Lebanese Court Releases Hannibal Gaddafi on $11 Million Bail After Nearly Decade Detention

Hannibal Gaddafi, son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, has been ordered released on $11 million bail by a Lebanese court after nearly a decade of pretrial detention related to accusations of withholding information about the 1978 disappearance of Lebanese Shiite cleric Musa al-Sadr. Gaddafi, who was about two years old at the time of Sadr's disappearance, has been held since 2015 after being kidnapped from Syria and transferred to Lebanon, though he has never faced trial. His lawyers argue the bail amount is unrealistic given Gaddafi's frozen assets under international sanctions and plan to contest the decision. Human Rights Watch and legal advocates have criticized his prolonged detention as arbitrary and unjustified, highlighting his health issues and claims of mistreatment. The case remains controversial, with Lebanon blaming the disappearance on Muammar Gaddafi and ongoing tensions affecting cooperation with Libyan authorities. Hannibal Gaddafi's release is also conditioned on travel restrictions and unresolved questions concerning the fate of Musa al-Sadr.