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By Ioanna Theou
Hannibal Gaddafi, the youngest son of Muammar Gaddafi -who was tragically killed with the Arab Spring events-, was released from detention in Lebanon in November. He stayed in prison almost ten years without even having a trial. Lebanese judicial authorities agreed to free him after bail was set and paid. The amount of bail was approximately 900,000$. Hannibal Gaddafi now is allowed to travel abroad freely once the formal release process was completed.
Hannibal Gaddafi had been held by Lebanon since 2015 -during the Syrian Civil War- after being abducted by armed militia groups in Syria and then taken to Beirut. Lebanese authorities detained him in connection with the disappearance in 1978 of Lebanese Shiite cleric Imam Musa al-Sadr, who vanished during an official visit to Libya when Hannibal was only two years old. The disappearance has been a long- standing political and legal issue between Lebanon and Libya.
The legal representatives for Hannibal and rights groups had described his prolonged detention without trial as an unjust action, noting that he was held for a decade without a regular judicial process. His release announced by his defense team and described as the end of a ‘’long nightmare’’, reflecting the actions of his lawyers to secure justice and to reduce the initially enormous bail amount -originally set to 11 million dollars- and restore his basic rights.
Following the payment of bail, Hannibal was reported to be preparing to leave Lebanon for another destination abroad, although the reporting of the exact country was kept confidential due to security concerns. It is still unknown where he will go. His French lawyer also emphasized that Hannibal does not want return to Libya at this stage… however this does not mean he cannot turn back.
A potential return of Hannibal Gaddafi could carry significant implications for Libya’s future. For instance, it could potentially overturn the situation in Libya, which continues to experience instability following the Obama administration’s involvement during the Arab Spring events.
Muammar Gaddafi may have been many things, but he managed to provide free education and healthcare to the country’s citizens. Libya was also among the few countries that did not carry any foreign debt, and it possessed vast reserves of gold and mineral wealth. He also sought to unify Africa, positioning this vision in opposition to the influence of former colonial powers.
Muamar Gaddafi was a figure who challenged Western leaders, putting western interests and access to Libya’s mineral wealth at risk. Following his death, the country has descended into chaos. This instability has been exploited by Western Governments that maintain business interest in Libya. Turkey also has benefited from the death of Muamar Gaddafi, because Erdogan has collaborated with the Tripoli regime by signing the controversial 2019 Memorandum of Understanding on maritime boundaries, which claims on Exclusive Economic Zone that overlaps areas of Greece, particularly south of Crete, fueling tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Thus, only a figure like Hannibal Gaddafi might have been able to change the situation in Libya. Hannibal Gaddafi, in a collaboration with Burkina Faso’s leader Ibrahim Traore -and perhaps other young African leaders with anti-western policies, could pose a potential threat to Western countries…
Bibliography
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czxnq6d71y9o
https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5206509-will-hannibal-gaddafi-join-his-family-abroad
https://libyanheritagehouse.org/history-libya/libya-gaddafi-period
https://www.thecollector.com/gaddafi-muammar-african-union/
https://maritime-executive.com/article/egypt-and-greece-reject-turkish-libyan-eez-claim
https://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/analyses/2025-12-02/turkeys-policy-towards-libya-a-year-major-shifts
https://futures.issafrica.org/blog/2025/Beyond-oil-wealth-Libyas-path-to-institutional-renewal
https://www.dw.com/en/burkina-fasos-traore-a-hero-to-some-autocrat-to-others/a-73932352