Wednesday, July 25, 2007

PUNIC ARCHAEOLOGY may benefit from the release of the six foreign medics from Libya:
Libya Frees Foreign Medical Workers

By John Bohannon
ScienceNOW Daily News
24 July 2007

Five foreign medical workers boarded a French government jet last night in Tripoli, Libya, and landed in Sofia, Bulgaria, early this morning, greeted by a cheering crowd of thousands. Their arrival is a surprise happy ending to an 8-year political saga that has involved allegations of bioterrorism, torture, millions of dollars in ransom money, and an international coalition of scientists working tirelessly to find the real reason behind the infection with HIV of more than 400 Libyan children.

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The medics' release is the outcome of furious last-minute dealing between Libyan and European politicians, although the precise terms of the deal remain unclear. Libyan officials said today that their demands were met. Principal among them were payments of $1 million in "blood money" to each of the families of the infected children. European officials have denied that they paid any money to the families. According to Seif al Islam, a son of the country's longtime dictator, Libya paid the families after European countries had agreed to forgive Libya's debts to them.

Bulgarian media reported that other Libyan demands included full reinstatement of diplomatic and economic ties with Europe, lifelong treatment for the infected children, the renovation of the children's hospital in Benghazi where the outbreak occurred, aid to upgrade Libya's railway and highway infrastructure, and expert help restoring Libya's many crumbling archaeological sites. No European official could be reached to confirm whether these demands were part of the deal.

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My emphasis. I can't find any more details at present.