THE extradition of the two Libyan suspects for the Lockerbie bombing which killed 270 people aboard a Pan Am jumbo jet more than 10 years ago is a culmination of a long and painful process which has seen Libya succumb to international diplomatic and economic pressure.

But the extraordinary upshot of them being tried in a Scottish court in Holland will put Scottish justice to a severe test under an intense international spotlight.

It goes without saying that justice must always be even-handed and, this case, it must be seen to be totally dispassionate despite all the horrors and emotions that this crime is bound to evoke.

Scotland's legal system already has high esteem.

But the three of its judges entrusted with this case have the most awesome task to preserve it and also see justice indisputably done.

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