Abdul-Jalil upset over manner of Gaddafi’s death – NTC official

Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat – Controversy continues to surround Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, even after death. However the controversy today is no longer regarding his outlandish behavior or wardrobe, but rather the circumstances surrounding his death, and where he will be buried.  At the time of publication, the precise circumstances surrounding the death of the former Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi remains unclear, whilst his body – alongside that of his son Mutassim – is being held in an old meat store in Misrata.

A copy of Muammar Gaddafi’s death certificate, obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, reveals that he was shot in the head and chest.  The death certificate also claims that Gaddafi’s body exhibited signs that he underwent 3 surgical procedures prior to his death.

The death certificate listed the former Libyan leader’s full name as: Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi, and was dated 20/10/2011.  As for cause of death, the death certificate recorded that Gaddafi’s death had occurred outside of the Misrata hospital, as a result of “gun-shot wounds to the central chest region and left-side of the head.”  The death certificate was signed by Dr. Majdi Hassan.

Video clips purporting to show the last moments of Gaddafi’s life have also been unearthed and widely broadcast in the Arab and international media.  In one video clip, Gaddafi appears to tell the Libyan rebels in Arabic “what you are doing is haram [religiously impermissible]” to which one Libyan rebel responds by pointing his gun at Gaddafi’s head and telling him “you don’t know the difference between right and wrong!”

The video clips – taken on the camera phones of Libyan rebels – show a bloodied but alive Colonel Gaddafi remonstrating with the Libyan rebels who captured him, before he is – still alive – dragged onto the hood of a pickup truck.  Another video clip appears to show Gaddafi being removed from the hood of the same pickup truck, and it is clear that he was alive at this time.  However in the next images of Gaddafi, he is dead.

Libyan rebels interviewed by the international media following Gaddafi’s death claim that Gaddafi was found injured and hiding in a sewage tunnel after a convoy of cars fleeing Sirte was targeted by NATO air strikes.  The Libyan rebels claim that Gaddafi – armed with a gold-plated pistol and another platinum revolver – did not try to resist capture at this point.  Confronted by the baying mob, Gaddafi is reported to have said “what is happening?  What is happening?  My children, will you kill me?  My sons, I am Gaddafi…the leader…what are you doing?”

It is not known, at this time, whether he died of his wounds – he was bleeding profusely from the left side of his head when captured – or whether he was executed by the Libyan rebels, or indeed whether he was killed in crossfire between Libyan rebels and pro-Gaddafi fighters after capture, as the Libyan National Transitional Council [NTC] has claimed.

To make matters even more unclear, one Libyan rebel present during Gaddafi’s capture – interviewed by the international media – claimed that the former Libyan leader was killed by one of his men, seeking to spare him further humiliation.

In one video clip, the Libyan fighters surrounding Gaddafi chant “God is great…God is great” and fire into the air in triumph, whilst other Libyan rebels can be heard shouting “don’t kill him, we need him alive.”

At one point, the former Libyan leader keels over and a Libyan rebel fighter kicks him and scuffs dirt over his already blood-stained clothing.  The Libyan rebels can also be heard mocking the former Libyan leader, calling him a “rat” in reference to his famous speech in which he called the Libyan protesters “cats”, “rats”, and “cockroaches.”  Gaddafi is also seen putting his left hand up to his head wound and then looking at his bloody fingers with a confused expression.

The last images and video clips show Gaddafi’s corpse being rolled around on the ground as rebels pull off his shirt.

An NTC official, speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the condition of anonymity, revealed that NTC chairman Mustafa Abdul-Jalil was dissatisfied with the manner in which the former Libyan leader died.  Jalil reportedly said that the Libyan people had missed a historic opportunity to capture Gaddafi alive and try him for his crimes.

The NTC official told Asharq Al-Awsat “it was possible to avoid all that happened [regarding Gaddafi’s death]” adding “imagine if we had captured Gaddafi alive and presented him to the world in the dock, this would have been a historic image that would have aroused the interest of everybody around the word…without controversy.”

He also revealed that NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdul-Jalil was angry that some Libyan rebel leaders sought to exploit Gaddafi’s death, confirming and commenting on this without waiting for the official NTC response.

The NTC source said “Abdul Jalil and the NTC members were upset by the deliberate appearance of Abdelhakim Belhadj, commander of the Tripoli Military Council, to announce the death of Gaddafi.”  He added “the manner in which Gaddafi was killed harmed the NTC, and this is something that most NTC members have said.”

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the condition of anonymity, the NTC official also stressed that “it is clear that the NTC members have been placed in an awkward position” adding that “as you can see, they are now appearing on [Arab] satellite television news channels defending and trying to justify how Gaddafi was killed.”

As for the apparent divisions within the ranks of the Libyan rebels, particularly between the Tripoli-based NTC and other Libyan rebel factions, Asharq Al-Awsat has learnt that NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdul-Jalil may seek to address this issue, and will ask the Libyan rebel factions to obey the instructions of the NTC and begin to surrender their arms, in conjunction with the establishment of a modern Libyan army.