Libyan Attorney General, Al-Siddiq Al-Sour has urged the Lebanese authorities to release Hannibal Gaddafi, emphasising his declining health, and need for intensive care. Al-Sour also urged the Lebanese authorities to “activate mechanisms for his extradition to Libya, according to Lebanese penal laws, or enable him to leave for his country of refuge.”
Al-Sour further proposed cooperation over the case of the disappearance of Islamic cleric, Musa Al-Sadr, calling on the Libyan Public Prosecutor’s Office to provide a legal assistance request. This document would detail the actions the Lebanese judicial authorities could take, which would assist in clarifying the incident behind the disappearance of Al-Sadr and his companions.
In his request, seen by the Middle East Gateway, Al-Sour acknowledged the challenge of investigating the case of Al-Sadr’s disappearance, but expressed “confidence that the issue could be overcome through fair and structured judicial cooperation between both nations’ prosecuting authorities.”
The Attorney General directed his memorandum to key figures in Lebanese legal and judicial circles, including the President of the Judicial Council, the First President of the Court of Cassation, and the Attorney General of the Lebanese Republic. His communication also named Judge Zaher Hamadeh, the judicial investigator, and requested international cooperation and reciprocal legal assistance, including the transfer of requests from the relatives of Libyan citizen, Hannibal Gaddafi.
Al-Sour also called for the Libyan Public Prosecutor’s Office to be given the power to hear the testimony of Hannibal, and to cross-examine the information he had provided. As well as any information he had concealed, before informing the Lebanese authorities of the findings as soon as possible.
The Attorney General’s letter revealed that under Libyan criminal law, Libyan citizens cannot be extradited for committing a felony or misdemeanor abroad. However, Al-Sour maintained that “such legal stipulation does not prevent action being taken domestically against him.”
He also requested the Libyan Public Prosecutor’s Office to detail the events attributed to Libyan officials accused in Case No. 1 of 1980, against whom arrest warrants were issued in absentia. The aim is to allow the Libyan Public Prosecutor’s Office to hear their statements about the case, and inform Lebanese authorities of the results at appropriate times.
Al-Sour detailed the events associated with the case, starting with the abduction of Hannibal Gaddafi on 12 June 2015, from Syria, his transport to Lebanon, and the issuance of an arrest warrant on 10 October. This was followed by Hamadeh hearing his testimony regarding the disappearance of Al-Sadr and his two companions. Subsequently, an arrest warrant was issued on the grounds that the witness (Hannibal) was guilty of withholding information.
The Attorney General also pointed out that the judicial investigator had issued ten arrest warrants in absentia against Libyan individuals accused in Case No. 1 of 1980, for their involvement in the kidnapping. The investigation’s proceedings suggest that the judicial investigator concluded that Hannibal Gaddafi was well aware of the circumstances surrounding the disappearance, and deliberately withheld this from the court.
Finally, Al-Sour stated that the accusation of withholding information against Hannibal was “based on the presumption of his relationship with his father, Muammar Gaddafi, and his proximity to decision-makers in Libya.” Nevertheless, he referred to Article 410 of the Lebanese Penal Code, which exempts the witness, Hannibal Gaddafi, from legal punishment should his withholding of information be true, due to his filial relationship. The Article also stated that the duration of Hannibal’s detention exceeded the maximum penalty, if he were convicted of the crime of withholding information.