In the first six months of the year, two limited drama series' have released chronicling the bombing and its aftermath.
Released in January on Sky Atlantic, Lockerbie: A Search for Truth starred Colin Firth as Jim Swire, who embarks on a quest for justice after his daughter, Flora, died on Pan Am Flight 103.
Monday (June 2), saw the BBC release the sixth and final episode of The Bombing of Pan Am 103, featuring Connor Swindells and Eddie Marsan.
On December 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was in the midst of its transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London and another in New York City.
Shortly after 7pm, the Boeing 747 aircraft was destroyed by a bomb while flying over Lockerbie.
All 243 passengers and 16 crew aboard the flight were killed as a result of the bomb. An additional 11 people were killed from large sections crashing in a residential street.
Most of those on board were American citizens (190) and 32 were from the UK. There were also 19 from Argentina, Belgium, Bolivia, Canada, France, West Germany, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Becoming known as the Lockerbie bombing, the tragedy was responsible for a total of 270 fatalities.
In 1991 after a three-year investigation by police and the FBI concluded that two Libyan nationals were responsible and arrest warrants were issued.
In 1999, after protracted negotiations, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi handed over the two men for trial. Libyan intelligence officer Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was jailed for life in 2001 after being found guilty of 270 counts of murder in connection with the bombing.
Gaddafi accepted responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing in 2003, and paid compensation to the families of the victims. In 2009, al-Megrahi was released by the Scottish Government on compassionate grounds after being diagnosed with prostate cancer. He died in 2012.
US authorities indicted Libyan national Abu Agila Mohammad Mas'ud Kheir Al-Marimi for participating in the bombing in 2020, obtaining custody of him in 2022. Abu Agila Masud was due to go on trial in Washington on May 12, but district court judge Dabney L Friedrich agreed in March to a postponement following submissions from the prosecution and defence.
According to a court document, lawyers had raised the issue of the case’s complexity, and the amount of time they had to adequately prepare for both pretrial proceedings and the trial itself. Lawyers also referred to the issue of ‘voluminous discovery, including evidence located in other countries’, and the need for the defence to determine how best to defend the case. A new date for the trial has not yet been set.
While Masud denies three charges relating to the attack, prosecutors have always maintained that Megrahi acted with others in carrying out the attack.
A spokesperson for Scotland’s Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said: “We appreciate that the prospect of delay will be frustrating for those affected but we urge them not to feel disheartened.
“Scottish prosecutors have a long-standing commitment to pursuing those responsible for the bombing of Pan Am 103. We will move forward with unwavering determination and continue to support US authorities in the prosecution of Masud.”
Lockerbie Our Story airs on Tuesday, June 3, on BBC Two and on the BBC iPlayer at 9pm