US President Barack Obama said Thursday the decision of the Scottish government to early release the Lockerbie bomber was a "mistake", suggesting the Libyan should be under house arrest.

The Scottish government has ordered the early release of Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, who was convicted in 2001 and sentenced to life in prison for the bombing of Pan-Am Flight 103 that exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988.

Among the casualties were 189 Americans.

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, would be allowed to return to Libya to die after serving eight years.

"We have been in contact with the Scottish government, indicating that we objected to this, and we thought it was a mistake," the president told Michael Smerconish, who is hosting a talk show for a CBS Radio station located in Philadelphia.

"We're now in contact with the Libyan government and want to make sure that if, in fact, this transfer has taken place, that he 's not welcomed back in some way, but instead, should be under house arrest," said Obama.

Early on Thursday, the White House said that the United States "deeply regrets" the decision. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also said she was "deeply disappointed" by the decision and reiterated a long-standing US position that Megrahi should serve his entire sentence in Scotland.

(Xinhua News Agency August 21, 2009)