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Khamis Gaddafi

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Khamis Gaddafi
خميس القذافي
Personal details
Born (1983-05-27) 27 May 1983 (age 41)
Tripoli, Libya
Alma materFrunze Military Academy[1]
General Staff Academy
IE Business School
Military service
AllegianceLibya Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (2003–present)
Branch/serviceLibyan Army
Years of service2003–present
CommandsKhamis Brigade
Battles/wars2011 Libyan civil war

Khamis al-Gaddafi (Arabic: خميس القذافي) (27 May 1983) is the seventh and youngest son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and the military commander in charge of the Khamis Brigade of the Libyan army. He is part of his father's inner circle.[2]

During the 2011 Libyan civil war, Gaddafi is a major target for opposition forces trying to overthrow his father. He was frequently rumoured to have been killed during the war, first on 20 March 2011, when several sources reported that he had been killed by a fighter pilot carrying out a kamikaze mission against the Bab al-Azizia compound or some variation on that story.[3][4] Then on 5 August 2011, a rebel spokesman claimed he had been killed in an airstrike, though this was denied by Moussa Ibrahim, the spokesman for the Gaddafi regime.[5] Most recently the rebels claimed that he died on 29 August 2011 when a NATO helicopter destroyed the car he was travelling in,[6] but this was denied by the Libyan state television the following day[7] and later reports suggested that he was still alive.[8]

Education and career

At the age of three, Khamis Gaddafi was injured in the 15 April 1986 United States bombing of Libya, suffering head injuries when the Bab al-Azizia military compound was attacked in retaliation for the 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing.[9] He graduated from the military academy in Tripoli, receiving a bachelor’s degree in military arts and science, further graduating from the Frunze Military Academy in Moscow and the Academy of the General Staff Academy of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2008, Gaddafi visited Algeria, where he was received by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.[1]

In April 2010, he began a masters degree at the IE Business School (formerly known as Instituto de Empresa), in Madrid.[1] However, he was expelled by the institution in March 2011 for "his links to the attacks against the Libyan population".[10]

In early 2011, Gaddafi worked as an intern at AECOM Technology Corporation. According to Paul Gennaro, AECOM's Senior Vice President for Global Communications, Gaddafi was touring the United States in February 2011 as part of his internship, including visiting military sites and landmarks. This trip was cut short on 17 February after the Libyan uprising began, and Gaddafi returned to Libya. U.S. government officials later denied any role in planning, advising or paying for the trip.[11]

Role in the 2011 Libyan civil war

Main article: Khamis Brigade

After hurrying back to Libya to aid his father in the civil war, Khamis Gaddafi commanded the assault on Zawiya, leading the Khamis Brigade, a special forces brigade of the Libyan military loyal to Muammar Gaddafi.[12][12][13][14] The battle resulted in pro-Gaddafi forces retaking the city. He also assisted in suppressing anti-regime demonstrations in and around the capital Tripoli in late February-early March. His forces also took part in the Battle of Misrata. In June 2011, he was reported to be commanding pro-Gaddafi forces in Zliten by a soldier captured from his brigade who also reported that Khamis Gaddafi had told his troops to "take Misurata or I will kill you myself. If you don’t take Misurata, we are finished."[15]

Rumors of death

March 2011

On 20 March 2011, it was reported by the anti-Gaddafi Al Manara Media that Khamis al-Gaddafi had died from injuries sustained when pilot Muhammad Mokhtar Osman allegedly crashed his plane into Bab al-Azizia a week earlier. This was not confirmed by any independent news source. The crashing of the plane itself had also not been previously reported or confirmed by any other independent media except Al Manara and the Algerian Shuruk newspaper, which is closely connected to Al Manara, and with it there is a possibility of the reports being part of the propaganda operations by the opposition.[16][17][18]

The pro-Gaddafi Libyan government subsequently denied that he was killed on 21 March.[19] U.S. Secretary Hillary Clinton stated that she was aware of reports that one of Gaddafi's sons had been killed in non-coalition air strikes, after hearing them from "many different sources", but that the "evidence is not sufficient" for her to confirm this.[20][21] On 25 March 2011, Al Arabiya television reported that a source had confirmed the death of Khamis Gaddafi,[3] though others including Al Jazeera continued to call it a rumour.[4]

On 29 March 2011, the Libyan government showed footage of what it said was live footage of Khamis Gaddafi greeting supporters in Tripoli, in an attempt to refute the claims,[22] though it had used false live images before and these images were not verified.[23] On 9 June 2011, a captured pro-Gaddafi soldier in Misrata told the rebels that Khamis Gaddafi was alive in Zliten, and was leading the soldiers there.[15]

August 2011

On 5 August 2011, citing spies operating among the ranks of forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, Mohammed Zawawi, a spokesman for the United Revolutionary Forces, told the Agence France Press news agency that Khamis Gaddafi had been killed overnight, stating that "there was a aircraft attack by NATO on the Gaddafi operations room in Zlitan and there are around 32 Gaddafi troops killed. One of them is Khamis."[24]

This report was officially denied by Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim. "It's false news. They invented the news about Mr. Khamis Gaddafi in Zlitan to cover up their killing," Ibrahim told Reuters in Tripoli. "This is a dirty trick to cover up their crime in Zlitan and the killing of the al-Marabit family."[5] NATO was also unable to confirm the reports of Khamis's death.[25] On 9 August, a man who appeared to be the youngest Gaddafi son appeared on Libyan state television speaking to a woman who had allegedly been severely injured by a NATO airstrike.[26]

