The Pan Am Flight 103 victims' memorial in Lockerbie, Scotland  ALSO 10 years after Pan Am bombing, suspects in Dutch custody April 5, 1999  MESSAGE BOARD Lockerbie trial RELATED VIDEO CNN's Susan Candiotti reports on the hopes -- and misgivings -- of families of victims as the Pan Am 103 trial approaches Windows Media 28K 80K

April 5, 1999
Web posted at: 2:40 p.m. EDT (1840 GMT)

In this story: A question of responsibility A victory for Gadhafi? RELATED STORIES, SITES

NEW YORK (CNN) -- For the families of many of the 270 people who died in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, Monday's surrender of two Libyan suspects was a step toward justice.

But the arrest of the two men leaves some unsatisfied, particularly since many suspect senior Libyan officials of involvement in the attack.

Burt Ammerman, a New Jersey high school principal whose brother was killed in the Pan Am bombing, said he had mixed emotions when he heard that the suspects would be turned over. 294 K/26 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)

"I was almost numb," he said.

Ammerman credited the victims' families for lobbying government officials to seek justice for those killed in the bombing.

During the 10 years since Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, in December 1988, U.S. officials have kept the victims' families abreast of developments in the case.

"We think that almost all of them have indicated relief that the suspects are in custody and will be tried," State Department spokesman James Rubin said Monday.

The accused -- Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, 47, and Khalifa Fhimah, 43 -- were flown from Tripoli, Libya's capital, to The Netherlands on Monday. They will stand trial before a Scottish court set up there.

Some of the families expressed hope that justice, however slow to start, could now begin to move forward.

"There is a sense of great relief," said Dr. Jim Swire, whose 24-year-old daughter, Flora, was among the passengers killed.

A question of responsibility

But some relatives of the victims said they doubt the trial will answer all their questions -- particularly the one about who gave the orders for the bombing.

"We look for the truth wherever it may lead, and we firmly believe that this will go all the way to the top of the Libyan government -- Moammar Gadhafi," said George Williams of Joppa, Maryland, current president of Victims of Pan Am Flight 103. The group represents 160 American families who lost relatives in the crash.

Some say they don't see the handover of the suspects as the end of the justice process.

"These two men, if they did the bombing at all, were at the bottom of a chain of command," said Pamela Dix of London, who lost a sister in the bombing. "Like the other families, I want to know who was at the top of that chain of command.

"Likewise, I also want to know why the intelligence agencies of the most sophisticated nations in the world were not capable of stopping the bombing from happening in the first place," she said.

A victory for Gadhafi?

Susan Cohen, whose 20-year-old daughter, Theodora, died in the bombing, said the extradition of the two men was a victory for Gadhafi. The Libyan leader will see U.N. sanctions lifted, but he won't be held accountable, she said.

"This is sickening to see this passed off as justice," Cohen of Cape May, New Jersey, said.

Ammerman, a former president of the victims' group, said he understood those feelings.

"There's no question in my mind it was more than these two individuals," he said.

But he added: "There will be a few family members (to whom) anything short of Gadhafi being put on trial and being brought to his knees will never be satisfactory. Personally, while I can understand that and sympathize with that, I just don't ever see that taking place."

Ammerman said pressure from the United States and South African President Nelson Mandela gave Libyan leader Gadhafi no choice but to turn over the suspects.

"It shows that if citizens have the right cause and they persevere, they can overcome obstacles and things like this can happen," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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