Libya: Saif Gaddafi Cleared to Run for President
The son of Libya’s longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi has been given the go-ahead to run in the country’s upcoming presidential election, his lawyer said.
Last week, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi was disqualified for what Libyan authorities said were war crimes committed during the uprising against his father more than 10 years ago.
His lawyer, Khaled al-Zaydi told Al Jazeera in an interview that the court in Sebha accepted his client’s appeal, lodged earlier in the day, and that he would therefore be reinstated in the presidential election scheduled to take part later this month.
In disqualifying Gaddafi, Libya’s electoral commission had pointed to articles of the electoral law stipulating that candidates “must not have been sentenced for a dishonourable crime” and must present a clean criminal record.
Western officials have talked up a United Nations-led peace process and insist on “inclusive” and “credible” elections starting on December 24 in the North African country, despite serious disputes over how they should be held, and their credibility.