A court in Libya has sentenced Col Muammar Gaddafi’s son, Saif al-Islam, and eight others to death over war crimes linked to the 2011 revolution.
Saif al-Islam. Photo: BBC
According to BBC, the nine were on the trial along with dozens of other close associates of the deposed leader, accused of suppressing protests during the uprising in 2011.
It was gathered that Saif al-Islam was not present in court and gave evidence via a video link.
Intelligence reveals that he is being held by a former rebel group from the town of Zintan that refuses to release him.
Saif caged. Photo: BBC
BBC further informs that a former head of intelligence for the Gaddafi regime, Abdallah al-Senousi, is among those also facing the death penalty, as is former PM Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi.
Former PM Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi in custody. Photo: BBC
John Simpson, a correspondent for the BBC reporting from Tripoli, says that they will be given the right to appeal.
Meanwhile, other defendants have received sentences ranging from five years to life imprisonment. They faced charges including murder, kidnap and embezzlement, during the uprising that eventually toppled Col Gaddafi.
It must be noted that Saif al-Islam is also wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Prosecutors say that he was part of his father’s plans to “quell, by all means, the civilian demonstrations against the Gaddafi regime”.
Libya has remained bedeviled by instability since the overthrow of Col Gaddafi, it currently has no single government, with two rival factions – one in Tobruk and one in Tripoli – each claiming to run the country.
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