Tripoli, 18 January:
General Saqr Adam Geroushi, who was suspended last week by the Ministry of Defence as head of the Libyan . . .[restrict]Air Force following his disbarment by the Integrity Commission, is now facing charges in a separate case in a military court.
According to the Ministry of Defence’s Facebook page, Ibrahim Al-Awami, the military prosecution spokesman, said: “The military prosecutor brought ten charges against Geroushi, including cases of theft and fraud.”
The case has been postponed for a month following a request from the defence lawyers, who said they needed more time to consider the charges and evidence against their client.
The Integrity Commission disbarred Geroushi on 4 January, although he is appealing the decision in court. The Ministry of Defence announced on Sunday that Geroushi would be replaced temporarily, pending the outcome of this appeal.
Geroushi’s replacement, whose name has not yet been announced, was understood to be taking the job short term, since the appeal was expected to be fast-tracked. However, these new charges are likely to further compound Geroushi’s problems.
A new military prosecutor, Ramadan Mohamed Zarouq, was sworn in on Sunday. [/restrict]
