Libya has signed a compensation accord worth €132.5m with families of victims of a 1989 French jetliner bombing over Africa.

The UN Security Council is expected to lift sanctions against Libya today - clearing the way for the €2.4bn Lockerbie deal pay out.

The UN Security Council plans to vote today to lift more than a decade of sanctions against Libya, but France could block the long-awaited deal to settle the Lockerbie bombing case.

The UN Security Council will vote on Tuesday on a British proposal to lift sanctions against Libya, though France and Tripoli are still deadlocked on how much to pay the families of 170 people killed in an 1989 airliner bombing, diplomats said.

Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi says agreement over compensation has been reached between his country and the families of the 170 victims of a French airliner that exploded nearly 14 years ago.

UN diplomats said they would give France more time to reach agreement on its demands for new compensation from Libya for a 1989 bombing of a French airliner before voting to lift sanctions against the North African country. But they stressed that France needs to move quickly.

France reiterated today that new compensation by Libya for families of victims of a 1989 bombing of a French airliner was an “indispensable condition” for sanctions to be lifted against the North African country.