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Africa North
Libya Candidates Say Election Delay is Inevitable
2021-12-22
[An Nahar] A group of candidates in war-torn Libya's presidential election said Monday that they expect the polls to be delayed, despite the lack of an official announcement to that effect.Scheduled for Friday, the vote is meant to cap a United Nations
...the Oyster Bay money pit...
-led grinding of the peace processor after a decade of conflict.

But it has been beset by deep divisions over its legal basis, who may stand and court challenges against prominent candidates.

On Monday, 17 hopefuls issued a joint statement in which they implicitly acknowledged that a delay was inevitable.

The group urged the electoral commission to "reveal the reasons why there will be no election on the date set", and called on it to "publish a final list of candidates".

Multiple observers have predicted a delay, but just days ahead of the vote, there has been no official announcement.

Libya, torn apart by a decade of conflict since its 2011 revolution, has seen a year of relative calm since a landmark October 2020 ceasefire, and the UN has been pushing for elections as part of a multi-pronged peace effort.

But presidential bids by several divisive
...politicians call things divisive when when the other side sez something they don't like. Their own statements are never divisive, they're principled...
 figures, a controversial electoral law and lack of agreement over the powers of the next government have posed a series of obstacles.

The candidacies of eastern military chief Khalifa Haftar
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all. Actually, he is, but slowly...
 and Seif al-Islam Qadaffy, son of slain dictator Muammar Qadaffy
...a reminder that a single man with an idea can change an entire nation, usually for the worse...
 -- both accused of war crimes -- have sparked particular opposition from rival camps.

Meanwhile,
...back at the dirigible, Jack stuck the cigar in his mouth, stepped onto the gantry, and asked Got a light, Mac?

Von Schtinken stopped short, lowering the dagger and trying to control his features.

If you light that thing, Herr Armschtröng, he pointed out, his voice tense, we all die!...
 in a country controlled by dozens of gangs including thousands of imported muscle, analysts warn that the ceasefire is increasingly fragile.



Link


Good Morning
2021-11-15

Biden and Kamala's relationship is in crisis as their poll ratings crash just one year in: Her staff feuds over why she is being sidelined with no-win migration task while President's team say they've given up on her already
Monday November 15th, 2021

yvonnecraig005
Gaddafi%u2019s son Seif al-Islam announces candidacy for president of Libya
Tribal infighting kills child in Syria's Deir ez-Zor
Suspected IS sympathizer tries to escape French prison with bedsheets
Israeli reporter detained on air in Turkey while covering couple held in custody
Israel to ask donor countries to restore payments to Palestinians
Israel Air Force commander meets air chiefs from Jordan, UAE in Dubai
This American City is in Crisis (video}

Link


Africa North
Gaddafi’s son Seif al-Islam announces candidacy for president of Libya
2021-11-15
[IsraelTimes] Country’s first-ever direct presidential election, set to take place on December 24, follows years of violence and revolt that toppled the Libyan dictator in 2011

Seif al-Islam Qadaffy, son of slain Libyan dictator Muammar Qadaffy
...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland...
, registered Sunday to run in the country’s December presidential polls, the electoral commission said.

"Seif al-Islam Qadaffy submitted... his candidacy for the presidential election to the High National Electoral Commission office in the [southern] city of Sebha," a statement by the commission said.

It said he had completed "all the required legal conditions" and that he was also issued with a voter registration card for the Sebha district.

Libya’s first-ever direct presidential poll, with a first round on December 24, is the climax of a process launched last year by the United Nations
...an idea whose time has gone...
 to draw a line under years of violence since the revolt that toppled Qadaffy in 2011.

The long-awaited vote still faces challenges, including unresolved issues over election laws and occasional infighting among gangs. Other obstacles include the deep rift that remains between the country’s east and west, split for years by the war, and the presence of thousands of imported muscle and troops.

Libya opened registration for candidates on Monday.

In a video released by the elections office where he registered, Seif al-Islam addressed the camera said that God will decide the right path for the country’s future. He wore a traditional Libyan robe and turban and spectacles.

Seif al-Islam, 49, the second of Qadaffy’s eight children, was sentenced to death in July 2015 for his role in the murderous repression of the 2011 revolt. He was released from Libyan prison in 2017.

In July, Seif al-Islam emerged from years in the shadows and told The New York Times

... which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
 he was planning a political comeback.

