Gaddafi Family to File War Crimes Complaint Against NATO

Libyan leader of the revolution Muammar Gaddafi hosting the 2010 Arab League Summit in Tripoli., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

Lawyer: Gadhafi family to file war crimes complaint against NATO

October 27, 2011
By the CNN Wire Staff

Questions surround the death of Moammar Gadhafi, who eluded forces loyal to the National Transitional Council for months.The family of deceased Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi will file a war crimes complaint against NATO with the International Criminal Court, a lawyer representing the family said Thursday.

Members of the family believe NATO's actions led to Gadhafi's death last week, said Marcel Ceccaldi.

"All of the events that have taken place since February 2011 and the murder of Gadhafi, all of this means we are totally in our right to call upon the International Criminal Court," Ceccaldi, a French attorney, said.

NATO responded that it "conducts its operation in strict conformity with the relevant U.N. Security Council resolutions." In a statement Thursday, a NATO official said, "At no time during Operation Unified Protector has NATO targeted specific individuals."

The ICC had previously issued a warrant for Gadhafi's arrest, accusing him of crimes against humanity.

The ICC still has warrants for the arrest of Gadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, and his brother-in-law Abdullah al-Sanussi.

He died from a shot in the head, officials said, but the circumstances surrounding the shot remain unclear.

The United States said it supports an independent investigation, as called for by the United Nations and by Libya's new leadership.

Ceccaldi said the Gadhafi family's complaint will be filed in the coming days.

"Now we will wait and see if the ICC is a judicial system which is independent and impartial," he added.

Lt. Gen. Charles Bouchard, commander of the NATO military operation, said earlier this week that NATO "did not get involved in anything beyond what was our legal mandate and we remain well within the mandate assigned to us by the North Atlantic Council."

While Gadhafi survived an airstrike in the Sirte area shortly before he died, Bouchard said NATO did not know the former Libyan leader was in the convoy.

"We saw a convoy, and in fact we had no idea that Gadhafi was on board," Bouchard said. Some vehicles in the convoy were carrying weaponry, and seemed to present a potential threat to the population, he said.

The news came as the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Thursday to end NATO's military operations in Libya.