Lebanon’s Prosecutor-General, Ghassan Oueidat stated that Hannibal Gaddafi, the son of former leader Muammar Gaddafi, is well and in good health.
In remarks to Libya’s Al-Wasat newspaper on Thursday, Oueidat clarified that “there is no truth to the circulating news in the media and social media claiming the death of Gaddafi’s son, in Lebanese prisons.”
Oueidat added that “these reports are not true and are mere rumours,” emphasizing that Hannibal had a dental appointment two days ago, and is in good health.
Previously, Reem Youssef Aldabri, Hannibal’s lawyer, denied the circulating news of his death, due to a heart attack.
Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch called on the Lebanese authorities to immediately release Hannibal.
Hannibal has been held in pretrial detention, on questionable charges since his arrest in December 2015. According to the rights group, almost 80% of Lebanon’s prison population is in pretrial detention, with some individuals held for several years without charges.
Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces took custody of Hannibal in 2015, accusing him of having a connection to the disappearance of Lebanese Shiite Imam, Moussa Al-Sadr and two companions in Libya in 1978.
Despite Hannibal being only two years old in 1978, and having no senior official position as an adult, he was charged with “withholding information and subsequently interfering in the crime of continued kidnapping” of Sadr.
Hanan Salah, Associate Director at Human Rights Watch, criticized Hannibal’s arbitrary detention, stating that it “makes a mockery of Lebanon’s judicial system.” The organization urged authorities to drop the charges and release him.
Despite Human Rights Watch’s request for detailed information on the judicial status and health, there has been no response from Lebanese authorities.
Hannibal reportedly went on a hunger strike from June to October 2023, to protest his arbitrary detention and poor conditions. Lebanon’s prison conditions have deteriorated significantly since the economic crisis in 2019.
He was kidnapped in 2015 in Syria and later transferred to Lebanon, where he was tortured and demanded information on Sadr’s disappearance. After being freed from his captors, he was arrested by Lebanese authorities, accused of concealing information about Sadr’s disappearance.