Judge's ailment delays Lockerbie trial appeal

A decision on an appeal by the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing has been put on hold until autumn after a judge underwent heart surgery.

However, the Edinburgh Appeal Court said a verdict could not have been reached this week even if the judge, Lord Wheatley, did not undergo the operation since "complex and difficult issues" still had to be resolved.

Libyan national Abdel Basset Al-Megrahi, who was the only person convicted for the terrorist attack, is terminally ill with prostate cancer and his condition is said to be deteriorating rapidly.

His lawyer was reported saying she was dismayed at the delay since there was a very real risk "my client will die" before this case is adjudicated.

Mr Al-Megrahi was found guilty in 2001 of killing 270 passengers aboard a Pan-Am 747 plane that exploded over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988. Lord Wheatley, one of the five judges hearing the appeal, is expected to resume judicial duties in mid-September.

Two months ago, the Libyan authorities applied for Mr Al-Megrahi to be allowed to go home to see his wife as part of a prisoner transfer agreement signed between Britain and Libya but the application was stalled pending the outcome of Mr Al-Megrahi's appeal.