In a rare interview, he said he wanted to "restore the lost unity" of Libya after a decade of chaos and did not rule out running for the presidency.

The dictator’s erstwhile heir apparent is wanted for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Until the interview, Seif al-Islam had not been seen or heard from since June 2014, when he appeared via video link from Zintan, in the west of the country, during his trial by a Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 court.

Before 2011, the fluent English speaker often appeared in the West as the public face of his father’s regime. He held no official post but had influence as a loyal emissary of the regime and architect of reform.

Qadaffy the dictator had eight children in total, most of whom played significant roles in his regime.

His son Muatassim was killed at the same time Qadaffy was captured and slain. Two other sons, Seif al-Arab and Khamis, were killed earlier in the uprising. Another son, al-Saadi Qadaffy, was released in September after more than seven years of detention in the capital of Tripoli following his extradition from neighboring Niger.
Related:
Seif al-Islam: 2018-07-06 ICC Unveils Second Arrest Warrant for Benghazi Commander
Seif al-Islam: 2018-04-03 Prisoner or free man? Mystery surrounds Qadhafi's son Seif
Seif al-Islam: 2018-01-09 As chaos and despair grow in Libya, Qadhafi son plans comeback
Link


Africa North
ICC Unveils Second Arrest Warrant for Benghazi Commander
2018-07-06
[AnNahar] The International Criminal Court revealed Thursday it has issued a second arrest warrant for a Libyan military commander accused of shooting dead 10 jihadist prisoners after a Benghazi mosque attack.

The new warrant for Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf Al‑Werfalli, issued Wednesday, cites "his alleged responsibility for murder as a war crime" in the Libyan conflict, the ICC said in a statement.

Despite an earlier warrant issued in August, Werfalli, a commander of the Benghazi-based al-Saiqa Brigade loyal to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all...
, has remained on the lam.
Now ICC judges have found "reasonable grounds to believe" that Werfalli "allegedly rubbed out 10 persons in front of the Bi’at al-Radwan Mosque in Benghazi" on January 24.

Almost 40 people were killed and scores injured in twin boom-mobileings outside the mosque after evening prayers frequented by jihadist opponents in Libya's second city.

The first warrant accused Werfalli of the cold-blooded executions of at least 33 civilians or injured fighters in seven incidents in 2016 and 2017.

The ICC judges referred to video footage allegedly showing Werfalli personally shooting hooded and bound prisoners, or ordering a firing squad to open fire on them.

In February, Werfalli said in an unconfirmed Facebook video post that he had handed himself in to Haftar, insisting on his innocence, and justifying any executions as "sentences" against jihadist killers.

Libya fell into chaos after the ouster of strongman Moamer Qadaffy in October 2011, with competing authorities in Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 and the east vying for power.

Haftar supports an administration based in the east, while the UN-backed unity government based in the capital Tripoli has struggled to assert its authority outside of the west of the country.

ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has repeatedly called for help in arresting Werfalli, as well as Qadaffy's son Seif al-Islam, who is also wanted on charges of war crimes.

A warrant has also been issued for the arrest of former security chief al-Tuhamy Mohammed Khaled, accused of war crimes committed in 2011.
Link


Africa North
Prisoner or free man? Mystery surrounds Qadhafi's son Seif
2018-04-03
[DAWN] Nearly a year after a Libyan militia announced it had set free the son and heir apparent of slain dictator Moamer Qadaffy, the fate of Seif al-Islam remains a mystery.

His reported release from detention by the Abu Bakr al-Sadiq Brigade which once controlled the town of Zintan in western Libya has never been confirmed and has fuelled wild rumours.

While some insist he is still somewhere in Zintan, others claim Seif is dead.

One thing, however, is certain: he has not been seen or heard of since June 2014 when he appeared via video from Zintan during his trial by a Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 court.

And now Seif is back in the news, after La Belle France's former president Nicolas Sarkozy
...23rd President of the French Republic. Sarkozy is married to singer-songwriter Carla Bruni, who has a really nice birthday suit...
 was charged in Gay Paree with financing his 2007 election campaign with money from Qadaffy.

In a 2011 interview with the Euronews television network, Seif said Sarkozy must "give back the money he took from Libya to finance his electoral campaign".

