Reports: Moussa Sadr Executed by Defected Group, Years after Gadhafi’s Order
A source revealed on Sunday that Libyan slain dictator Moammar Gadhafi's former spy chief Abdullah al-Senussi confessed that revered spiritual leader Moussa al-Sadr was not hanged right after Gadhafi’s order in late August 1978.
“Al-Sadr was held captive for two or three years at the headquarters of the Libyan military intelligence along with his two companions,” the source said quoting Senussi.
It added: “He was later handed over to a defected group lead by Palestinian national Sabri al-Banna who executed the death penalty order”.
“Al-Sadr was buried at the same location where this group resided”.
Senussi, who is according to the same source cooperating well with the investigators, expressed that Gadhafi “felt a pressure to hang the Lebanese cleric after campaigns accused him of hiding al-Sadr”.
“Staged attempts to make Gadhafi look like he left Libya to Rome by sending a lookalike did not succeed,” Senussi said, elaborating that this encouraged the Libyan dictator to order the killing of the three men.
Imam Sadr was invited to Tripoli by Gadhafi and was trying to negotiate an end to the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990), in which Palestinian factions were involved.
Gadhafi was believed to be shipping weapons to the Palestinians and other groups and Sadr, according to reports, was hoping to convince the Libyan leader to refrain from stoking the unrest in Lebanon.
But his visit to Tripoli along with his two aides took a sour turn after he got into a heated argument with Gadhafi who ordered that the three men be "taken away," according to an indictment against the slain Libyan leader issued by Lebanese authorities.
Gadhafi’s regime had stated that the three left Tripoli to Italy, which after conducting an investigation into the case denied the claims.
In 2004, the passports of Sadr and Yacoub were found in a hotel in Rome.
In August 2008, Lebanon issued arrest warrants against Gadhafi and some of his aides, accusing them of kidnapping Sadr and his companions.
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