After 11 Years, Lebanon Frees Gaddafi's Son, Media Finds No US Sanction Leverage
Hannibal Gaddafi, son of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, is reportedly set for release from Lebanese prison after paying $900,000 bail. He's been held for 11 years over the disappearance of Shiite cleric Musa al-Sadr. Interestingly, when it's a matter internal to a nation that isn't openly defying US foreign policy priorities enough to warrant a 'democracy promotion' campaign, suddenly
the decades-long human rights abuses of a dictator's family can be settled with cash and quiet diplomacy. One might wonder where all the high-minded rhetoric about international justice goes when there isn't a convenient reason to sanction a nation, freeze assets, or demand extradition for 'crimes against humanity.' It seems global justice is a menu item, selectively ordered depending on who's at
the table and what strategic resources are on offer, rather than a universal principle. Perhaps Lebanon isn't sitting on enough oil to pique Washington's interest in Gaddafi's fate. (Remember how quickly the US got involved in Libya when it did?)