Seif al-Islam ‐ whose name means "sword of Islam" ‐ was captured by the Zintan-based militia in November 2011, days after Qadaffy was killed in a NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis....
-backed uprising against his decades-old rule.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is in a legal tug-of-war with Libyan authorities to transfer Seif to The Hague, where he is wanted for crimes against humanity including murder.

Link


Africa North
As chaos and despair grow in Libya, Qadhafi son plans comeback
2018-01-09
[DAWN] THE runaway son and one-time heir apparent of Libya’s late Muammar Qadaffy
...a proud Arab institution for 42 years, now among the dear departed, though not the dearest...
 is planning a comeback.

Seif al-Islam "decided to run in presidential elections and I see a big chance for him because all the big tribes are supporting him," said Abdel Majeed al-Mansouri, who headed Libya’s economic development board before 2011 and was close to him. "People are frustrated. Even those who were against the old regime will side with him as he’s not coming back representing the old regime. He’s coming with his plan for Libya’s future."
Link


Africa North
Libyan group says it has freed Gaddafi son Seif al-Islam
2017-06-11
[IsraelTimes] Wanted by ICC for ‘crimes against humanity,’ former dictator’s emissary released by rebel militia under contested amnesty law.

An gang in Libya said on Facebook Saturday it had freed Seif al-Islam, the son of dead dictator Muammar Qadaffy
...who single-handedly turned a moderately prosperous kingdom into a dictator's fantasyland and was then murdered by his indignant subjects 42 years later...
 who had been in their custody since November 2011.

The Abu Bakr al-Sadiq Brigade, a militia of former rebels that controls the town of Zintan in western Libya, said Seif al-Islam was freed Friday evening, "the 14th day of the month of Ramadan", under an amnesty law promulgated by the parliament based in the east of the country.

Libya has rival administrations, with the authorities in the east not recognizing the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) based in the capital Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
"We have decided to liberate Seif al-Islam Muammar Qadaffy. He is now free and has left the city of Zintan," the statement on Facebook said.

Zintan is controlled by gangs opposed to the GNA.

The son of the former dictator is the subject of an arrest warrant for crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the eight months of the uprising in 2011.

Libya’s authorities and the International Criminal Court (ICC) are in dispute over who has the right to judge him.
’Sword of Islam’

Seif al-Islam Qadaffy, 44, was sentenced to death in July 2015 by a court in Tripoli for his role in the murderous repression of the 2011 revolt.

His name means sword of Islam, and he is the second of Qadaffy’s eight children, the eldest son of his second wife Safiya.

The fluent English speaker often appeared in the West as the public face of his father’s regime.

He held no official post but had influence as a loyal emissary of the regime and architect of reform.

In July 2016, Seif al-Islam’s lawyers claimed that their client had been released under an amnesty issued by the unrecognized authorities in the east of the country.

But the GNA said the amnesty, enacted in April that year, cannot apply to persons accused of crimes against humanity.

In all, three of Qadaffy’s seven sons were killed during the revolution.

One son who survived, Saadi, is still on trial in Libya for his alleged involvement in the crackdown and killing of a former football coach.

The deposed dictator’s widow Safiya and three more of their children found refuge in Algeria in the wake of the revolution and then later in Oman.

But the shockwaves created by the ouster and grizzly killing of Muammar Qadaffy by rebels in his home town of Sirte continue to ripple across the troubled country.

Late last month, Tripoli was rocked by fierce festivities between forces loyal to the unity government and rival militias, with more than 50 members of the pro-GNA forces reported killed.

Relying on militia support and pitted against the rival administration in the east, the GNA has struggled to assert its authority.
Link


Africa North
Twelve freed Qaddafi-era officials murdered
2016-06-14
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Gunmen have killed 12 Libyans after their release from jail for taking part in acts of repression during the 2011 revolt against Muammar Qadaffy
...who single-handedly turned a moderately prosperous kingdom into a dictator's fantasyland and was then murdered by his indignant subjects 42 years later...
, officials said on Sunday.

A Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 court ordered the conditional release of the former regime officials on Thursday, and on Friday their bullet-riddled bodies were found in the capital, the prosecution said on its Facebook page.

An investigation into the murders has begun, it added.
Seems as though justice is a bit rough in Libya these days...
The victims had been imprisoned on charges of committing abuses during the NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis....
-backed uprising that toppled and killed Qadaffy.

