missing son

Libya: The search for ever elusive Seif al-Islam Gaddafi

By Ariane Lavrilleux

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Posted on August 12, 2022 15:17

 Seif al-Islam Gaddafi filing his presidential candidacy on 14 November 2021 in Sebha © STRINGER / Libyan High National Electoral Commission FB Page / AFP
Seif al-Islam Gaddafi filing his presidential candidacy on 14 November 2021 in Sebha © STRINGER / Libyan High National Electoral Commission FB Page / AFP

Although he made a comeback in Libya’s short-lived presidential race in December, Muammar Gaddafi’s son Seif al-Islam has been elusive ever since the election was postponed.

As soon as he appeared, he disappeared. The announcement that he would be running in the presidential elections was a bombshell at the end of 2021. However, the election was then postponed indefinitely and the former leader’s son returned to the shadows.

Like a joker who appears at the last moment to turn the tables, Seif al-Islam Gaddafi is waiting for his moment, sure of his growing popularity among a population nostalgic for the former regime’s opulence. What is Gaddafi’s successor up to? Who are his loyal lieutenants?

Now in his fifties, he has swapped his black ideal son-in-law suits for the light-coloured tunic of the Sahara to better blend into the local traditional landscape. Although his dimple may be hidden under a thick salt-and-pepper sheikh’s beard, his face is still recognisable to thousands.

Yet no one has dared to film him without his knowledge. His hideout remains one of

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