Abdelhakim Belhaj (or Belhadj; Arabic: عبد الحكيم بلحاج, nom de guerre: Abu Abdallah Assadaq)[2] (born 1 May 1966) is a Libyan politician and military leader.
[10][11] A report published on 13 October 2014 by the American Center for Democracy and authored by J. Millard Burr (co-author of the controversial 2006 book Alms for Jihad) posited that in 1996 Balhadj followed Bin Laden when al-Qaeda leader moved the centre of its operations from Afghanistan to Sudan.
In it, it was alleged by the Gaddafi government that Belhadj had developed "close relationships" with al-Qaeda leaders, and specifically Taliban chief Mullah Omar.
According to J. Millard Burr, Belhadj's long-time associate Ali al-Sallabi played a major role in Qatar's involvement in securing the amnesty for those prisoners.
[12][verify] Ali al-Sallabi is a Libyan religious scholar and Islamist politician affiliated to the Muslim Brotherhood who was jailed for his supposed involvement in a plot to assassinate Muammar Gaddafi.
[17] Returned to Libya after the lifting of sanctions on the Libyan regime in 2003, Sallabi actively contributed to and eventually directed the de-radicalization program for former militant detainees.
[26] At an Investigatory Powers Tribunal in January 2014, his lawyers said they had reason to suspect that GCHQ had been intercepting their phone calls with Libya-based Belhadj, and noted: "The right to confidential client-lawyer communication is a fundamental principle of justice.
[32] A Kronos Advisory report stressed that on the 22 August takeover of Tripoli Belhadj was accompanied by Qatari staff Col. Hamad Abdullah al-Marri.
Rebels under the leadership of Belhadj were trained by Qatari special forces in Western Mountains, in Libya, and were the beneficiaries of dozens of weapons shipments financed by Qatar.
[17] Overall, Wall Street Journal columnists Sam Dagher, Charles Levinson, and Margaret Coker reported that "Qatar provided anti-Gadhafi rebels with what Libyan officials now estimate are tens of millions of dollars in aid, military training and more than 20,000 tons of weapons.
[17] Qatar was one of the first countries to recognize the National Transitional Council and strongly advocated for international support – especially from the Arab League – for the no-fly zone imposed by the UN to protect civilians in Libya.
[35][33] After the rebels had completed their take over of Tripoli, a joint rebel/Human Rights Watch team found documents related to Belhadj and his return to Libya, originating from both the CIA and Britain's MI6.
In a later interview with the captured Abdelati Obeidi, the former Libyan foreign minister under Gaddafi, commented that MI6 had been operating in Tripoli until the start of the revolution in February.
[36] Several politicians and experts have claimed that Qatar was exploiting Belhadj to seek influence in Libya and to provide support to the Islamist faction in the country.
[43] On 10 May 2018, British Prime Minister Theresa May issued an official letter of apology for MI6's role in tipping off the CIA of Belhadj's location before the American-based spy agency captured him and his family and transferred them into Libyan custody.
[44] At the time, both Britain and America were seeking to mend relations with the Gaddafi regime and documents later showed that both nations saw Belhadj as a threat to these aspirations.