They were freed on condition that they report to the prosecutor every two weeks.
The prosecutor now has some "found time"...
The UN special envoy to Libya Martin Kobler condemned the murders and called for a prompt and "transparent" investigation. Kobler tweeted that he was "shocked and dismayed by the reports of murder of so many detainees released by a Tripoli court."
He is not, however, surprised...
The Government of National Accord also denounced what it called a "despicable crime." A statement on its Facebook page called on security and judiciary authorities to find the assailants and bring them to justice.

Seddiq es-Sour, of the prosecutor’s office, told Libyan television the bodies were found in various parts of the capital and confirmed that all were former prisoners.

He said they had been placed in durance vile
Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw!
 between 2011 and 2014.

The identities of the victims were not immediately released.

Earlier this month, es-Sour had said the supreme court had ordered the release of six Qadaffy regime officials pending an appeal, for reasons linked to their health and age.

Dozens of people are on trial in Libya for their role in the violent suppression of the revolt, including two sons of Qadaffy and ex-government officials.

In July 2015 several people were sentenced to death, including Seif al-Islam, Qadaffy’s son and one-time heir apparent.
Link


Africa North
Libya Group Threatens to Kidnap Lebanon Envoy to Press for Hannibal Release
2016-03-20
[An Nahar] A Libyan gang has threatened to kidnap Leb's ambassador to Libya, the embassy staff and any Lebanese citizen there if Lebanese authorities do not release Hannibal Muammar Qadaffy
...Proof that a madman with money will be politely received for at least 42 years until his people get tired of him and kill him...
 from prison.

The group, identifying itself as Battalion 74 of the Armed Libyan Resistance Movement, stressed in a YouTube video that Hannibal was "arbitrarily and unjustly detained by Lebanese politicians."

"Your judicial and legal officials have verified his full innocence," the group added, addressing Lebanese authorities.

"You know very well that the Libyan leadership under the leader Muammar Qadaffy had nothing to do with the case of the disappearance of Imam Moussa al-Sadr," it said.

The Lebanese judiciary issued an arrest warrant for Hannibal Qadaffy on December 14, days after he was handed over to Lebanese security forces after a brief abduction at the hands of an gang.

Examining Magistrate Zaher Hamadeh charged Hannibal with "withholding information linked to the case of Imam Moussa al-Sadr." A lawsuit was also filed against Hannibal on December 14 by the lawyer of al-Sadr's family.

During interrogation, Hannibal "confessed that the Libyan regime was involved in the abduction of Imam al-Sadr, naming the person who impersonated the imam and traveled to Rome" in 1978, according to LBCI television.

He noted that "the sources of his information were his brother Seif al-Islam and intelligence official Al-Mutassem Billah," LBCI has reported.

Al-Jadeed TV has quoted Hannibal as telling a judge that al-Sadr "was detained in a house in (Libya's) Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
" and that "he had never left for Rome."

"My father blamed (former Libyan premier) Abdul Salam Jalloud in the case of al-Sadr's disappearance," he told the judge, according to al-Jadeed. The TV network said Hannibal told the judge that his brother Mutassem, who was killed during Libya's uprising, "had information about Imam al-Sadr."

"The man who impersonated the imam and wore his clothes to travel to Rome is a well-known figure who currently lives in an Arab country," Hannibal added, according to al-Jadeed.

The 40-year-old son of slain Libyan leader Muammar Qadaffy had appeared in a video in which he announced that he had been kidnapped in Leb and that his captors are "loyal to the cause of Imam Moussa al-Sadr," the founder of Leb's AMAL Movement who disappeared while on a trip to Libya in 1978.

Hannibal was kidnapped in a Syrian area near the Lebanese border on December 11 before being smuggled into Leb's Bekaa region. He was handed over hours later to Lebanese security forces.

A security source told AFP that Sherlocks discovered that ex-MP Hassan Yaaqoub had orchestrated an elaborate scheme to seize Qadaffy from Syria and bring him to Leb. Yaaqoub was jugged
Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try!
 after several days on charges of involvement in Hannibal's abduction, and is still in prison.

Yaaqoub is the son of Sheikh Mohammed Yaaqoub -- one of two companions who disappeared with al-Sadr in Libya in 1978. Al-Sadr visited Libya upon the invitation of then Libyan ruler Muammar Qadaffy -- Hannibal's father.

The imam and his lover companions were seen lastly on August 31, 1978. They were never heard from again.

