Libya will pay about $46 million in compensation to relatives of people killed and injured in 1986 when its secret service bombed a Berlin nightclub popular with American soldiers.

The money will go to the families of a Turkish woman who died in the attack and 229 Germans who were injured.

Firefighters search debris after bomb attack at the Berlin discotheque \
Firefighters search debris after bomb attack at the Berlin discotheque "La Belle" in 1986 (AP photo)

However, the families of two American servicemen killed in the same attack will not receive any payment as a result of the deal, which the Libyan ambassador to Germany announced on Tuesday.

The bomb tore through La Belle disco on April 5, 1986. The U.S. had soldiers stationed in West Berlin, when the Berlin Wall still divided the German city.

The Americans immediately blamed the Libyans, and hit back with air strikes against Tripoli. An adopted daughter of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was one of the 37 people who died in that attack.

In 2001, a court in Berlin ruled that the Libyan secret service, helped by the Libyan Embassy in East Berlin, had carried out the bombing.

Gadhafi has been trying to reach out to the international community in recent years. Libyan officials have reached deals to compensate victims of the Pan Am and UTA airliner bombings as well.

This spring, the Libyan leader met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and a variety of European Union leaders as he sought to re-establish diplomatic and military relations after decades of isolation.

Gadhafi also assured U.S. President George W. Bush last fall that he planned to dismantle Libyan programs designed to develop weapons of mass destruction.