Lebanon may release son of Gaddafi after decade in detention
Lebanon’s justice minister has stated that the government is awaiting a judicial ruling on whether to release Hannibal Gaddafi, who has been imprisoned in Lebanon for ten years, according to the Libya Observer on September 21st.
Hannibal Gaddafi is the son of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was overthrown and killed in 2011.
Gaddafi junior was living as a political refugee in Syria after his father was overthrown, and was kidnapped from Damascus in 2015 by Lebanese militants.
He has been accused of withholding information about the disappearance of Moussa Al-Sadr, who went missing along with two others in Libya in 1978, when Gaddafi junior was just two years old.
Al-Sadr was the founder of a militia, known as the Amal group, that fought in Lebanon’s civil war, which later became a prominent political party.
The justice minister in Lebanon, Adel Nassar, told the press on September 20th that the ministry is awaiting the decision of an investigative judge on whether to release him.
A lawyer working for the family of Al-Sadr criticised Nassar, accusing him of interfering in judicial activities. He stated that Nassar’s remarks were a “dangerous precedent” that undermines judicial independence and adds pressure to the investigation, according to The National News Agency.
There has been consistent pressure to release Gaddafi’s son – despite many Libyans condemning his father’s regime. Gaddafi son has allegedly been mistreated and many still want appropriate justice.
In August 2025, Human Rights Watch urged for his release and stated that he had been arbitrarily detained, calling for compensation and accountability.
In 2023, Gaddafi junior went on a hunger strike to protest the injustice he faces, and his condition deteriorated, with him being moved to hospital.
In May 2nd of 2024, it was reported that photographs had leaked of Gaddafi in a small cell with no natural light. Gaddafi told the press “I live in misery.”
Libya Observer, National News Agency, Maghrebi.org
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