Ex-Minister urges Gaddafi to quit

Libya’s former Interior Ministers is urging Moammar Gaddafi to resign in the face of massive resistance against the embattled leader.

Abdul Fatteh Younis, one of Gaddafi’s most prominent and longest-serving underlings, told the BBC that the current regime is collapsing and will likely be toppled in a few days.

Either he will commit suicide or he will resist till he falls,said Younnis, who has known Gaddafi for 47 years.

Younus resigned after convincing Gaddafi not to use military airplanes to shoot at protesters in Benghazi. He subsequently joined the protest movement against Gaddafi amd reportedly living in a house on the outskirts of Benghazi, where the BBC met up with him.

Reportedly, Younnis has come under a death sentence and, in fact, Gaddafi may have already announced his (premature) demise.

My dear brother, when Benghazi fell you should have realised that the end had come. I hoped you would leave for Venezuela or somewhere else, Younnis said, referring to Gaddafi. May God show you the righteous way, and stop the annihilation of our people.

Younnis also said that Gaddafi most likely made the decision to bomb the plane over Lockerbie, Scotland (in December 1988, which killed about 270 people).

There is no doubt about it, he told me. Nothing happens without Gaddafi's agreement. I'm sure this was a national, governmental decision, he said. He takes very dangerous decisions in a state of anger. It is impossible to think he is completely sane, he added.

(Libya’s former Minister of Justice Mustafa Mohamed Abud Al Jeleil has made the same claim)

Younnis has given up much by joining the opposition. As one of the original members of the military coup of 1969 which dissolved the monarchy, he rose steadily in rank as one of Gaddafi’s closest associates. His power derived from his control over the special forces.