Seif al-Islam Gaddafi Killed in Libya, Officials Confirm

Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son and former political heir of Libya’s late ruler Muammar Gaddafi, has been killed in what his associates described as a targeted assassination, Libyan officials said on Tuesday.

The 53-year-old was killed in Zintan, about 136 kilometres southwest of Tripoli, according to two security officials in western Libya who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to brief the media.

Khaled al-Zaidi, a lawyer representing Seif al-Islam, confirmed the death in a post on Facebook, without disclosing further details. The killing was also announced by Abdullah Othman Abdurrahim, head of Seif al-Islam’s political team and a former participant in the UN-brokered Libyan political dialogue.

Libyan outlet Fawasel Media quoted Abdurrahim as saying that armed men stormed Seif al-Islam’s home and killed him, adding that prosecutors had opened an investigation.

In a later statement, Seif al-Islam’s political team said four masked men carried out the attack, describing it as a “cowardly and treacherous assassination.” The statement said the assailants shut down CCTV cameras at the residence in an apparent attempt to conceal their actions, and that Seif al-Islam confronted them before he was killed.

Born in June 1972 in Tripoli, Seif al-Islam was widely seen as the reformist face of the Gaddafi regime. He earned a doctorate from the London School of Economics and for years was viewed as a potential successor to his father.

Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown in a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 after more than four decades in power and was killed later that year as Libya descended into civil war. The country has since remained fractured, with rival governments and armed groups competing for control.

Seif al-Islam was captured in late 2011 by fighters in Zintan while attempting to flee to Niger. He was released in June 2017 after one of Libya’s rival authorities granted him amnesty and had since been living in Zintan.

In 2015, a Libyan court sentenced him to death in absentia on charges including inciting violence and killing protesters. He was also wanted by the International Criminal Court over alleged crimes against humanity linked to the 2011 uprising.

In November 2021, Seif al-Islam announced his bid for Libya’s presidency, a move that sparked widespread controversy. Although he was later disqualified by the electoral commission, the vote was ultimately postponed amid disputes between Libya’s rival administrations.