Hannibal Gaddafi, son of former Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi, in 2005. (Credit: MORTEN JUHL/AFP/Getty Images/File photo)
BEIRUT — Hannibal Gaddafi, son of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, began an open hunger strike on Friday in Lebanon, where he has been imprisoned since 2015, his lawyer Paul Romanos told L'Orient Today on Monday.
According to Romanos, Gaddafi started his hunger strike "because he considers himself innocent from the allegations he is accused of and he is a political prisoner."
A security source contacted by L'Orient Today could not immediately confirm Gaddafi's strike.
Gaddafi's lawyer refused to disclose information about the allegations due to the secrecy of the investigation. He did however say that Gaddafi's health conditions were getting worse.
Imprisoned in Lebanon, Hannibal Gaddafi was prosecuted in a case involving the alleged concealment of information concerning the 1978 disappearance (in Libya) of Imam Moussa al-Sadr, head of the Shiite Supreme Council in Lebanon, and his two companions, Sheikh Mohammad Yaacoub and journalist Abbas Badr al-Dine.
Previously, Gaddafi was in the custody of the intelligence branch of the Internal Security Forces (ISF) since December 2015, after being briefly abducted by an armed group in Lebanon.
In December 2015, Lebanese authorities arrested former Amal MP Hassan Yaacoub in connection with Gaddafi's kidnapping. Yaacoub was released in July 2016.
Moussa al-Sadr is the founder of the Amal Movement, which is currently led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Amal blames Moammar Gaddafi, who was killed in 2011 by NATO-backed rebels during the Arab spring period, for the Imam's disappearance. The party annually commemorates Sadr's disappearance and continues to demand answers from Libya.
On 25 August 1978, Sadr, along with Sheikh Mohamad Yaacoub and Abbass Bader al-Dine, departed for Libya, where they had been invited to meet with government officials. The three men were last seen at their Tripoli hotel on Aug. 31, as they prepared to meet the Libyan leader.
Sadr is still regarded as an important political and spiritual leader by the Lebanese Shia community. His legacy grew even more after his disappearance in 1978, and he continues to be revered by the followers of both Amal and their main political ally Hezbollah.
Conflicting reports regarding Sadr's disappearance have emerged in the past without conclusive evidence.
According to Romanos, Gaddafi started his hunger strike "because he considers himself innocent from the allegations he is accused of and he is a political prisoner."A...