Christian Peregin and Sarah Carabott
CIA files depict Malta as Libyan terrorist hub between 1988-1991
Lockerbie campaigners unimpressed
Abdelbaset al Megrahi who had been found guilty of the Lockerbie bombing, with Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, one of the sons of the Libyan leader, after arriving back in Tripoli. Mr al Megrahi was released from the Scottish prison on August 20, 2009. Photo: AFP
Malta was a “primary launching point” for Libyan intelligence and terrorist teams transiting Europe, according to a recent compilation of declassified CIA cables dating between 1988 and 1991.
But campaigners for justice in the Lockerbie bombing case have slammed such claims, describing the CIA’s main informant as a “money-grubbing fantasist” who led the CIA by the nose.
The informant quoted extensively in the 255-page document (taken predominantly from declassified CIA cables released in 2008 and compiled by an international organisation) is Abdul Majid Giaka, whose testimony, as an informant, was pivotal in convicting Abdelbaset al-Megrahi for the Lockerbie bombing, despite the court having cast doubts on Mr Giaka’s credibility and reliability as a witness.
According to Lockerbie campaigner Robert Forrester, the recently compiled cables are so heavily redacted that any effort to corroborate the veracity of intelligence is impossible.
“Giaka was showered with US tax dollars in return for nothing of substance,” he told The Times.
Mr Forrester – who forms part of a group of Lockerbie victim family members who believe Mr al Megrahi was wrongly convicted – also criticised the CIA for showing no indication of having tried to independently corroborate any of the “so-called intelligence”.
“It really does look like [the CIA] swallowed it all, hook, line and sinker, until it finally dawned on them that he was worthless,” he said.
“These additional papers detailing the CIA’s relationship with Mr Giaka, add little to what is already known and to the doubts which have always hung over this case... Malta has absolutely no reason to think that these documents taint the island’s good name any more than it has been.”
However, he added that it is up to the Maltese government to take “concrete steps” to lift the cloud of Lockerbie which hangs over the island.
“The evidence is there which proves that there is no evidence to support this conviction.”
The connection with Malta and subsequently with Mr Al-Megrahi was made when police recovered from the wreckage items of baby clothing bearing the label ‘Yorkie’ made by a Maltese company. The clothing, traced to a Sliema shop, was found in the suitcase believed to have been carrying the bomb. Though the courts decided that the bomb left from Malta, another theory was that it had been placed on board a London-bound plane at Frankfurt airport before reaching the Pam Am jet that was bound for New York. Some still believe Iran, and not Libya, was behind the bombing.
Mr Giaka, the informant who is also referred to as “P/1” in the intelligence reports, was a Libyan working for Libyan Arab Airlines in Malta who decided to cooperate with the CIA in 1988 because he wanted to be relocated and given money to start a new life with his Maltese wife.
In return for months of information gathering and supplying intelligence, he got the CIA to help him get mock-surgery to exempt him from military service back in Libya.
One of the intelligence reports claims that Maltese immigration and airport officials helped Libyan intelligence agents “monitor suspected Libyan oppositionists” in exchange for regular gifts. (Names are not being published for legal reasons.) They were “especially helpful” in helping officials and contacts of Libya’s External Security Organisation (ESO) travel from Malta to Libya without a trace, it was claimed.
Meanwhile, a Libyan living in Malta was used as a conduit to “Maltese Labour Union (a likely reference to the Labour Party) leaders and influential members of the Maltese Nationalist Party”.
The CIA first described Mr Giaka as “intelligent, serious and fairly well composed” as well as committed and capable of passing terrorist-type intelligence on a timely basis.
But the CIA later began to question Mr Giaka’s commitment, saying his financial situation became a major motivating factor in meeting. “[His] procrastination beyond reasonable limits is testing patience,” one report comments.
In his meetings with the CIA, Mr Giaka spoke about the visits to Malta of Mr Al Megrahi and other suspicious Libyan agents. He also speaks about orange-coloured explosives which arrived in Malta while Mr Al Megrahi was here, which were kept stored in a drawer at a Valletta apartment.
In 1991, he was described as “shattered”. He is quoted as having bluntly noted that the Maltese would do anything for money and those at the top of the current government would gladly turn him over if it meant making some cash.
Ultimately, Mr Giaka is described as “a defector from a sensitive position who has served faithfully since his walk-in in 1988” and the CIA concurred that staying in Malta would be very dangerous.
