The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
May 16, 2011

International Criminal Court Issues Arrest Warrant for Muammar Gaddafi, Son and Intelligence Chief 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor announced today he
is seeking the arrest of Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi and two
others for crimes against humanity. Luis Moreno-Ocampo said Gaddafi, his
son Seif al-Islam, and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanusi bore the
greatest responsibility for "widespread and systematic attacks" on
civilians.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo: “The evidence shows that Muammar Gaddafi
personally ordered attacks on unarmed Libyan civilians. His forces
attacked Libyan civilians in their homes and in the public spaces. His
second eldest son, Seif al-Islam, is a de facto prime minister. And
al-Sanusi, Gaddafi’s brother-in law, is his right-hand man, the
executioner.”

This marks only the second time the ICC has sought a warrant for a
sitting head of state. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has been
indicted for crimes including genocide in Darfur. In other news from
Libya, On Sunday, Gaddafi's prime minister offered a truce in return for
an immediate NATO ceasefire, but NATO appears set to ramp up its
attacks. The head of Britain's armed forces said Sunday NATO needs to
increase the pressure on Libya. On Saturday, Libya buried 11 Muslim
clerics who were reportedly killed on Friday in a NATO air strike in the
city of Brega.



.