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Sarkozy to boost EU-Libya links Sarkozy to boost EU-Libya links
(about 1 hour later)
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is travelling to Tripoli to meet Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, a day after the release of six foreign medics. French President Nicolas Sarkozy is in Tripoli for talks with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, a day after the release of six Bulgarian medics.
The meeting is being seen as a sign of the normalisation of ties between Libya and the EU following the release.The meeting is being seen as a sign of the normalisation of ties between Libya and the EU following the release.
The five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian-born doctor were imprisoned for eight years for infecting children with HIV. They always denied this. The six were convicted of deliberately infecting Libyan children with HIV.
All six were pardoned on their arrival in Sofia by President Georgi Parvanov. They were pardoned on their arrival in Bulgaria by the president, but the children's families have demanded that they be re-arrested.
Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev said Bulgaria could write off Libya's debts of $54m (£27m) owed to Sofia as a "humanitarian gesture". In a statement, the Libyan Association for the Families of HIV-infected Children condemned the release and pardon of the medical workers as absurd and disrespectful.
However, he said the cancellation of the debt should not be viewed as a ransom or admission of the medical workers' guilt. The medics were greeted by tearful relatives and well-wishersThey called on the Interpol police force to re-arrest the medics in Bulgaria "so they can spend the rest of their sentences in prison".
They said the pardon showed Western disdain for Muslims, and they called for the Libyan authorities to sever relations with Bulgaria and expel Bulgarian workers from the country.
The six medics - including a Palestinian-born doctor granted Bulgarian citizenship last month - had been held for eight years for deliberately infecting more than 400 children with HIV at a hospital in the town of Benghazi.
They always maintained their innocence.
Each of the families involved is reported to have received $1m (£500,000) per child in compensation as part of the settlement under which the original death sentences imposed on the medics were commuted to life imprisonment.
The release was made possible by a deal struck in Tripoli on improving Libya-EU ties, following years of negotiations.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife, Cecilia, were also involved in the final negotiations.
Immigration supportImmigration support
Europe and the US had made it clear to Libya that resolving their situation was the key to improving ties.Europe and the US had made it clear to Libya that resolving their situation was the key to improving ties.
Mr Sarkozy wants to further Libyan help in the fight against terrorism, says the BBC's Emma Jane Kirby in Paris.
HAVE YOUR SAY Gaddafi has used these poor innocent medics as bargaining chips to get something out of the EU... and he succeeded Marc Saurel, Montreal, Canada Send us your commentsHAVE YOUR SAY Gaddafi has used these poor innocent medics as bargaining chips to get something out of the EU... and he succeeded Marc Saurel, Montreal, Canada Send us your comments
And he wants more support in stemming the flow of illegal immigrants crossing into southern Europe from North Africa. Mr Sarkozy wants to further Libyan help in the fight against terrorism, says the BBC's Emma Jane Kirby in Paris.
And she adds he wants more support in stemming the flow of illegal immigrants crossing into southern Europe from North Africa.
He is accompanied by Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Immigration Minister Brice Hortefeux.He is accompanied by Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Immigration Minister Brice Hortefeux.
The Libyan Foreign Minister, Abdullah Shalqam, said that Mr Sarkozy's visit would provide an opportunity to discuss the French president's proposal for a Mediterranean union. The Libyan Foreign Minister, Abdullah Shalqam, said that Mr Sarkozy's visit would give them a chance to discuss the French president's proposal for a Mediterranean union.
Mr Sarkozy had made securing the medics' freedom a foreign policy priority since taking office in May. The imprisonment of the medics caused an international outcryBulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev said on Wednesday his country could write off Libya's debts of $54m (£27m) owed to Sofia as a "humanitarian gesture".
His wife, Cecilia Sarkozy, played a last-minute role in securing that release, which followed an agreement on normalising relations with the EU. However, he said the cancellation of the debt should not be viewed as a ransom or admission of the medical workers' guilt.
Condemnation
In a statement issued on Wednesday, families of the children infected with HIV condemned the release and pardon of the medical workers.
They called on the Interpol police force to re-arrest the medics in Bulgaria "so that they can spend the rest of their sentences in prison".
The foreign medics were convicted of deliberately injecting 438 children with HIV-tainted blood. Fifty-six of the children have since died.The foreign medics were convicted of deliberately injecting 438 children with HIV-tainted blood. Fifty-six of the children have since died.
The six, who had been in prison since 1999, say they were tortured to confess.The six, who had been in prison since 1999, say they were tortured to confess.
The US-based rights' group Human Rights Watch welcomed their release, but warned that torture and other rights abuses in Libya remained a concern. Bulgaria, its allies in the EU and the US say Libya used the case to deflect criticism from its run-down health service.
"The absence of a free press, the mistreatment of detainees and the need for legal reform require urgent international attention," the group said in a statement.