Gaddafi’s son, Saadi, finally released after 7 years in Libyan prison
Story from Saleh INUWA, Kano
Libyan authorities has released Saadi Gaddafi, son of the former leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was deposed and killed during the 2011 uprising according to a foreign agency report.
The 47-year-old Saadi, after his father was killed, departed immediately on a plane to Istanbul, an official source told Reuters News Agency on Sunday.
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During the 2011 uprising, Saadi Gadafi fled for Niger but was extradited to Libya in 2014 and has been imprisoned in Tripoli ever since, the former professional footballer was also accused of crimes committed against protesters in 2011 and of killing the Libyan football coach, Bashir Al-Rayani in 2005.
He was acquitted of Al-Rayani’s murder in April 2018, and he was given the option to stay in the country or leave. Libya has suffered chaos, divisions, violence in the past 10 years, since the killing of Muammar Gaddafi and 3 of his sons.
A ceasefire in 2020 ended factional fighting and pave the way for peace talks and the formation of a transitional government in March, elections are now being planned for December. An official source told Reuters that Saadi Gaddafi’s release resulted from negotiations that include senior tribal figures and prime minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh.
Another source told News Agencies that the negotiations also include former interior minister Fathi Bashagha. In July, the New York Times newspaper said it had interviewed Saadi’s brother, Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi, who was held for years in the town of Zintan, as his supporters want him to contest in the coming presidential election but Libya’s foreign minister is quoted as saying the December poll could be delayed.
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