On 22 August, Al Jazeera reported that the bodies of both Khamis Gaddafi and his father's intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi may have been discovered.[27] However, a rebel commander later stated that he believed Khamis Gaddafi was in Bab al-Azizia.[28]

On 29 August it was reported that that anti-Gaddafi fighters 60km south of Tripoli claimed that a NATO Apache helicopter gunship had fired on Khamis Gaddafi's Toyota Land Cruiser, destroying the vehicle. A man who claimed to be the Gaddafi son's bodyguard said he had been killed. No visual confirmation was immediately available.[6] It was the fourth time that rebels announced the death of Khamis Gaddafi. Two days later The Guardian interviewed a former guard being held captive in Tarhuna. He told the newspaper "I was in the truck behind him ... when his car was hit. He was burned." Three other guards being held in separate cells apparently gave similar accounts, leading their captors to believe the accounts of all four to be credible.[29] Some accounts of the attack that reportedly killed Gaddafi suggested fire from a technical, rather than a helicopter, destroyed his vehicle.[30] On 30 August, the pro-Gaddafi Libyan state television denied that he was dead.[7] In contrast, the National Transitional Council confirmed on 4 September that it was now certain he was dead and had been buried near Bani Walid.[31]

Mid-September, a report stated that Khamis was in Bani Walid, but had left the city and his men to their fate.[8] However, the International Business Times reported on 15 September that Khamis was still presumed dead.[32] During the Battle of Sirte it was reported that he was leading the defense of the city.[33]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Un hijo de Gadafi estudia un master en Madrid". El País. 22 February 2011.
  2. ^ "Inside Gaddafi's inner circle". Al Jazeera. 27 February 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  3. ^ a b Global Voices (2011) Libya: Is Khamis Gaddafi Really Dead?. 25 March 2011
  4. ^ a b Al Jazeera (2011). Live Blog Libya - March 26
  5. ^ a b "Tripoli denies Gaddafi son killed in NATO raid". Reuters. 5 August 2011. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  6. ^ a b "Rebels: Gaddafi's Son 'Killed In Air Strike'". Sky News. 29 August 2011. Retrieved 29 August 2011.
  7. ^ a b AllVoices (30 August 2011). Libyan television denies death of Muammar Gaddafi's military son. Retrieved 13 September 2011
  8. ^ a b Gaddafi's diehard secret police dig in as Nato jets blast desert stronghold
  9. ^ The Greenwood Library of American War Reporting: The Vietnam War & post-Vietnam conflicts, p. 346. Copeland, David A. Greenwood Press (Westport, Conn.), 2005. ISBN 9780313329302.
  10. ^ "Madrid's IE Business School Expels Qaddafi's Son From MBA". Bloomberg. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  11. ^ "Khamis Gaddafi toured US military facilities weeks before Libya crisis". London: The Telegraph. 26 March 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  12. ^ a b "Khamis Gaddafi Recruits Mercenaries to Shoot Protestors". International Business Times. 11 February 2011.
  13. ^ Maggie Michael. "Libyan forces storm protest camp in Benghazi". Associated Press/News Observer.
  14. ^ "Khamis Ghaddafi: The agent of fear". Afrol News. 23 February 2011.
  15. ^ a b Fadel, Leila (10 June 2011). "Libyan rebels stage insurrection in Zlitan". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  16. ^ Hartley-Parkinson, Richard (22 March 2011). "For the sins of his father: Gaddafi's son 'killed in kamikaze pilot attack on barracks'". Daily Mail. London.
  17. ^ BBC Panorama: The real story behind Libya’s revolution | Libya February 17th
  18. ^ Gaddafi’s Son Khamis Killed By Kamikaze Pilot Claims | Daily Planet Dispatch
  19. ^ Ynetnews (2011). Libya denies report of Gaddafi son's death. 21 March 2011
  20. ^ Hillary Clinton to Diane Sawyer: Moammar Gadhafi, Allies May Be Seeking Way Out - ABC News
  21. ^ Libya Live Blog - March 23 | Al Jazeera Blogs
  22. ^ Nasr, Joseph; Amara, Tarek (29 March 2011). "Libya TV says shows live footage of Khamis Gaddafi". Reuters. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  23. ^ Libya Live Blog - March 19 | Al Jazeera Blogs
  24. ^ Foreign, Our (5 August 2011). "Gaddafi son killed in Nato strike, Libyan rebels claim". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  25. ^ al-Shaheibi, Rami; al-Shalchi, Hadeel (6 August 2011). "Libya regime: Gadhafi son alive". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Associated Press. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  26. ^ Nasr, Joseph (9 August 2011). "Libyan TV shows footage of Khamis Gaddafi". Reuters. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  27. ^ Gladstone, Rick (22 August 2011). "Qaddafi's Whereabouts Still a Mystery in Libya". The New York Times.
  28. ^ http://english.cntv.cn/20110823/100261.shtml
  29. ^ Chulov, Martin (31 August 2011). "Rebel forces surround Libyan town where Gaddafi is believed to be hiding". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  30. ^ Pendlebury, Richard (2 September 2011). "The car was armoured like a tank. But that wasn't enough to save Gaddafi's son Khamis when the rebels took their vengeance". London. The Daily Mail. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  31. ^ "Libya conflict: Fear for civilians in Bani Walid siege". BBC News. 4 September 2011. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
  32. ^ http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/214519/20110915/gadhafi-daughter-hana-gaddafi-alive.htm
  33. ^ Stephen, Chris (15 September 2011). "Gaddafi's birthplace 'captured by rebels' in battle for last Libya coast stronghold". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 September 2011.

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