Scotland's high court has today agreed that a Libyan can drop his appeal against conviction for the bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie in 1988, a move that could speed his return home.
The step could lead to his rapid release or a transfer back to a prison in his homeland.
Abdel Basset al-Megrahi (57) was convicted in 2001 of plotting the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 which killed all 259 people on board and 11 people on the ground. He was sentenced to a minimum of 27 years in prison.
Lord Arthur Hamilton, Scotland's most senior judge, said he had accepted Megrahi's request to withdraw his long-standing appeal, but said there were other legal hurdles to be negotiated before the appeal process could be completely closed.
The court is expected to meet again in three weeks' time to finalise the process, which depends on Scotland's judicial authorities dropping their own appeal against Megrahi's original sentence, which they saw as too lenient.
The former Libyan intelligence agent is now suffering from terminal prostate cancer and has made a request to be released on compassionate grounds in order to allow him to return to Libya and see his family before he dies.
At the same time, Britain and Libya have signed a prisoner transfer agreement that could allow Megrahi to be sent back to Libya to serve out the remainder of his sentence.
Scotland's justice secretary, Kenny MacAskill, is in the process of trying to decide which course of action to take: release Megrahi on compassionate grounds, send him back to Libya under the transfer agreement, or leave him in prison.
Today's court decision opens the way for Megrahi to be sent home, although if it is via the prisoner transfer agreement, that can only happen once all appeals processes are terminated, which is likely to take a few weeks.
Mr MacAskill has said he will make a decision on Megrahi's fate by the end of next week. Most expectations are that he will be granted compassionate release, a move that is likely to anger the families of victims of the bombing.
The United States opposes Megrahi's release, saying he should serve out his sentence in Scotland, even if he is set to die. The Lockerbie bombing killed 189 Americans.
A group of US senators has written to Mr MacAskill calling on him not to let Megrahi go, adding their voices to a chorus of disapproval that includes that of US secretary of state Hillary Clinton and the families of the American victims.
If Megrahi is released on compassionate grounds, he is likely to be warmly welcomed by president Muammar Gaddafi, who has moved closer to the Western mainstream since dropping his nuclear weapons programme in 2003.
The Megrahi case has become a millstone for the devolved Scottish government as it balances a series of competing interests, among them the fact that British oil companies are trying to do more business in Libya and hope Megrahi's release might open
doors.
Reuters