Libyan prosecutors said on Wednesday they have launched an investigation into the killing of Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, the son of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
In a statement, the public prosecutor’s office said forensic teams had been sent to the town of Zintan in northwest Libya, where Seif al-Islam was shot dead. Authorities said efforts were underway to identify and apprehend those responsible.
“The victim died from gunshot wounds,” the statement said, adding that investigators would seek to question witnesses and anyone who may have information about the incident.
Marcel Ceccaldi, a lawyer who had represented Seif al-Islam, told AFP that his client was killed on Tuesday after an unidentified “four-man commando” stormed his residence.
News of his death has sparked debate among Libyans about its potential impact on the country’s political landscape. Former diplomat Ibrahim Aribi said the killing effectively ends one of Libya’s main power blocs.
“Seif’s killing marks the end of one of the three camps vying for power in Libya — the Gadhafi family’s camp,” Aribi said. “The conflict is now limited to two families: the Dbeibah family in the west and the Haftar family in the east.”
Others, however, dismissed the significance of his death. “For me, his killing has no impact on the current situation in Libya, neither economically nor politically,” said Abdelraouf Zridi, a day labourer in Tripoli. “He had no presence.”
Seif al-Islam, 53, had long been viewed by some supporters as his father’s political heir and attempted to run for president in 2021, though the election was indefinitely postponed.
No official details have been released regarding his burial. However, his adviser, Abdullah Othman Abdurrahim, told Libyan media that an autopsy had been completed and that Seif al-Islam could be buried in Bani Walid, south of the capital, Tripoli.
