US to send first envoy to Libya in 36 years

The United States soon will send its first ambassador to Libya in 36 years after a remarkable turnaround in US relations with the once-pariah North African nation.

The nomination of Gene Cretz had been held up for more than a year on lawmakers' concerns that Libya had not paid full compensation to the families of victims of the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, but the career diplomat won Senate confirmation to the position in a voice vote late Thursday. (AP)