Senussi Denies Involvement in Killing of ‘February 17’ Protesters in Libya 

Abdullah al-Senussi, former head of military intelligence under late Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi. (Reuters file photo)
Abdullah al-Senussi, former head of military intelligence under late Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi. (Reuters file photo)
TT

Senussi Denies Involvement in Killing of ‘February 17’ Protesters in Libya 

Abdullah al-Senussi, former head of military intelligence under late Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi. (Reuters file photo)
Abdullah al-Senussi, former head of military intelligence under late Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi. (Reuters file photo)

Abdullah al-Senussi, former head of military intelligence under late Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi, denied on Monday charges that he was involved in the killing and quelling of protests during the February 17, 2011 revolution that toppled Gaddafi.

Senussi appeared before an appellate court in the capital Tripoli where “he faced over 25 charges, including the killing of protesters,” said his lawyer Ahmad Nashad.

Nashad told Asharq Al-Awsat that Senussi denied all the charges during the hearing that lasted four and a half hours.

The court listened to Senussi’s defense and later, he recalled the conditions of his arrest and current health situation, he added.

Senussi, 73, was seen as one of the most powerful figures in the Gaddafi regime. He was married to Gaddafi's sister-in-law and part of his inner circle.

Senussi’s court appearance had been delayed 13 times because of the opposition of the Special Deterrence Force militia. He has been held in Mitiga prison in Tripoli.

His supporters believe he is being held “hostage”, claiming his jailors worry that he will gain popular support as soon as he is released from prison.

Nashad said the hearing was adjourned to February 5 when it will listen to the defense of the remaining accused.

Senussi was sentenced to death in 2015 after he was accused of quelling the February 17 protests. In 2019, he was acquitted by a Tripoli court, but the supreme court overruled the decision and the case is being handled by another court.

Senussi’s Magarha tribe said it was optimistic after Monday’s court appearance.

Sheikh Haroun Arhouma, a tribal leader, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Senussi has heart problems and is suffering from liver cancer.

“We will hold Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah's government responsible for any harm that may befall him,” he warned.

Dbeibah is head of the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity (GNU).

“We will await the outcome of next week’s court session. We will welcome any good news, but we will take action if the outcome does not please us,” said Sheikh Haroun without elaborating.

“We control the oil and gas wells, as well as the water pipelines in the South. We will make our response heard. The western regions don’t boast oil or war,” he remarked.



One Killed in Israeli Drone Strike in South Lebanon

Lebanese security forces set up a checkpoint on the road leading to the scene of an Israeli airstrike in Baawerta (Baaouerta), near the coastal town of Damour, about 20 kilometres south of Beirut, on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
Lebanese security forces set up a checkpoint on the road leading to the scene of an Israeli airstrike in Baawerta (Baaouerta), near the coastal town of Damour, about 20 kilometres south of Beirut, on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
TT

One Killed in Israeli Drone Strike in South Lebanon

Lebanese security forces set up a checkpoint on the road leading to the scene of an Israeli airstrike in Baawerta (Baaouerta), near the coastal town of Damour, about 20 kilometres south of Beirut, on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
Lebanese security forces set up a checkpoint on the road leading to the scene of an Israeli airstrike in Baawerta (Baaouerta), near the coastal town of Damour, about 20 kilometres south of Beirut, on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)

An Israeli drone strike on a Lebanese border town on Sunday killed one person, Lebanon's health ministry said.

The ministry reported in a statement "one martyr" from "the drone strike launched by the Israeli enemy on the town of Halta,” in southern Lebanon.

Local media said the man was killed while working on his chicken farm.

Israel has continued to carry out regular strikes in Lebanon despite the November truce that sought to halt more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war.

A pair of Israeli strikes on Tuesday killed a leader of Jamaa Islamiya in Baawerta, on the coast south of Beirut, and one person who Israel said was a local Hezbollah commander in south Lebanon's Tyre district.