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Saadi Gaddafi extradited by Niger to Libya
With Thursday’s extradition, Saadi joins Saif Al-Islam as the only 2 of Gaddafi’s children currently in Libya. At least 3 other Gaddafi’s sons were killed during the uprising while the rest of the children sought asylum in neighboring Algeria, along with Gaddafi’s wife and Saadi’s mother, Safiya. The mother, a sister and two brothers, were granted asylum in Oman in 2012 and moved there from Algeria.
Niger had previously refused to comply with Libyan requests for Saadi Gaddafi, saying that once he was back home, he might be killed.
There have been tensions between the 2 African nations and while Libya has criticized the presence of Gaddafi loyalists in Niger, Niger has expressed concern about “the terrorist threat” posed by the lack of security in southern Libya, near its own border.
The elder Gaddafi ruled Libya for nearly 42 years before he was ousted by an uprising in August 2011. He was captured and killed in October, along with his son Mutassim. Killed earlier in the civil war were younger brothers Saif Al-Arab and Khamis.
The rule of law though recovering, is still weak in Libya after decades of Gaddafi’s reign. Courts are still paralyzed and security remains tenuous as unruly militias proliferate.
The ICC has charged Saif Al-Islam with murder and persecution of civilians during the early days of the Libyan uprising. If convicted in that court, he would have faced a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, because it does not have the death penalty.
Source: Associated Press
