Seif al-Islam, Gaddafi Son, Named Second-In-Command

AFP:

TRIPOLI (AFP) Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi has presented his son Seif al-Islam as head of state with powers second only to those of the long-ruling colonel, an online newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Read the whole story: AFP

Comments

[Paulo1]

Ah Monarchy evolves. They no longer take the title of King but the dynasties still hold power.

So very very modern.

Oh, and congratulations young man, lets see how long you manage to avoid the fate of tyrants.

[duxguts]

Libya has something that congress doesn't have......­.....A tent.

[CigarGod]

LOL
Have a cigar.

[Stonekhol]

This is the modern trend in many an African country to have these long serving presidents be succeeded by their sons.

Omar Bong of Gabon after 42 years as president, left his son as president-­in-waiting and Ali was confirmed in the rigged elections.

Now, Moamer Qaddafi who came to power in '69 after almost forty years has prepared the crown for his son Saif.

Here's my prediction for others who will follow this approach:
1) Egypt: Mubarak's son is president in waiting
2) Equatorial Guinea: Obiang Nguema's son is next in line
3) Cameroon: Paul Biya's son is crown in waiting
4) Angola: Dos Santos...
5) ...etc

[Klimb]

6) Uganda: Museveni's son is waiting
7) etc

[Rog49Thomas]

I'll bet the poor Pharaoh of Egypt is having an uneasy night as Gamal expresses his disappointment that Saif got ahead of him.

[Klimb]

You mean Libya, right?

[Rog49Thomas]

Nope I mean Egypt.

The Pharaoh of Egypt is trying to position his son Gamal to succeed him, much like Brother Moammar is doing.

At this point, Saif is ahead of Gamal.

[Rog49Thomas]

I suppose this is an improvement.

From a madman to the son of a madman as ruler.

[Ventoi]

He looks well-behaved and thoughtful (thoughtful meaning he considers details and possible outcomes before acting...a­nd does so himself)..­.

that might be okay for the world

[adamnb]

He is not his father, but instead is a thoughtful, intellectual who has been known to work for peace while his father always courted chaos. He was in a lot of trouble with the Arab world for proposing a one state solution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. At the time, he volunteered to go to Israel and be the first to recognize it. He is also known to be the principal architect for Libya's settlement of claims over the Lockerbee tragedy. He also helped negotiate settlement with the European union and the US that led to the dropping of sanctions. Most important, he was key to Khaddafi relinquishing his quest for nuclear weapons in exchange for international recognition of Lybia and a return to normalized relationships. He's also known to have intervened for the release of the Bulgarian nurses who were who were imprisoned and held for years on false charges. Strangely enough, he has never appeared to be politically ambitious. He would be a vast improvement over his father.

[alexa07]

Interesting & thoughtful comment, adamnb. The possibility of the one-state solution (it is evolving demographically anyway & most likely will be the eventual outcome) is never discussed in the mainstream media in the USA. Seif al-Islam's advocacy for the one state in Palestine is significant.