Fresh images of living conditions of detained Hannibal Gaddafi reignite demands for his freedom

Recent photos of the prison cell of Hannibal Gaddafi, the imprisoned son of Libya’s dictator Moammar Gaddafi, has renewed calls for his release along with demands for better treatment.

Since 2015, Gaddafi’s fifth son has been held in detention in Lebanon. He was taken to Lebanon after being abducted by Lebanese militants in neighboring Syria. 

Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces later alleged he had a connection to the disappearance of the prominent Lebanese Shiite cleric Moussa al-Sadr, who vanished while in Libya in 1978. Hannibal Gaddafi was two years old at the time. 

According to the Associated Press, the leaked photos show a healthy-looking Gaddafi but his living quarters consist of a small, dark room with just a bed and a tiny toilet. 

“I live in misery,” he reportedly told local Al-Jadeed TV.

Lebanese authorities have confirmed the veracity of the photos of Gaddafi and the cell located at police headquarters in Beirut. 

Libya’s Justice Ministry has called on Lebanese authorities to improve his living conditions and said Gaddafi deserves to be released. Human rights groups are also calling for his release which they call a “politically motived detention”.