04
Feb
Feb
SAIF AL-ISLAM GADDAFI SHOT DEAD AT HOME IN LIBYA
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Caroline Ameh / 3 hours
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- 3 min read
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, a prominent son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, has been shot dead by armed men at his residence in the northwestern Libyan town of Zintan, according to family sources, his lawyer, and Libyan media reports. The 53-year-old was killed on Tuesday after “four masked men” stormed his home, his political team said in a statement, describing the incident as a “cowardly and treacherous assassination.” His lawyer, Khaled al-Zaidi, confirmed the death in a brief Facebook post without providing further details. Reports indicated that the assailants disabled the house’s CCTV cameras before carrying out the attack, allegedly in an attempt to conceal their identities. Sources close to the family said Gaddafi confronted the attackers during the incident. A cousin of the deceased, Hamid Kadhafi, said Saif al-Islam had “fallen as a martyr,” adding that the location of the compound had been intended to remain secret. Saif al-Islam was widely regarded as the most influential of Muammar Gaddafi’s sons and was long viewed as his likely successor before the former leader was overthrown and killed during Libya’s 2011 uprising. Born in June 1972 in Tripoli, he was the second son of Muammar Gaddafi and his second wife, Safia Farkash. Fluent in English, he studied at the London School of Economics, where he pursued a PhD, and was often presented as the reformist face of the Gaddafi regime, frequently undertaking diplomatic roles on behalf of his father. Following the collapse of the Gaddafi government, Saif al-Islam was captured by anti-Gaddafi fighters in November 2011 and detained by a militia in Zintan for nearly six years. He was released in June 2017 after one of Libya’s rival administrations granted him amnesty, after which he continued to reside in Zintan.I In 2015, a Libyan court sentenced him to death in absentia for his alleged role in suppressing protests and killing demonstrators during the 2011 revolution. He was also wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity linked to the uprising.In November 2021, Saif al-Islam announced his intention to run for president in a move that triggered widespread opposition from anti-Gaddafi political forces across Libya. He was later disqualified by Libya’s High National Elections Committee, and the elections were eventually cancelled amid disputes between rival governments and armed factions. Libya has remained deeply fragmented since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, with competing administrations, militias, and political blocs vying for power. Repeated efforts to hold elections and achieve national reconciliation have stalled, leaving the country in prolonged instability.
