The United States said yesterday that Libya has paid the full US$1.5 billion (Dh5.5 billion) to compensate victims of terrorism, clearing the last hurdle to a full normalisation of ties with Washington.
Meanwhile, the US president George W Bush, fulfilling his part of the compensation bargain sealed in August, signed an order yesterday to restore Libya's immunity to legal action pending in US courts, US officials said.
David Welch, the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs who led negotiations for the deal, said families of terrorism victims could start receiving payments within days.
The sum is to compensate US and other families for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland, that killed 270 people, and for US families of a Berlin disco bombing that killed two Americans and hurt 50 others.
"This is an important, significant moment," Mr Welch told a press conference in Washington. "This removes the last obstacle to a normal relationship between the United States and Libya."
Its signing in August by Mr Welch and the Libyan deputy foreign minister Ahmad Fituri prompted a visit to Tripoli in September by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who became the first US secretary of state to visit Libya in more than 50 years.
And the receipt of the full amount agreed under the deal now clears the way for the Senate to approve Gene Cretz, whom Mr Bush has nominated as ambassador to Libya, to his post in Tripoli and free up the funds for a new embassy there.
It caps what Mr Welch called a nearly five-year "historic transformation" for Libya ? once treated as an international outlaw.
After being severed in 1981, US-Libyan relations were restored in early 2004 a few weeks after Libyan leader, Colonel Moamer Kadhafi, announced Tripoli was abandoning efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction.
In 2006, the United States announced a full normalisation of ties, dropping Libya from a State Department list of state sponsors of terrorism and raising diplomatic relations to the level of ambassadors.
On August 14, the two sides signed the US-Libya Claims Settlement Agreement in Tripoli to set up a $1.8bn "humanitarian" fund from voluntary contributions from companies and other sources, US officials said.
Some $1.5bn was set aside for American and other non-Libyan families, including those who lost relatives on the ground in Lockerbie, and the remaining $300mn earmarked for Libyan victims.
After the disco bombing, Libya was subjected to several retaliatory US air strikes on Tripoli and Benghazi on April 16 1986, in which 41 people were killed, including an adopted daughter of Col Kadhafi.
Mr Welch could not confirm that the Libyan portion had been deposited in the fund which is in a bank account in Libya. Nor could he say where the money came from, although he conceded he had "an idea."
In a statement, Ms Rice's spokesman Sean McCormack said the deal offers "a measure of justice to families" of US victims of terrorism and paves the way for a further improvement in US-Libyan ties.
"Libya is an important partner in the common effort against terrorism and serves as a model for other countries that may wish to renounce isolation and rejoin the community of nations," Mr McCormack said.
*AFP
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
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ENGLAND SQUAD
Joe Root (c), Moeen Ali, Jimmy Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Alastair Cook, Sam Curran, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Pope, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
THE BIO
Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren
Favourite travel destination: Switzerland
Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers
Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum
How being social media savvy can improve your well being
Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.
As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.
Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.
Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.
Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.
However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.
“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.
People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Profile of RentSher
Started: October 2015 in India, November 2016 in UAE
Founders: Harsh Dhand; Vaibhav and Purvashi Doshi
Based: Bangalore, India and Dubai, UAE
Sector: Online rental marketplace
Size: 40 employees
Investment: $2 million
The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition and Experience
by David Gilmour
Allen Lane
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business