Khadafy’s son campaigning to run Libya
The son and onetime heir apparent of late Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy announced Sunday his candidacy for the country’s presidential election next month.
Seif al-Islam, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity related to the 2011 uprising, submitted his papers in the southern town of Sabha, the High National Elections Commission said in a statement.
Khadafy’s son was captured by fighters in the town of Zintan late in 2011, the year when a popular uprising, backed by the NATO, toppled his father after more than 40 years in power. Moammar Khadafy was later killed amid the ensuing fighting that would turn into a civil war.
In a video shared by an election official, Seif al-Islam, 49, addressed the camera, saying that God will decide the right path for the country’s future. It was the first time in years that Seif al-Islam, who earned a PhD at the London School of Economics, appeared in public.
Seif al-Islam, who was seen as the reformist face of Gadhafi’s regime before the 2011 uprising, was released in June 2017 after more than five years of detention. ICC spokesman Fadi El Abdallah declined to comment on Seif alIslam’s candidacy. “The Court doesn’t comment on political issues, as for the legal side there is a pending warrant of arrest and that hasn’t changed,“he said.
Also widely expected to announce their campaigns are powerful military commander Khalifa Hifter, Parliament Speaker Agila Saleh and former Interior Minister Fathi Bashaga. The vote is planned for Dec. 24.