Michel Cousins TRIPOLI – Khamis Gaddafi, the youngest son of former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, was discovered and arrested in Bani Walid Saturday but died while being taken to Misrata. Confirmation of his arrest and subsequent death was announced on TV Saturday evening by the General National Congress spokesman Omar Hmaidan. According to Hmaidan, Khamis was wounded when he and army forces were involved in a shoot-out in Bani Walid. He was captured by Misratan forces and taken to Misrata but died en route. Up until Saturday it had been generally believed that Khamis had been killed on August 29 last year during a NATO airstrike. However, this was never confirmed, resulting in continuing rumors that he was still alive and somewhere in Libya. He was reported to have been seen in Bani Walid and in Tarhouna. Shortly after his supposed death, pro-Gaddafi media announced that he was dead. But this is now seen as deliberate disinformation, a practice the regime cultivated. In 1986 it was announced that Gaddafi's adopted daughter Hana was killed in the US airstrike on Bab Al-Azizya but she was subsequently seen many times in Libya. Likewise, Gaddafi's son Saif Al-Arab was reported killed in a NATO raid on Bab Al-Azizya last year, but this was widely viewed as untrue. Khamis's death occurs exactly a year after that of his father, the dictator who was captured, then killed, in Sirte. Given the mystery and conspiracy theories that have arisen about Gaddafi's death, the fact that, like him, Khamis was captured by Misratan forces and then died will certainly trigger a mass of allegations. Few in Libya were worried about that Saturday night. Even before the news was confirmed, Tripoli broke out into spontaneous party mood as rumors of his capture then death spread. On the streets there was a rising cacophony of car horns blasting away as the news spread, with almost every other vehicle flashing indicator lights. Guns were fired into the air in celebration. By mid evening, traffic in many parts of the city had ground to a halt as more and more people took to their vehicles to drive round celebrating. Fireworks burst over Fashloom, center of so much opposition to the regime last year, and the main road into it was closed. In Gargaresh, young men could be seen dancing in the streets between the oncoming traffic. In Dahra, at one point, a massive roar from a nearby but unseen crowd sounded as if the winning goal in a football match had just been scored. As for the many checkpoints set up during the day in case pro-Gaddafi elements tried to mount an attack to mark the anniversary, they became celebration points, with the soldiers manning them dancing, giving victory signs and merrily waving the traffic on. Not since Saif Al-Islam's capture last year, has the city been in such carnival mood. – Libya Herald
