French and Libyan negotiators on 11 September settled on a compensation package for the families of the victims of the UTA plane-bombing over the Sahara desert in 1989. The agreement is seen as lifting the final barrier to UN sanctions against Libya being lifted. No details of the deal have been released as yet. UTA flight 772 was blown up over Niger, killing all 170 people on board.
Libya, however, will not accept responsibility for the incident, despite the conviction of six Libyan officials tried in absentia by a French court in 1999. All compensation to the families of victims will be paid through the Gaddafi Foundation charity, and not through the state. The charity is run by Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Negotiations on compensation delayed a vote on 10 September at the UN Security Council on the lifting of sanctions against Libya. France said that it would use its right to veto had the vote taken place (MEED 9:9:03).
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