Dear editor,
Libya has come in from the diplomatic cold since 2003 when it abandoned efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction.

This came after Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi signed an agreement to pay Libya $5bn as part of a deal to resolve colonial-era disputes.

Libya was occupied by Italy in 1911 before becoming a colony in the 1930s.

The former Ottoman territory became an independent country in 1951.

This is the first African country to be compensated by a former colonial master.

GAHINI