Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam

Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam (born 1952) is the cousin and aide of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. He is Libya's former Special Envoy to Egypt and a leading figure of the Gaddafi regime.[1] He was a key member of Gaddafi's inner circle.[2]

Biography

Born to a Libyan father and an Egyptian mother, Gaddaf al-Dam was educated in military academies and schools in Britain (where he was classmates with current Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi), Turkey and Pakistan. He had a role in Gaddafi's security services and served as a personal representative of Muammar Gaddafi in his relations with foreign heads of state. He was instrumental in funneling Libyan cash and weapons to anti-apartheid activists in South Africa and Robert Mugabe movement against white minority rule in Zimbabwe.[3]

In February 2011, Gaddaf al-Dam fled to Egypt shortly after the start of Libyan Civl War. Initially, he claimed he had defected, declaring that he was "resigning from all official duties as a means of protest against the way the Libyan crisis was being handled." However, he took a more neutral stance mere weeks later and was sighted in Damascus, fueling speculation that his defection was a ruse to run a secret mission to Syria.[4]

As one of several high-profile Gaddafi loyalists living in Egypt, he was pursued by the new Libyan government and Interpol since the end of the war. In March 2013, after Egyptian police surrounded his home in Cairo and clashed with his guards, Gaddaf al-Dam was arrested by Egyptian authorities on charges of forging official government.[5][6] He was acquitted after his lawyers argued that he held Egyptian passport due to his mother and that he had defected from Gaddafi due to his objection to the killing of protesters.

In October 2014, Gaddaf al-Dam expressed interest in participating in Libyan peace talks.[7]

In October 2016, Gaddaf al-Dam denied Libya's involvement in 1988 Lockerbie Bombing, but acknowledged Gaddafi's involvement in 1986 West Berlin discotheque bombing.[8]

In May 2017, Gaddaf al-Dam endorsed the leadership bid of former Gaddafi foe, Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.[9]

In October 2017, Gaddaf al-Dam called for reconciliation, the release of Gaddafi loyalists held in Libyan prisons, and for loyalists to be included in any U.N. and Western-brokered political solution. He named Gaddafi's son and former heir apparent, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who was released by a militia in Zintan but whose whereabouts was unclear, as someone who needed to be involved in the ongoing peace process.[10]

In March 2018, Gaddaf al-Dam called the arrest of Nicolas Sarkozy, former President of France, on preliminary charges of illegally funding his campaign, passive corruption and receiving money from Libyan embezzlement (alleged Libyan financing in the 2007 French presidential election), "God’s punishment." He claimed he had knowledge of the money transfers and alleged most of the senior Gaddafi regime figures involved in the scandal were imprisoned, dead or in hiding, fearing assassination, including Gaddafi's treasurer Bashir Saleh Bashir, who had survived a shooting in South Africa in February 2018, and Shukri Ghanem, Gaddafi's oil minister who was found drowned to death in the Danube River in Vienna in 2012.[11]

References
  1. "Gaddafi cousin arrested in Egypt". 2013-03-19. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  2. Raghavan, Sudarsan (2017-11-13). "Gaddafi's cousin is plotting a comeback of sorts from a Cairo apartment". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  3. Raghavan, Sudarsan (2017-11-13). "Gaddafi's cousin is plotting a comeback of sorts from a Cairo apartment". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  4. Figaro.fr, Le. "Gaddafi's Double. The Libyan Leader Has A Look-Alike Cousin, Who May Also Be His Secret Weapon". Le Figaro.fr. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  5. "Gaddafi cousin arrested in Egypt". 2013-03-19. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  6. "Subscribe to read". Financial Times. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  7. "Gaddafi cousin hopes to participate in Libyan peace talks". Reuters. 2014-10-20. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  8. "Qaddafi's surviving cousin confirms some crimes, but denies others". english.alarabiya.net. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  9. Cairo, Bel Trew (2017-05-23). "Gaddafi family backs Libya's new strongman". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  10. EDT, Callum Paton On 10/18/17 at 2:02 PM (2017-10-18). "The heir to the Gaddafi regime Said al-Islam Gaddafi has returned to Libyan politics". Newsweek. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  11. "Gadhafi's cousin calls Sarkozy's woes 'God's punishment'". AP NEWS. 2018-03-22. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.