Saif al-Islam Gaddafi says was involved in Libyan financing of Sarkozy's election

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, revealed to a French news agency that he personally participated in providing $5 million in cash to then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy to fund his 2007 presidential campaign. In exchange, Sarkozy would grant Libya political and economic benefits. This allegation comes as Sarkozy and 11 others are on trial in a Paris court for allegedly illegally accepting Libyan campaign funds, an accusation also involving the rehabilitation of Gaddafi's reputation on the international stage.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi sent a two-page statement to Radio France Internationale (RFI) detailing his account of events. Although he has made similar statements on the matter in recent years, this is the first time Gaddafi has spoken to the media about the Sarkozy affair since 2011. Gaddafi stated that Sarkozy initially "received $2.5 million from Libya to fund his campaign" during the 2007 presidential election, in return for which Sarkozy would "reach agreements and implement projects favorable to Libya." At the time, Sarkozy was serving as France's Minister of the Interior.

The 52-year-old Libyan added that a second cash payment of $2.5 million was also handed over to Sarkozy, without specifying the exact time of delivery. According to Gaddafi, the Libyan authorities expected in return that Sarkozy would end a legal case concerning the September 19, 1989, attack on UTA Flight 772, which killed 170 people, including 54 French citizens. Six Libyans, including Muammar Gaddafi's brother-in-law and former Libyan military intelligence chief, Abdullah Senussi, were accused of involvement in the attack.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi also stated that the second payment was also supposed to prompt the removal of the six Libyans, including Senussi, from Interpol's wanted list. Gaddafi added that he personally oversaw the transfer of the cash, which he said was given by Muammar's former finance minister, Bashir Saleh, to Sarkozy's then-chief of staff, Claude Guéant. He said that Guéant had difficulty closing the suitcase filled with dollars and had to step on it to close it, which "made everyone present laugh." Guéant denies all allegations and is also among those on trial alongside Sarkozy. If convicted, Sarkozy, Guéant, and others could face up to 10 years in prison.

Gaddafi also revealed that in 2005, during a visit to Libya, Sarkozy personally contacted Senussi and promised to remove him from Interpol's list once elected president. Gaddafi also said that phone recordings of this conversation were in Senussi's possession, but French authorities have never been able to obtain them. Senussi is also accused of masterminding the 1988 attack on a US flight over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 270 people, and is currently being held in a prison in Tripoli. Shortly after becoming President of France, Sarkozy invited Muammar Gaddafi for a state visit to France, the first time a Western leader had welcomed the Libyan leader on a formal state visit since relations were frozen in the 1980s over alleged involvement in terrorism.

Four years later, Sarkozy and British Prime Minister David Cameron led a NATO-led airstrike on Libya, helping rebel forces overthrow Gaddafi's four-decade rule. The dictator was captured and killed by rebels in October 2011. Saif al-Islam Gaddafi added that since the incident, the former French president has pressured him through intermediaries to change his testimony on the matter. He said that in return, he was promised support in his case at the International Criminal Court. He is wanted by the ICC for alleged crimes against humanity committed during his father's rule.

Sarkozy denies all allegations of wrongdoing. His lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, told RFI that Gaddafi's claims were "not only fictional but also highly speculative." Ingrain stated, "These allegations come from a person who, for ten years, since the start of the investigation, has been making allegations without any basis, without any proof. For ten years, he has been promising to submit documents that could substantiate these allegations. So far, no documents have been submitted to the proceedings. Therefore, for me, these allegations are pure fictional boasting, without any importance." Ingrain described Gaddafi's assertions as an attempt at "revenge" against Sarkozy for overthrowing his father's long rule in the 2011 NATO airstrikes.

The lawyer stated that the claims about Senussi are false because French authorities have no control over international arrest warrants. The three-month trial of Sarkozy and 11 others is investigating whether a "corruption pact" existed between the French leader and the Libyan government. This follows a 10-year anti-corruption investigation by French authorities into the matter. The former French head of state is appearing in court with a criminal record for the first time, after being definitively sentenced to a year of wearing an electronic tag in a corruption case.