Lost evidence and conflicting accounts deepen Imam Musa al-Sadr mystery—the details

Report by Wissam Nasrallah, English adaptation by Mariella Succar 

Inside a secret morgue in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, Lebanese journalist Kassem Hamadé  captured a photograph of a poorly preserved body following the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011.

It was not just any photograph; it represented a potential clue in a mystery that has lasted nearly half a century. Investigative findings by the BBC, which stemmed from this image, suggest the body could possibly be that of Imam Musa al-Sadr.

The BBC sent the photograph to a laboratory in London that uses artificial intelligence to match facial features between images.

The body’s features matched images of al-Sadr with a probability exceeding 60 percent, followed by lower probabilities for his family members, and lower still for unrelated individuals.

When these results and the photograph were shown to al-Sadr’s family, they categorically denied that the body was the missing imam, arguing that al-Sadr had white hair at the time of his disappearance, while the photograph shows black hair.

More importantly, Hamadé  had brought strands of hair from the body to Lebanon in 2017 and handed them to the relevant authorities in Ain al-Tineh as part of a complete file.

According to LBCI sources, the file was lost due to logistical issues, with no further details provided.

Hassan Shami, head of the committee monitoring the disappearance of al-Sadr and his companions, told LBCI that he had requested additional hair samples from Hamadé.

Shami said Hamadé  had agreed but later claimed he did not have any additional strands. Hamadé  has strongly denied this account.

What began as a blurry photograph in a neglected morgue has ended with a lost file, conflicting narratives, and more questions than answers.

Fifty years after Imam Musa al-Sadr’s disappearance, three remain unaccounted for, and the truth is still elusive amid missing hair samples, artificial intelligence analysis, and a collective memory seeking certainty.