The Lebanese judiciary had indicted Muammar Qadaffy in 2008 over al-Sadr's disappearance, although the Qadaffy regime had consistently denied responsibility, claiming that the imam and his lover companions had left Libya for Italia.
Link


Africa North
Libya Puts Back Trial of Gadhafi Regime Members
2014-05-26
[An Nahar] A Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 court ordered a fresh delay Sunday in the trial of 40 top figures from late strongman Muammar Qadaffy
...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland...
's regime, including his son Seif al-Islam, as spiraling lawlessness grips Libya.

"The prosecution demanded that the trial be delayed to June 22 to prepare the indictment," defense lawyer Ali Dhabaa told Agence La Belle France Presse at the end of a two-hour hearing.

The defense had also requested a new delay in the trial and demanded access to the accused, who also include Qadaffy's former spy chief Abdullah Senussi.

They have been charged over their roles in suppressing the 2011 uprising that eventually toppled Qadaffy's regime.

All the defendants are accused of murder, kidnapping, complicity in incitement to rape, plunder, sabotage, embezzlement of public funds and acts harmful to national unity.

Seif, 41, appeared on May 11 by video link in the Tripoli court from Zintan, where he has been held since his capture by rebels in November 2011.

He currently has no lawyer, with the one previously assigned to him absent on Sunday and the court announcing that another lawyer would be appointed.
Link


Africa North
Libya ex-Spy Boss in Court with Lawyers for First Time
2014-05-12
[AnNahar] Libya's ex-intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi appeared in a Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
 court with his lawyers for the first time Sunday, accused of abuses during the 2011 uprising that toppled strongman Muammar Qadaffy
...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland...
It was the first hearing he has attended with the four lawyers picked by his family, just one of whom is Libyan. The other three are Tunisian.

The former spy chief had previously appeared without legal representation, but had been told to pick a defense team or the court would choose one for him.

Qadaffy's son and one-time heir-apparent Seif al-Islam also appeared by video link from the town of Zintan, where he has been held since his capture by rebels in November 2011.

His court-appointed lawyer was unable to attend Sunday's hearing, so the trial was adjourned to May 25 to allow him to help his client, lawyers said.

As with the previous session on April 27, just 22 of 37 former regime officials being tried for a raft of alleged abuses during the uprising that ended Qadaffy's 42-year rule were in court on Sunday.

Among those in the dock was Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, Qadaffy's last prime minister. Another eight defendants appeared by video link from Misrata east of the capital.

All of the defendants are charged with murder, kidnapping, complicity in incitement to rape, plunder, sabotage, embezzlement of public funds and acts harmful to national unity.

Seif and Senussi are wanted by the International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
 on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization....
-backed uprising.

In May last year, the ICC rejected Tripoli's request that Seif be tried in Libya because of doubts he would receive a fair trial.

Tripoli appealed the decision, and the ICC last October gave Libya the go-ahead to try Senussi inside the country.
Link


Africa North
Court to Name Gadhafi Son Lawyer in Trial by Video Link
2014-04-28
[AnNahar] A Libyan court said Sunday that it would appoint a lawyer for slain strongman Muammar Qadaffy
... who had more funny outfits than Louis XIV...
's son Seif al-Islam after he insisted in a controversial hearing by video link that "God is my counsel."

Just 22 of 37 former Qadaffy regime officials being tried for a raft of alleged abuses during the 2011 uprising that ended his 42-year rule were in court for Sunday's hearing in the capital.

Seif spoke by video conference from Zintan, a hill town southwest of Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
, where he is in the custody of former rebel militia.

Eight other defendants, including former internal security chief Mansur Daw, appeared by video link from Libya's third largest city Misrata.

The court ruled at a previous hearing earlier this month that it was too dangerous to move the defendants to the capital for the trial and ordered video links to be established instead.

The ruling drew condemnation from human rights
One man's rights are another man's existential threat.
 groups, which had already expressed serious concern about the prospects for the defendants receiving a fair trial.

Among those present in the dock on Sunday were former intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi and Qadaffy's last premier, al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi.

All the defendants are charged with murder, kidnapping, complicity in incitement to rape, plunder, sabotage, embezzlement of public funds and acts harmful to national unity.

The court set the next hearing for May 11.

Seif is wanted by the International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
 on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants...
-backed uprising.

In May last year, the ICC rejected Tripoli's request to try Seif in Libya because of doubts over a fair trial. Tripoli has appealed the decision.
Link



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