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Tripoli, 1 June:
A Libyan court has decided to reopen investigations into the assassination of Major-General Abdel-Fattah Younis, the former Chief of . . .[restrict]Staff who was murdered with two of his colleagues on 28 July last year.
According to the prosecution, the reason for the decision, taken on Wednesday, is that the main defendant in the case has alleged that members of the NTC were involved in the assassination but had failed to provide any evidence. Because the defendant had condemned the NTC and accused prominent figures of the NTC, the court had requested to have them all reinvestigated, the prosecutor said.
Seventeen people, mostly soldiers, have been indicted for the killing of Younis, but only one is in custody, Salem Obeidi. He made his first appearance in a military court in Benghazi on 25 April. The case has been adjourned several times.
Younis was killed after being summoned by the NTC from Brega to Benghazi for questioning. However, there have been persistent conflicting accounts of what actually happened. One account says he was recalled because of allegations that he was still in contact with the Qaddafi regime, another says he was being investigated for financial irregularities. NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdul Jalil claimed the involvement of pro-Qaddafi forces in the assassination, others said he was killed alternatively by Islamists, by individuals out for revenge or by supporters of the revolution who suspected him of being a traitor.
His son Mutasim Abdel-Fatah claimed that the reopening of the investigations into his father’s murder could reveal more serious facts.
He added that many names had been mentioned in court, including that of the NTC chairman, and that they were being investigated along with those who carried out, masterminded and planned the attack. He claimed that the NTC was involved in the assassination and that it had a hidden agenda.
The NTC stated last month that it knows the identity of the killers, but was reluctant to disclose their identity for fear harming the revolution. This seemingly suggests that there are those in positions of power and influence at present who have something to hide. [/restrict]
