Abu Anas al-Libi | |
|---|---|
| Born | Nazih Abdul-Hamed Nabih al-Ruqai'i 1964[1] |
| Died | 2 January 2015 (aged 50) New York City, United States |
| Other names | Nazih al Raghie, Anas al Sebai, Nazih Abdul Hamed Al-Raghie |
| Children | 4 |
Nazih Abdul-Hamed Nabih al-Ruqai'i,[name 1] known by the aliasAbu Anas al-Libi[2] (/ˈɑːbuːˈɑːnɑːsɑːlˈliːbi/ ⓘAH-booAH-nahs ahlLEE-bee;Arabic:ابو أنس الليبي Libyan pronunciation:[ˈæbuˈʔænæsəlˈliːbi]; 1964 – 2 January 2015), was aLibyan under indictment[3] in the United States for his part in the1998 United States embassy bombings. He worked as a computer specialist foral-Qaeda.[4] He was an ethnic Libyan, born inTripoli.[5]
His aliases in the indictment areNazih al Raghie andAnas al Sebai. In theFBI andUnited States State Department wanted posters,[1][6] another variant of his name is transliteratedNazih Abdul Hamed Al-Raghie.
The indictment accused al-Libi of surveillance of potentialBritish,French, andIsraeli targets inNairobi, in addition to the American embassy in that city, as part of a conspiracy byal-Qaeda andEgyptian Islamic Jihad.
Al-Libi was believed to have been tied toal-Qaeda since its 1994 roots inSudan.[7] In 1995, al-Libi was grantedpolitical asylum in theUnited Kingdom, after a failed Al-Qaeda plot to assassinateHosni Mubarak, then president ofEgypt. An Egyptian request for extradition was declined on the grounds that al-Libi would not receive a fair trial. In 1996, MI6 allegedly paid aLibyan Al-Qaeda cell to killColonel Gaddafi. Al-Libi would have been allowed to stay in return for aiding the alleged plot, which was unsuccessful.
In 1999, al-Libi was arrested byScotland Yard and interrogated. However, he was released because he had cleared his hard drive and no evidence could be found to hold him. He evaded a team that was sent to follow him and fled toAfghanistan. His flat inManchester, where he was a student, was searched by police, who discovered a 180-page handwritten manual, translated from Arabic to English, which became known as theManchester Manual.[8]
Al-Libi spokeArabic andEnglish. He had a scar on the left side of his face.[1] Because he was tall and bore a passing resemblance toOsama bin Laden, he was often used as adecoy when Bin Laden traveled.[7]
In January 2002, news reports stated that al-Libi had been captured by American forces inAfghanistan.[9] In March 2002, it was reported that he had been arrested by theSudanese government and was being held in a prison inKhartoum.[10] U.S. officials soon denied those reports[11] and al-Libi was still sought.[1]
Al-Libi had been on the USA's list ofMost Wanted Terrorists since its inception on 10 October 2001. TheUnited States Department of State, through theRewards for Justice Program, offered up toUS$5,000,000 (formerly $25,000,000) for information about the location of Abu Anas al-Libi.[12]
In February 2007, aHuman Rights Watch document claimed that al-Libi and others "may have once been held" in secret detention by theCIA.[13]
On 7 June 2007, al-Libi, who remained on theFBI Most Wanted Terrorists list, was listed as a possible CIA "secret prisoner" byAmnesty International, without providing details or evidence.[14]
In September 2012,CNN reported that al-Libi returned toLibya after being imprisoned inIran for seven years.[15][16]
.jpg)
Al-Libi was captured inTripoli, Libya, on 5 October 2013 byU.S. ArmyDelta Force operators, with the assistance ofFBI agents andCIA officers. He was seized in a pre-dawn raid and removed from Libya. TheUS Navy'sDEVGRU conducted asimultaneous raid in Somalia targeting the alleged mastermind of theWestgate shopping mall attack inKenya, possibly to avoid either action sending the other target into hiding.[17][18][19] A day after Al-Libi was captured, he was in military custody on the shipUSSSan Antonio in theMediterranean Sea.[20] On 10 February 2014, a 30 secondsCCTV video showing U.S. commandos capturing al-Libi was published byThe Washington Post.[21][22] According to strategist and counterinsurgency expertDavid Kilcullen, the collapse ofAli Zeidan's government and the ensuing "fragmentation of Libya [...] resulted, in part, from the raid al-Libi's capture".[23][further explanation needed]
On 15 October 2013, al-Libi appeared in aManhattanfederal court and pleaded not guilty to terrorism charges, including helping to plan the U.S. embassy bombings inKenya andTanzania.[24] He was held without bail due to concerns that he was a flight risk and a danger to the community.[25] His trial, along with his co-defendantKhalid al-Fawwaz, a.k.a. "Khaled Abdul Rahman Hamad al Fawwaz," a.k.a. "Abu Omar," a.k.a. "Hamad," was scheduled to begin on 3 November 2014, before JudgeLewis A. Kaplan.[26]
He was scheduled to stand trial in New York on 12 January 2015.[27][28]
Abu Anas Al-Libi died on 2 January 2015 at a hospital in New York, aged 50, while in the United States custody.[29] He reportedly had liver disease as a result ofhepatitis C, andliver cancer.[27][30] Upon his death his wife said "I accuse the American government of kidnapping, mistreating, and killing an innocent man. He did nothing."[31]
Al-Libi was married and the father of four boys.[32][33] He was believed to have been connected to Ramadan Abedi, the father of Salman Abedi, the perpetrator of theManchester Arena bombing.[34]
| Romanised | Arabic | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Nazih Abdul-Hamed Nabih al-Ruqai'i | نزيه عبد الحمد نبيه الرقيعي | The surname is spelled الراجعي in the UN list. |
| Anas al-Libi | أنس الليبي | |
| Abu Anas al-Libi | أبو أنس الليبي | Some Arabic press reports referred to him by this name. |
| Anas al-Sebai | أنس السباعي | |
| Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Raghie | نزيه عبد الحمد الراغي |
Two co-defendants, Khalid al Fawwaz, a.k.a. "Khaled Abdul Rahman Hamad al Fawwaz," a.k.a. "Abu Omar," a.k.a. "Hamad," and Anas al Liby, a.k.a. "Nazih al Raghie," a.k.a. "Anas al Sebai," are scheduled to commence trial on Nov. 3, 2014, before Judge Kaplan. The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The man, Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, 50, who had liver cancer, was taken to a hospital on Wednesday from the Metropolitan Correctional Center, where he was being held pending a trial that was to begin in Manhattan a week from Monday.
His trial had been set to start Jan. 12.
But Forest questioned how much valuable intelligence al Libi would be able to provide his captors. A former jihadist associate told CNN it was unlikely al Libi was still playing an active role with the terrorist network, and his wife said he had been living a normal life and was seeking a job with the Libyan oil ministry.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
