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Rabat – Libyan prosecutors have opened an investigation into the killing of Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, after confirming that he was shot dead.
The public prosecutor’s office in Tripoli released a statement on Wednesday saying an investigative team, along with forensic doctors and experts, visited the western Libyan city of Zintan on Tuesday to examine the body. The examination confirmed that Seif al-Islam died from gunshot wounds.
The prosecutor’s office said a criminal case has been launched to identify and track down those responsible for the killing. No suspects have been named so far, and authorities have not provided details about the motive.
Seif al-Islam Gaddafi had long been seen as a possible successor to his father before the 2011 uprising that ended Muammar Gaddafi’s rule. He was arrested later that year in southern Libya and held for years in Zintan.
He was sentenced to death in 2015 after a trial that rights groups described as rushed, but he was later released under an amnesty law.
Gaddafi’s son was also wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity. Until news of his death, his whereabouts were largely unknown.
His French lawyer, Marcel Ceccaldi, told AFP that Seif al-Islam was killed inside his home in Zintan by a four-member armed group whose identities remain unknown.
Libya has remained deeply divided since the coup in 2011. Two rival governments continue to compete for power: the UN-recognized Government of National Unity in Tripoli, led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, and a rival administration in the east backed by military leader Khalifa Haftar and his sons.
