ALGIERS - The daughter of Libya's former leader Muammar Gaddafi asked on Tuesday to make representations to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to help her brother Saif al-Islam, who is in a Libyan jail awaiting trial on rape and murder charges. Aisha Gaddafi wants to hand information to the court about the welfare of Saif al-Islam, who has also been indicted by the ICC on charges of crimes against humanity dating from Libya's civil war last year. Supporters of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who was captured disguised as a Bedouin in the Sahara desert in November, say they doubt he will be given a fair trial in Libya. They say he should be tried instead by the ICC in The Hague. If he is found guilty by a Libyan court, Saif al-Islam faces the death penalty while if the court in the Hague convicts him the most he can be given is a prison term. A document submitted to the ICC for Aisha Gaddafi suggested that the Libyan authorities were unwilling to let any foreign lawyer act for Saif al-Islam. "Aisha Gaddafi wishes to protect the interests of her brother," said the document, which was seen by Reuters. Saif al-Islam, the most high-profile of Muammar Gaddafi's sons, is the subject of wrangling between the new Libyan authorities and the ICC on where he should be tried. Libya's ruling National Transitional Council says he should be tried at home and that he will be given a fair hearing. But the ICC has reserved the right to insist that he be sent to the Hague.
