Sayyid Mohammed Gaddaf al-Dam (25 February 1948 – 16 March 2023) was a Libyan brigadier general and a cousin of late Libyan leader

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...

and older brother of Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam. He was part of Gaddafi's inner circle.

Biography

Early life and career

Gaddaf al-Dam was born in Sirte on 25 February 1948. He was one of the Free Officers who participated in the

1969 Libyan coup d'état The 1969 Libyan revolution, also known as the al-Fateh Revolution or 1 September Revolution, was a coup d'état and revolution carried out by the Free Officers Movement (Libya), Free Officers Movement, a group of Arab nationalism, Arab nationali ...

that brought his cousin

to power. In 1984, he was described as a "shadowy but key figure" and the second most powerful man in Libya according to US intelligence. He was accused of being involved in extrajudicial assassinations of Gaddafi's opponents in Europe as well as arms procurement. In March 1984, Gaddaf al-Dam was injured by a car bomb and may have become disabled. Foreign Minister Ali Treki dismissed the car bomb allegation and claimed that Gaddaf al-Dam had merely been injured in a car accident.

Libyan Civil War and capture

Gaddaf al-Dam was placed under sanctions due to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1970 on 26 February 2011. He was captured in the Battle of Sirte in October 2011. He was acquitted by a court in Misrata of "exploiting state armed forces for political aims" in September 2015 and all other charges against him were dropped.

Release and death

Allegedly ill with cancer, Gaddaf al-Dam was stretched onto a private plane and flown to La Braq Airport en route to

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

a fortnight after his release. In 2017, he played a role in securing the release of a number of Gaddafi-era figures and announced his support for Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to represent Gaddafi loyalists in national reconciliation efforts. He died in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, Egypt on 16 March 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaddaf al-Dam, Sayyid 1948 births 2023 deaths Sayyid Gaddaf al-Dam Libyan generals People of the Libyan civil war (2011) People from Sirte Libyan prisoners of war Brigadier generals 21st-century military personnel 20th-century military personnel