ALGIERS – Saadi Qadhafi, son of the former Libyan leader, has asked Interpol, via his lawyer, to revoke a request for his arrest on the grounds that Libya's new rulers are not able to give him a fair trial.
Saadi, a businessman and former professional footballer, is in Niger after escaping across the border from Libya when National Transitional Council (NTC) forces captured the capital Tripoli in August.
Interpol has issued a "red notice" requesting that member states arrest Saadi with a view to extradition if they find him on their territory.
In a letter sent to the Interpol Secretary General, Saadi's lawyer Nick Kaufman said the killings last month of Muammar Qadhafi and another son, Mo'tassim, made any extradition to Libya unsafe.
There is little doubt that "my client would face a similar brutal fate if surrendered back to Libya pursuant to the red notice," Kaufman said in the letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters.
"The issue of the red notice is … purely a political decision which serves to promote the NTC's ongoing purge of my client and his family," the letter said.
"I would kindly request your urgent decision to revoke the red notice which has been issued for the provisional arrest of my client," it said.
Muammar Qadhafi's other offspring have either been killed, fled the country or gone into hiding since the revolt against his rule began in February.
Two sons, Khamis and Saif al-Arab, were killed earlier in the conflict, Mo'tassim was killed after he was captured at the same time as his father last month, while Mohammed, Hannibal and daughter Aisha are in neighboring Algeria.
The only son still unaccounted for is Saif al-Islam, who is believed to be deep in the Libyan desert. The International Criminal Court says it has been in indirect contact with Saif al-Islam to discuss him giving himself up.
