The Libyan government announced Gadhafi's death on Thursday after the ousted dictator was killed in what the interim Prime Minister said was crossfire between transitional government troops and those loyal to Gadhafi.Reuters
The Libyan government announced Gadhafi's death on Thursday after the ousted dictator was killed in what the interim Prime Minister said was crossfire between transitional government troops and those loyal to Gadhafi.ReutersA Libyan military court convicted 24 Eastern European men of acting as mercenaries for Gadhafi.ReutersMoammar Gadhafi, inside his Bedouin tent 1986 where he presented his family to U.S. women journalists during a news conference.ReutersMoammar Gadhafi with his daughter Ayesha in his Bedouin tent January 12, 1986. The Libyan leader presented his family to U.S. women journalists he invited to a news conference in the tent.Reuters/Kate DourianSafia Gadhafi, wife of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, meets foreign journalists in front of her house at Bab El Azazia barracks in Tripoli April 21, 1986. She is now demanding an inquiry into her husband's death.Reuters/Frederic NeemaSofiya Gaddafi, wife of the Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi with one of her children in her Bedouin tent at the Bab-Assaria barracks January 12, 1986.Reuters/Kate DourianLibyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's female bodyguards are seen while Gadhafi visits the Louvre Museum in ParisReutersLibyan leader Moammar Gadhafi speaking to Libyans in Tripoli. Gadhafi was killed by rebel forces in Libya on Oct. 20.REUTERSLibyan leader Gadhafi and Ukraine's President Yushchenko take part in an official welcoming ceremony in KievReutersCol. Moammar GadhafiReutersMoammar Gadhafi reported dead.ReutersAisha Gaddafi (C), daughter of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and director of the Libyan Waatassimou Charity association, attends the end of the 6th international women's Koran reading competition in Tripoli August 30, 2010.REUTERS/Ismail ZitounyGalyna Kolotnytska (front) walks out from a block building in Brovary town outside Kiev, Feb. 27, 2011.ReutersUkrainian nurse Galyna Kolotnytska (5th R) stands next to Libya's leader Moammar Gadhafi (C) in this undated photo.ReutersFormer Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, is pulled from a truck by NTC fighters in Sirte in this still image taken from video footage Oct. 20, 2011. Gadhafi was killed on Thursday as Libya's new leaders declared they had overrun the last bastion of his long rule, sparking wild celebrations that eight months of war may finally be over.Reuters.Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, is pulled from a truck by NTC fighters in Sirte in this still image taken from video footage Oct. 20, 2011. Gadhafi was killed on Thursday as Libya's new leaders declared they had overrun the last bastion of his long rule, sparking wild celebrations that eight months of war may finally be over.Reuters.Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, is pulled from a truck by NTC fighters in Sirte in this still image taken from video footage Oct. 20, 2011. Gadhafi was killed on Thursday as Libya's new leaders declared they had overrun the last bastion of his long rule, sparking wild celebrations that eight months of war may finally be over.Reuters.This still image taken from amateur video posted on a social media website and obtained by Reuters, October 21, 2011, shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, covered in blood, after his capture by NTC fighters in Sirte. Gaddafi will be buried according to Muslim rites within 24 hours, a Libyan transitional government force commander said on Friday, and witnesses said the body bore a visible bullet hole in the head. Gaddafi was captured alive in his hometown of Sirte on Thursday but died later while in the hands of fighters in circumstances that are still not clear.ReutersATTENTION EDITORS - VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF DEATH AND INJURY The body of slain Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is seen inside a storage freezer in Misrata October 21, 2011. Gaddafi will be buried according to Muslim rites within 24 hours, a Libyan commander said on Friday, and the body bore a visible bullet hole in the head.ReutersPeople celebrate the passing of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi after Friday prayers at Martyrs' Square in TripoliReutersA girl flashes a victory sign as people stand in line to see the body of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in MisrataReutersThe body of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is displayed at a house in Misrata October 20, 2011.REUTERS/Thaier Al-SudaniFormer Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, being held on the ground by NTC fighters in SirteReutersA boy stands next to a golden sofa with a statue of Aisha, the daughter of Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi inside her house in Tripoli August 26, 2011ReuitersA boy jumps into a swimming pool at Aisha Gadhafi's compound in Bin Ashour district in Tripoli August 26, 2011. Aisha Gadhafi is the daughter of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.Reuters
The four-decade rule of Libyan autocrat, Col. Moammar Gadhafi finally came to an end on Thursday, after he was dragged from his hiding place - a drainpipe - in the town of Sirte and killed.
Gadhafi was reportedly hiding like a "rat" in a drain tunnel when he was dragged out and killed by the Libyan fighters he once scorned, ironically, also as "rats." He was cornered, beaten and then shot in the head as Libya's new leaders declared they had overrun the last bastion of his long rule.
"Gadhafi was taken out of a sewage pipe ... he didn't show any resistance. When we started moving him, he was hit by a bullet in his right arm, and when they put him in a truck, he did not have any other injuries,'' said Libyan Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril, reading from a forensic report at a news conference.
The killing of Gadhafi sparked wild celebrations among the Libyan people, who harbor hopes that eight months of war may finally be over. According to Reuters reports, local people in Misrata jostled around the bodies to take pictures on their cell phones.
The deceased leader is survived by his wife, daughter Ayesha and four of his sons – Muhammad, Saif al-Islam, Al-Saadi and Hannibal. Two other sons, Saif al-Arab and Khamis, were killed in April and August this year. The body of the deposed leader was displayed at a house in Misrata on Thursday.
Start the slide show to take a look a his life in photos.