The cables also quote an anonymous Libyan businessman who says the Libyan intelligence presence in Malta would increase significantly in 1989, including personnel within both the ESO and the Libyan military intelligence service. The ESO had recruited a Maltese national employed as a vendor at Luqa airport to assist in acquiring information on persons of interest to the Libyan service, according to the cable.
“This individual prepares biographic and assessment information on personnel of interest to the ESO and forwards his reports to ESO headquarters in Tripoli via a Libyan Arab Airlines courier.”
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Francis Attard
Sep 15th 2011, 15:01
Dr.Daniele Ganser, a Senior Researcher at the Center for Security Studies at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland, starts his book entitled "Nato's Secret Armies", which was his PhD research topic in early 1998, as follows:
"This book tells the story of NATO's secret anti-Communist stay-behind armies that were set up by the CIA and MI6 after the Second World War in all countries of Western Europe and in some countries became tragically linked to right-wing terrorism."
Dr.Ganser also includes two interesting quotes:
"What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?"
Mahatma Gandi
The growth of Intelligence abuses reflects a more general failure of our basic institutions."
US Senator Frank Church
Alfred Farrugia
Sep 14th 2011, 17:36
What is the meaning of … “Maltese Labor Union” (a likely reference to the Labour Party) …”? Is it possible that the CIA – with all its intelligence - does not distinguish between what we call trade unions and political parties?
The link provided by D.A. Agius does not contain any brackets, and it gives no indication whether the “Labor Union” (trade union) was independent of or sympathetic or affiliated with any political party! It could have been any “Union”, if any part of this report and its source is to be believed.
Godfrey Grima
Sep 14th 2011, 14:48
What remains unresolved about who shot down Pan Am 103 is whether Abdelbaset Al Magrahi and Lockerbie had anything to do with one another. Some very substantial arguments, backed by impressive documentation, can be found in a special report written by the late Paul Foot and distributed by Private Eye in March 2004 called Lockerbie; Flight from Justice. I was asked by Paul to help in the investigation and eventually povided him with copies of the interviews the Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary an the German police had held with the prosecution's main withness, Mr. Tony Gauchi of Mary's House in Sliema. His statements in between April and September 1989 are impressive for their many serious incongruencies, enough to make his evidence worthless. Here are a few samples;
26.7.89; Today I attended at Kamp Zest to view an identification parade. The room had a glass window. I was asked to look at 8 men in another room. I was asked if i saw the man who had been at my shop. I said I wasn't sure.'
On the 14.9.89 he is shown a set of photographs and identifies the man who had been at his shop. But then tells police; 'The man I identified in the photographs is too young to be the man who bought the clothing'. On such evidence hung Mr Megrahi's future.
In lal his statatments Mr Gauchi changed his version of events no less than 31 times.
There was more. Met office records and those of international football schedules squarely discredit his claim Megrahi visited his shop whilst it was raining - it had not rained in Sliema for days in December 1988. Neither could his brother Paul have left the shop early that day to view an international football match on tv. None was shown.
Francis Attard
Sep 14th 2011, 17:45
An interesting video about the subject is "The Maltese Double Cross".
Mr Jo Meli
Sep 15th 2011, 09:34
The torrent is here :
http://www.seedpeer.com/details/394760/The-Maltese-Double-Cross-Lockerbie-Pan-Am-103-Wmv-Vhs-Rip.html
Mr Martin Cassar
Sep 14th 2011, 14:04
I have been living with the believe that American civilians are worthy. The unfolding events of the past seven months proved otherwise. The fact that the USA and France didn’t bombarded Libya when their civilians claimed to killed by Libyan regime killed in both Lockerbie and Niger, then swiftly bombard Libya because Gaddafi kills his own civilians makes it crystal clear that USA and French civilians are not worthy at all.
My 5 years old nephew have just asked me ..how would a label fixed on a piece clothes survives a bombarded aeroplane? Can anyone please help me what can I answer her?
CIA, FBI and the Zionists are USA’s enemies. Poor USA taxpayers!
Mr James Tyrrell
Sep 14th 2011, 21:03
Out of the mouths of babes Martin! A good question from a 5 year old. A bit like finding the remains of one of the supposed hijackers passports at ground zero!
Mr Peter Korsten
Sep 15th 2011, 00:06
One thing you could advice your nephew, or niece (it's not entirely clear), is not to take any English lessons from you.
