Everything we know about assassination of Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the second son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and once the heir apparent to his father’s four-decade regime, was killed on Tuesday afternoon in the western city of Zintan. 

The 53-year-old’s death was confirmed by his legal team and political office, marking a violent end for a figure who remained at the centre of Libya’s turbulent political landscape long after the 2011 revolution.

According to statements from his political team and his French lawyer, Marcel Ceccaldi, the assassination took place at approximately 2:00 pm local time. 

A "four-man commando" unit reportedly stormed Gaddafi’s residence, meticulously disabling surveillance cameras before engaging in what was described as a direct armed confrontation.

"He was killed today... in Zintan in his home by a four-man commando," Ceccaldi told news agencies, adding that the identity of the assailants remains unknown. 

Abdullah Othman Abdurrahim, a member of Gaddafi’s political team, characterised the hit as a "treacherous and cowardly operation." 

While most reports place the event in Zintan, where Saif al-Islam had been held and later protected by local militias for years, his sister gave a conflicting account to Libyan television, suggesting he may have died near the Algerian border.

Saif al-Islam’s life mirrored the rise and shattering of the modern Libyan state. Educated at the London School of Economics, he was for years the Western-friendly face of the Jamahiriya, instrumental in negotiating Libya's nuclear disarmament and the lifting of international sanctions. 

However, his reputation as a reformer disintegrated during the 2011 Arab Spring when he appeared on television promising "rivers of blood" to those who opposed his father’s rule.

Following the fall of Tripoli and his father's death, Saif al-Islam was captured by Zintan-based fighters while attempting to flee to Niger.

He was sentenced to death in absentia by a Tripoli court in 2015, yet he remained in the custody of Zintan’s militias, who eventually granted him amnesty in 2017. 

Despite a standing warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity, he re-emerged in 2021 to announce a presidential bid, a move that was ultimately blocked by election authorities but signalled his persistent influence.

The assassination comes at a fragile moment for Libya. The country remains split between the UN-recognised Government of National Unity (GNU) in Tripoli and the eastern-based administration supported by the House of Representatives and General Khalifa Haftar. 

Just days before the killing, United Nations mediators had resumed high-level security dialogues in Tripoli aimed at unifying the nation’s fractured military institutions and preparing for long-delayed elections.

Libya expert Emadeddin Badi noted that the killing could have a dual impact on the country's stalled democratic transition. 

While removing a highly controversial contender might "ease the path" for other presidential hopefuls, Badi warned that the assassination is "likely to cast him as a martyr for a significant segment of the population," potentially deepening the grievances of those who are still loyal to the former regime.

In the wake of the shooting, Marcel Ceccaldi revealed that concerns about Gaddafi’s safety had been escalating. 

A close associate had warned of security breaches ten days prior, and the head of the Gaddafi tribe had reportedly offered to send additional security details, an offer Saif al-Islam allegedly refused.

As of Wednesday, no group has claimed responsibility for the hit. The Libyan Attorney General’s Office has reportedly opened an investigation, though the deep divisions between regional security forces and local militias in Zintan raise questions about the transparency and reach of any official inquiry.