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| Gaddafi's son Saif 'freed' in Libya | Gaddafi's son Saif 'freed' in Libya |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, second son of the late deposed Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi, is said to have been freed under an amnesty. | Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, second son of the late deposed Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi, is said to have been freed under an amnesty. |
| Believed to have been his father's preferred successor, he had been held by a militia group in the town of Zintan for the past six years. | Believed to have been his father's preferred successor, he had been held by a militia group in the town of Zintan for the past six years. |
| The group announced on Saturday that he had been released. | The group announced on Saturday that he had been released. |
| He was sentenced to death by a court in Tripoli in 2015 but the group had refused to hand him over. | He was sentenced to death by a court in Tripoli in 2015 but the group had refused to hand him over. |
| There had been false reports about Saif al-Islam Gaddafi's release previously. | There had been false reports about Saif al-Islam Gaddafi's release previously. |
| He is also wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity during his father's unsuccessful attempts to put down the rebellion. | He is also wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity during his father's unsuccessful attempts to put down the rebellion. |
| The 44-year-old - who was controversially granted a PhD by the London School of Economics in 2008 - was captured in November 2011 after three months on the run following the end of Gaddafi's decades-long rule. | |
| He was previously known for playing a key role in building relations with the West after 2000, and had been considered the reformist face of his father's regime. | |
| But after the 2011 uprising, he found himself accused of incitement to violence and murdering protesters. Four years later, he was sentenced to death by firing squad following a trial involving 30 of Gaddafi's close associates. | |
| It does not appear that anyone from the government in Tripoli has confirmed his release, or the agreement under which it took place. | |
| However, a press release on the militia group Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Battalion's Facebook page attributed the amnesty to an act of parliament. |