Thursday, December 02, 2021
The court approves the objection
Gaddafi’s son can run for election
Before the presidential election in Libya, the electoral authority had actually rejected the candidacy of Saif al-Islam, the son of long-term ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi. He lodges an objection to a court and is now allowed to compete – in the meantime he is still being sought internationally.
The son of the ousted long-term ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi is now allowed to run in the presidential election in Libya after a court decision. An appeals court upheld Saif al-Islam Gaddafi’s objection to his exclusion from the vote, according to the Libyan news agency Lana. With that, Gaddafi is returning to the race for office. The election is scheduled for December 24th.
The election commission had actually rejected Gaddafi’s candidacy a week ago. The agency argued that he did not meet the conditions as he had already been convicted once. But he was allowed to contest the decision. Media released videos allegedly showing how Gaddafi’s supporters celebrated the verdict in front of the courthouse.
Criminal court demands extradition
The son of the long-term Libyan ruler had supported the brutal crackdown on protests against his later killed father in 2011. He is accused of calling for the killing of peaceful demonstrators. The International Criminal Court is demanding his extradition to try him for crimes against humanity. In 2015 he was sentenced to death in absentia by a court in Tripoli.
Due to ongoing disputes between the political opponents, it is still unclear whether the elections will actually take place as planned. They are part of a UN roadmap to end the longstanding civil war. Observers fear, however, that the victory of a controversial candidate could trigger violence. There had already been protests against Gaddafi’s candidacy.