Russia has expressed serious concern over the killing of Saif al-Islam, the second son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the assassination and called for a full, transparent investigation to hold those responsible accountable. The exact circumstances surrounding the attack remain unclear, officials said.

Saif was reportedly murdered on February 3 when four masked men stormed his home in Zintan, located about 136 km southwest of Tripoli. According to statements from his political team, the assailants disabled security cameras during the attack in an apparent effort to hide evidence of their crime. Khaled al-Mishri, former chairman of Libya’s High Council of State, also urged an urgent and transparent inquiry into the killing.

Born in Tripoli in June 1972, Saif served as his father’s second-in-command from 2000 until Muammar Gaddafi was killed in 2011. He was placed on UN sanctions and an ICC travel ban in February 2011, and later declared wanted for alleged crimes against humanity. Saif was captured by militia forces in 2011 and sentenced to death in Tripoli in 2015, but he was released in 2017 under an amnesty law.

In recent years, Saif had lived underground in Zintan to avoid threats to his life. His announcement in 2021 of plans to run in Libya’s presidential election drew criticism from anti-Gaddafi political groups and civilians. The killing has raised renewed calls for justice and accountability, highlighting ongoing tensions in Libya’s fragile political landscape.