On Monday, November 3, 2025, a five-member Libyan delegation landed in Beirut, Lebanon, to negotiate the possible release of Hannibal Gadhafi, the son of the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Hannibal Gadhafi has spent the last decade in a Lebanese prison, detained since 2015 without trial—a situation that has drawn increasing scrutiny from international human rights advocates and strained the already fraught relationship between Libya and Lebanon.
The delegation’s visit, as reported by the Associated Press and corroborated by UNN, marked a significant step forward after years of stalemate. The Libyan officials met with several high-ranking Lebanese judicial figures, including prosecutor Jamal Hajar, to discuss the fate of Hannibal Gadhafi. The talks focused on two major points: sharply reducing the $11 million bail required for Gadhafi’s release and lifting the travel ban that has kept him confined to Lebanon. According to officials familiar with the negotiations, both sides agreed to work toward these goals, raising hopes for a breakthrough in a case that has become a diplomatic flashpoint.
Hannibal Gadhafi’s predicament is rooted in Lebanon’s long-standing quest for answers about the fate of Shiite cleric Moussa al-Sadr, who vanished in Libya during a 1978 visit. Lebanese authorities accuse Gadhafi of withholding information about al-Sadr’s disappearance, despite the fact that Hannibal was less than three years old at the time. This detail has fueled criticism from human rights organizations, who argue that Gadhafi’s continued detention without trial is neither just nor reasonable.
Last month, a Lebanese judge ordered Hannibal Gadhafi’s release on $11 million bail but simultaneously imposed a travel ban, preventing him from leaving the country. Gadhafi’s lawyers quickly responded that their client could not afford such a sum and petitioned for permission for him to leave Lebanon. During Monday’s talks, the Libyan delegation formally submitted a detailed report on the investigation into al-Sadr’s disappearance, hoping to address Lebanese concerns and demonstrate Tripoli’s willingness to cooperate.
Libya had already made an official request for Gadhafi’s release in 2023, citing his deteriorating health following a hunger strike he staged to protest his prolonged detention without trial. The hunger strike brought renewed attention to the case and galvanized advocacy efforts by organizations like Hostage Aid Worldwide. The Washington-based group has long campaigned for Gadhafi’s release, raising alarms about the lack of transparent due process and urging Lebanon to adhere to international standards against wrongful detention.
In recent weeks, Hostage Aid Worldwide’s representatives have held discussions with senior Lebanese officials, pushing for compliance with global human rights norms. A person familiar with the group’s efforts told the Associated Press that both the bail and travel ban are expected to be lifted soon, paving the way for Hannibal Gadhafi to leave Lebanon for Qatar, where he is expected to settle. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, emphasized that the organization has also been working closely with the Badreddine family in the United States to seek closure in the al-Sadr case.
The Libyan delegation’s visit to Beirut included a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. According to a statement issued by Aoun’s office and reported by AP and UNN, the president told the Libyan officials that "all obstacles should be removed in order to restore relations and boost cooperation between Lebanon and Libya." The Libyan side echoed this sentiment, expressing Tripoli’s desire to "reactivate relations with Beirut and to find solutions for pending matters between the two countries." The diplomatic overtures suggest that both nations see the Gadhafi case as a stumbling block to broader engagement.
Hannibal Gadhafi’s journey to this point has been marked by upheaval and tragedy. Following the 2011 uprising that toppled his father’s regime and ended four decades of Gadhafi family rule in Libya, Hannibal fled with his mother and other relatives to Algeria. Later, he moved to Syria, where he was granted political asylum and lived with his Lebanese wife, Aline Skaf, and their children. That period of exile ended abruptly in 2015, when Lebanese militants abducted him in Syria and brought him to Lebanon, demanding information about al-Sadr. Lebanese police announced they had seized Gadhafi in the city of Baalbek, after which he was transferred to a Beirut jail, where he has remained ever since.
The disappearance of Moussa al-Sadr remains one of the most persistent mysteries in Lebanese history. Al-Sadr, who vanished along with his companions Abbas Badreddine and Mohammed Yacoub, was the founder of a Shiite political and military group that played a significant role in Lebanon’s civil war, a conflict that began in 1975 and pitted Muslims against Christians. The cleric’s family continues to believe he may still be alive in a Libyan prison, though most Lebanese assume he is dead. He would be 96 years old today.
For many in Lebanon, the al-Sadr case is a national wound that has never healed. The case has complicated Lebanon’s relations with successive Libyan governments, especially after the fall of Moammar Gadhafi, who was killed by opposition fighters in 2011 as Libya descended into civil war. Hannibal Gadhafi’s detention, while deeply symbolic for some Lebanese factions, has increasingly been criticized as unjust, given his age at the time of al-Sadr’s disappearance and the lack of formal charges or trial.
Hostage Aid Worldwide has not been alone in its advocacy. International human rights groups and legal experts have echoed concerns about Gadhafi’s detention, arguing that the case undermines Lebanon’s commitment to the rule of law. "Gadhafi is being held without due process," the organization stated, calling on Beirut to honor international human rights standards and protections against wrongful detention. The group’s persistent efforts, coupled with diplomatic pressure from Tripoli, appear to have finally nudged the Lebanese judiciary toward a more conciliatory stance.
If the bail and travel ban are indeed lifted, as anticipated, Hannibal Gadhafi’s release could mark a turning point in both his personal saga and the broader relationship between Libya and Lebanon. For now, all eyes are on Beirut’s judicial system as it weighs the next steps in a case that has spanned continents, regimes, and generations. The coming weeks will reveal whether years of advocacy, negotiation, and diplomatic maneuvering will finally bring closure to one of the Middle East’s most tangled legal and political dramas.