Mr James Tyrrell
Sep 14th 2011, 13:46
Paid informants are never truly reliable as they usually only get paid when they have information to sell. In the event they have no information to sell it's easy to make some up. As for the comment that, 'the CIA counter terrorism to make the world a safer place for other countries,' if this were indeed the case then any right minded person would have respect for them. Unfortunately the CIA are a law onto themselves and a lot of what they do breaks the law and most of the rest stretches it out of all recognition. Osama Bin Laden was a great friend to the CIA when he was involved in fighting the Russians so it's obvious they don't mind who they get into bed with, and when you sleep with dogs it's only natural you wake up with fleas.
Carmel Xuereb
Sep 14th 2011, 13:22
Il-Gvern ta' dak iz-zmien kien b'qalbu u ruhu nadifa tazza u bajda daqs il-lozor ta' l-isptar. U zur li huma ma setghu jaghmlu xejn ghax dawk ma kienux marru fl-gharix ghalxejn meta l-Gunboats ta' Gaddafi waqfuna milli nhaffru ghaz-zejt. Nahseb li kellhom idejhom marbuta sewwa msieken ghax min jobzoq ghas-sema f'wiccu jigi jghid il-Qawl Malti. Mur gibu kienu fi zmien Mintoff kieku anke l-mejtin mill-oqbra qajmu.
Mr Martin Cassar
Sep 14th 2011, 13:20
I have been living with the believe that American civilians are worthy. The unfolding events of the past seven months proved otherwise. The fact that the USA and France didn’t bombarded Libya when their civilians claimed to killed by Libyan regime killed in both Lockerbie and Niger, then swiftly bombard Libya because Gaddafi kills his own civilians makes it crystal clear that USA and French civilians are not worthy at all.
My 5 years old nephew have just asked me ..how would a label fixed on a piece clothes survives a bombarded aeroplane? Can anyone please help me what can I answer her?
CIA, FBI and the Zionists Mossad are USA’s enemies. Poor USA taxpayers!
Mr Tony Camilleri
Sep 14th 2011, 23:58
add when the temperature would be some 5000 degrees celsius.
Mr Richard Caruana
Sep 14th 2011, 12:35
Seems very few of those writing here have bothered to read the story.
As otherwise they would have noticed that the informant who gave these stories to the CIA is far from being a reliable source. In fact he was doing it just because the was being pumped with enormous sums of dollars by the US Government.
Hardly material that is worth taking even with a massive dose of salt!
Mr JOSEPH ZAMMIT
Sep 14th 2011, 14:53
That's right! In fact when I arrived to that part of the "reliable" informant, I stopped reading the rest and gained some "would-be" wasted time.
Lil min tafu issaqsiex ghalih!!!
j brincat
Sep 14th 2011, 11:54
And who was leading Malta during this time?
(jb)
Mr Jeffrey Mallia
Sep 14th 2011, 12:18
Yes Mr Brincat, it was Mintoff's fault, because if he did'nt give his seat to KMB, Labour would have won the election, so the terrorists would have been here in labour's rule !!!!!! I't's never ever the PN's fault..........ma taraaaaaaaaaax !!!
John Zammit-Spiteri
Sep 14th 2011, 13:08
dream on !!
some people are just hopeless
Andre Cilia
Sep 14th 2011, 13:45
Have your really read the article (jb)??
Edward Camilleri
Sep 14th 2011, 11:37
Speci, duh!
Mr Victor Calleja
Sep 14th 2011, 11:35
Is sewwa jirbah zgur u iz zejt jitla f'wicc l'ilma.
Mr Peter Montebello
Sep 14th 2011, 10:36
Who is going to believe the CIA?
These are the same people who furnished Saddam Hussein with his military ware when it was convenient for them; (against Iran) only to turn their backs and kill him when it was for their convenience. These are the same people who cry wolf over human rights and then create Guantanamo. These are the same people who do not hesitate to do anything if it is in the name of the USA.
Jon Vercellono
Sep 14th 2011, 10:51
I'm pretty certain that many of the prisoners taken off the streets and out of circulation do not benefit only the U.S. but Malta and other countries as well - would you rather they be out and about travelling around? They counter terrorism to make the world a safer place for other countries.
Edward Camilleri
Sep 14th 2011, 12:18
These are the same people who run one of the world's major intelligence agencies, so I'd be guarded in my criticism.
