The International Criminal Court Prosecutor's Office said on Saturday it had received confirmation of the arrest of Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, from Libya's Ministry of Justice.
"We are coordinating with the Libyan Ministry of Justice to ensure that any solution with regards to the arrest of Saif al-Islam is in accordance with the law," ICC prosecution office spokeswoman Florence Olara said. Saif al-Islam, son of the late former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, was shown nursing a hand injury in a photograph aired on Saturday on Free Libya TV after his capture.
The photograph showed Saif al-Islam on what appears to be a reclining sofa with his fingers wrapped in bandages and his legs covered in a blanket. A spokesman for Libya's outgoing interim government said on Saturday that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi would be tried in the country rather than being sent to The Hague.
"This is the final chapter of the Libyan drama," Information Minister Mahmoud Shammam told Reuters. "We will put him on trial in Libya and he will be judged by Libyan law for his crimes."
Shammam said former intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi, the remaining Libyan indicted by the ICC who is still on the run, would be found in time. "We will hunt him until we capture him or kill him," he said. International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said on Saturday he would go to Libya in a week's time to discuss next steps after the capture of Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam.
"I'm going to Libya to discuss how we manage this issue. But the news is Saif will get justice. Where and how, that we will discuss," Moreno-Ocampo told reporters. The European Union urged Libyan authorities on Saturday to ensure the captured son of Muammar Gaddafi is brought to justice in full cooperation with the International Criminal Court.
Saif al-Islam, once tipped to succeed his late father as Libyan leader, has been arrested by fighters in the southern Libyan Desert.
"The Libyan authorities should now ensure that Saif al-Islam is brought to justice in accordance with the principles of due process and in full cooperation with the International Criminal Court," said Michael Mann, a spokesman for the EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi told Reuters on Saturday that he was feeling fine after being captured by some of the fighters who overthrew his father and he said injuries to his right hand were suffered during a NATO air strike a month ago.
Reluctant to speak at length, the London-educated 39-year-old son of Muammar Gaddafi was asked about bandages on the thumb and two fingers of his right hand. "Air force, air force," he said. Asked if that meant a NATO air strike, he said: "Yes, One month ago."