The arrival in The Hague yesterday of the two Libyan suspects accused of the Lockerbie bombing more than 10 years ago marks the historic beginning of the legal process to discover exactly what happened on board Pan Am flight 103 when it exploded over a tiny Scottish village killing 270 people.
It also marks the suspension of UN air, weapons and diplomatic sanctions against Libya, which are expected to be fully lifted within 90 days, when the Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan certifies that Libya no longer sponsors international terrorism.
Ending the 10-year "diplomatic stalemate" to bring the two men to trial over the bombing in December 1988, the Libyan authorities met the United Nations deadline set for today when it surrendered the alleged former intelligence agents, Mr Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi and Mr al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah, to the Assistant General Secretary of the UN's office of legal affairs, Mr Hans Corell, in Tripoli yesterday morning.
Immediately boarding a flight for the Netherlands, the suspects arrived at the Valkenburg military airport in The Hague by midafternoon where they were held in Dutch custody, and rapidly extradited into Scottish custody to the tiny airbase of Camp Zeist, near Utrecht, under the deal negotiated by Britain and Libya last August. The fact that they did not challenge extradition greatly expedited this phase of the proceedings. The handover of Mr al-Megrahi and Mr Fhimah means that according to that deal - aided by the South African President, Mr Nelson Mandela and the Saudi Arabian government - their trial will be conducted under Scottish law by three Scottish judges and no jury.
For the duration of their trial and for the first time in legal history, the base will become a tiny part of Scottish territory on foreign soil under an agreement with the Dutch authorities. In Scottish custody, they will be arraigned on charges of murder, conspiracy to murder and violation of the Aviation Security Act 1982. Under Scottish law their trial must begin within 110 days after that date and due to the complex nature and volume of evidence, is expected to last up to two years. If the two men are convicted they will serve their sentences in a Scottish prison.
As part of "intense but patient diplomacy" which brought the two suspects to the Netherlands, the Libyan leader, Col Gaddafi, agreed to their handover and trial under Scottish law in a third country on condition that UN sanctions against Libya would be lifted. The Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, yesterday praised Libya for choosing "the right course". Speaking at the Foreign Office after the two suspects were handed over to the UN in Tripoli, Mr Cook stressed the government would not lock itself into the position of lobbying for a guilty verdict.
"That would be most improper, that's entirely a matter for the courts. Scottish judges are not going to allow a criminal trial to be turned into a political trial. It's not a political show trial."
The Prime Minister, Mr Blair, also welcomed the handover of the suspects: "It shows that no matter how long after an appalling terrorist incident like that, people will at the end be brought to justice, there will be a trial."
Earlier, Mrs Jane Swire, whose husband Dr Jim Swire played a key role in the campaign to bring the men to trial, said she felt relief rather than elation at their handover. Their daughter, Flora, was killed in the explosion, and until yesterday few people had believed the men would ever stand trial for the biggest act of terrorism in Britain.