Tripoli: The only man convicted in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing returned home to Libya to die on Thursday after Scotland released him from prison. The decision by Scotland has outraged some relatives of the 270 people killed when the jetliner blew up over a Scottish town.
US President Barack Obama said the decision to free terminally ill Abdel Baset al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds was a mistake and warned Libya not to give him a hero's welcome.
But thousands were on hand to greet him warmly when his plane from Scotland touched down at a military airport in Tripoli.
There was a festive atmosphere with some wearing t-shirts with al-Megrahi's picture. Others waved Libyan and Scottish flags while Libyan songs blared.
Al-Megrahi wore a a dark suit and a burgundy tie and appeared visibly tired.
He was accompanied by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, who was dressed in a traditional white robe and golden embroidered vest.
The son pledged last year to bring al-Megrahi home and raised his hand victoriously to the crowd as he exited the plane. They then sped off in a convoy of white sedans.
Many in Libya see al-Megrahi as an innocent scapegoat of the West and in Tripoli, people gathered around television sets to watch the announcement of his release.
Moammar Gadhafi lobbied hard for the return of al-Megrahi, an issue which took on an added sense of urgency when al-Megrahi was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year. He was recently given only months to live.
The 57-year-old al-Megrahi, a former Libyan intelligence officer, was convicted in 2001 of taking part in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 on December 21, 1988. He was sentenced to life in prison.
The airliner exploded over Scotland, and all 259 people aboard and 11 on the ground died when it crashed into the town of Lockerbie.
At an annual youth rally covered by Libyan TV Al Mutawassit, an unnamed speaker said al-Megrahi's return was a "great victory added to the strength of this revolution, its greatness, its policy, its historic path and the wisdom of its leader, Colonel Moammar Gadhafi."
The rally is held every year on August 20 for Libyans to hear a progress report from Gadhafi's son, on projects he is working on.