The Bulgarian medics were on a French government aircraft heading to Sofia, expected to arrive about 10.30am local time, having left imprisonment in Libya early in the morning on July 24 2007. Relatives, officials and a large group of journalists were awaiting them at Sofia Airport, Bulgarian National Television and several other national media reported.

The medics have been in Libya for more than eight years. Twice sentenced to death by Libyan courts for the deliberate infection of hundreds of Libyan children with HIV, charges denied by the medics and rejected by Bulgaria and several other countries, multilaterals, medical experts and human rights organisations, on July 17 2007 the medics’ sentences were commuted by the Libyan supreme judicial council, a political body, to life imprisonment.

After the families of the Libyan children accepted financial settlements reportedly worth $1 million for each child, negotiations began to bring the medics home. Bulgaria and Libya have a convict exchange agreement signed in the 1980s.

President Georgi Purvanov’s office confirmed on July 24 that the medics were coming home. “Hours separate us from their return to their native land,” Purvanov’s office said. The President expressed “great satisfaction” with the outcome, while expressing sympathy with the HIV-infected children.

He thanked all foreign governments, families, friends, NGOs and others that had given their solidarity and support.

Also on the aircraft were Cécilia Sarkozy, the wife of the French president, and Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European External Relations Commissioner, who were in Libya for prolonged final negotiations on returning the medics to Libya. On July 23 2007, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddaffi received Cecilia Sarkozy, Ferrero-Waldner and French presidency general secretary Claude Gueant, to discuss the release of the medics, Agence France-Presse reported. According to Bulgarian media reports, French intervention and Mrs. Sarkozy’s visit had decisive role in the case resolution. On July 23, the BBC reported that Libya was demanding full diplomatic ties with the EU in return for releasing the medics to Bulgaria.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Dimitar Tsanchev told Bulgaria’s Nova Televisia that he could not say whether the nurses had been amnestied. They “should not be arrested” on their landing in Bulgaria, he also said. According to Nova, no police was waiting for the medics to arrest them.