David Doublesin
Sep 14th 2011, 15:11
Actually it was the other round Mr Montebello, US missiles were supplied to IRAN not to Saddam..... But, I'm
letting facts get in the way of your argument.
Ms Emma Falzon
Sep 14th 2011, 17:53
@ David Doublesin.. I'm sure reports say that the US furnished Iraq with weapons, as, at the time, Iraq was seen as a lesser threat than Iran.
Same as, I believe, the US had supplied the afghan mujahideen, who later evolved into the taliban.
I stand to be corrected on both counts.
Mr Peter Montebello
Sep 14th 2011, 19:16
Mr Doublesin, the USA sold military ware to Iran when there was still the SHAH Pahlavi, since it considered him to be their friend. Then there was the revolution and, of course, the USA changed sides and encouraged Iraq to fight Iran. The USA supplied the arms necessary to Iraq and its leader, Saddam Hussein. Later, once more, the USA changed sides and began supporting other Arab countries against Saddam. And created a "hollywood story" to attack him and bring him down. These are the facts.
David Doublesin
Sep 14th 2011, 20:53
@Emma Falzon and P. Montebello
As I said US missiles were supplied to Iran during the Iran – Iraq war (Iran/contra affair). The US did NOT supply SADDAM with major weapons be they missiles, battle tanks, combat aircraft or warships. Iraq was supplied mostly by the then USSR and included main battle tanks like the T72, missiles like SCUD and SAM 6 and combat aircraft like the MIG23.
Ramon Casha
Sep 14th 2011, 10:25
"But campaigners for justice in the Lockerbie bombing case have slammed such claims, describing the CIA’s main informant as a “money-grubbing fantasist” who led the CIA by the nose."
Led by the nose? Or were they happy to have any material (however flimsy) from any sources (however unreliable) as long as it pointed in the same general direction they wanted to be pointed? Who used whom I wonder.
Nathalie Frendo
Sep 14th 2011, 10:23
It's always through some foreign intellegence that we get to know about the dirt about our leaders.
Mr Evarist Saliba
Sep 14th 2011, 12:58
What dirt about our leaders does this item reveal?
Alex Falzon
Sep 14th 2011, 10:20
Do you think that these Libyan - terrorists will let know that they are in Malta or come to say hello.... they are around us everyday (not perhaps in Malta) but I am sure America & UK are surrounded by these people.
D. Xerri
Sep 14th 2011, 10:14
Who knows maybe Someone will mention this on certain documentaries about Malta like for example - Storja ta` Poplu and similar ones - We have to tell the whole story to our future generations not - Nofs Storja ta Poplu !
Mr Angus Black
Sep 14th 2011, 14:40
Yes, but the other half is so terrible that the history makers of that era are fanatically trying to rewrite history and telling us to 'forget the past'.
I wonder why.
Mr Jo Meli
Sep 14th 2011, 09:58
My oh my !!!
What will the Once Glorious Partit Nazzjonalista have to say about this ?
Surely there was NO Mintoff, Mifsud Bonnici, Sant or Muscat (2 surnames of of four of clear Arab origins) were in Power at that time.
1988 through 1991 were the Golden Years of Eddie Fenech Adami !!
Mr Jo Camm
Sep 14th 2011, 10:31
There is a very easy reply to your query: The CIA Files had not as yet been updated that the people you mentioned are no longer in power in Malta. Q.E.D.
Mr Wally Vella-Zarb
Sep 14th 2011, 11:54
That's a good one! Hahahahaha! Is that the best that you can come up with, Jo Camm? It is said that a drowning man clutches at a straw. "Q.E.D."
Mr Joseph Aquilina
Sep 14th 2011, 12:05
It takes time to clean the mess left behind by those you mentioned!!
D. A . Agius
Sep 14th 2011, 12:19
JO Camm, read this:
http://www.foia.cia.gov/docs/DOC_0001518838/DOC_0001518838.pdf
victor bonello
Sep 14th 2011, 09:57
So CIA mentions Malta as a " Terrorist hub".. how cme no more mention has been made about the CIA and M16 sending prisoners to Libya to be tortured? God Save America, but also God Save the rest of the world from them...
marc pace
Sep 14th 2011, 12:25
MI6 not M16
Peter Aquilina
Sep 14th 2011, 08:53
Is this a surprise ?! Nooooooooo !!