It was considered a taboo subject to think of much more to try it. They were labelled cockroaches and rats high on narcotic drugs fed to them by then Bin Laden-led Al Quaida. A little of the much feared military might was seen or heard of in action to defend the beleaguered leader as it vanished into thin air till they took a last stand to defend the place of birth. There he chose to end it horribly.
This one was the presumed heir apparent and was reported captured when the capital fell in a dramatic fashion. But wait the last was not yet seen of him. He re-appeared in similar dramatic fashion promising to retake the fallen kingdom. Since then he went underground till a month after his dad's miserable demise. It seems that the Libyan Spring that started last February has finally reached a logical climax.
Moammar Gadhafi's son Seif al-Islam — the only wanted member of the ousted ruling family to remain at large — was captured as he traveled with aides in a convoy in Libya's southern desert, Libyan officials said Saturday. Thunderous celebratory gunfire shook the Libyan capital as the news spread.
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| Seif al-Islam – Photo by AP |
A spokesman for the Libyan fighters who captured him said Seif al-Islam, who has been charged by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, was detained about 30 miles (50 kilometers) west of the town of Obari with two aides as he was trying to flee to neighboring Niger. But the country's acting justice minister later said the convoy's destination was not confirmed.
His capture just over a month after his father was killed leaves only former intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senoussi wanted by the ICC, which indicted the three men for in June for unleashing a campaign of murder and torture to suppress the uprising against the Gadhafi regime that broke out in mid-February.
"This is the day of victory, this is the day of liberation, finally the son of the tyrant has been captured," said Mohammed Ali, an engineer, as he celebrated on Tripoli's Martyrs' Square. "Now we are free, now we are free, God is Great."
Libyan TV posted a photo purportedly of Seif al-Islam in custody. He is sitting by a bed and holding up three bandaged fingers as a guard looks on. International rights groups urged the Libyans to respect his human rights. The murky circumstances surrounding the deaths of Gadhafi and another son Muatassim, and the decision to lay their bodies out for public viewing has drawn criticism from rights groups. Marek Marczynski of Amnesty International urged the Libyans to transfer Seif al-Islam to the ICC base in the Netherlands as soon as possible.
