Former Libyan Leader Gadhafi Confirmed Dead

There is some controversy over how exactly Gadhafi died, as he was found still alive in a drainage pipe underneath a highway after the car he was traveling in was hit by gunfire. The United Nations Human Rights Council has called for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Gadhafi's death to determine whether he died of previously inflicted wounds or whether rebel fighters killed him. His body is being held in the Libyan city of Misrata in the meantime, and Libyans will likely wait longer than the typical 24 hours to bury him to cooperate with the investigation.

Rebel fighters who became the forces of the National Transitional Council toppled Gadhafi's nearly 42-year-old government in August after six months of fighting. The rebel fighters first launched an assault on Gadhafi's regime after protests broke out in February, following mass demonstrations in Tunisia and then Egypt collectively known as the ‘Arab Spring’ movement. In March, the U.N. Security Council established a no-fly zone over Libya, paving the way for NATO airstrikes and months of back-and-forth battles for territory.

An erratic leader

	The leader has been tied to high profile international terrorists' attacks in Berlin, Germany and Lockerbie, Scotland.

“He had charisma,” David Mack, a State Department official who first met Gadhafi in 1973, told the NewsHour. “He had an ability to speak in public with a fairly high degree of eloquence in Arabic. He conveyed sincerity. He was self-confident. And I think he was very convincing to Libyans.”

Yet, Mack added that in later meetings he had the impression that the Libyan leader “wasn’t all there.”

During the uprising against him, Gadhafi has made several speeches on television and the radio to assure the world he has not fled and will continue to fight. However, rebel forces eventually drove him and his troops out of the capital city, Tripoli, and finally claimed his hometown of Sirte, effectively putting an end to Gadhafi’s regime.

Libya and the West

	"The Libyan people deserve a nation governed by the rule of law, not the whims of men, " said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“A season of conflict must lead to one of peace," Obama said in a written statement. "We will continue to insist that the basic rights of the Libyan people are respected. And we will continue to work with our allies and partners in the international community to protect the people of Libya, and to support a peaceful transition to democracy."

The relationship between Western countries and Libya is complicated by the fact that Libya provides about two percent of the world’s oil, much of it to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea. Oil and gasoline prices have fluctuated during the Libyan protests because of fears that the political instability could disrupt the oil supply. 

Last week Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emphasized U.S. support for the Libyan revolution with an unannounced visit to Tripoli.

“The Libyan people demonstrated their bravery and determination, and I am proud to stand here on the soil of a free Libya,” she said.

The NewsHour reported Clinton brought a pledge of more U.S. aid and urged the country's transitional government to commit to a democratic path without reprisals.

What will happen next?

	Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters celebrate in the streets of Tripoli following reports of Moammar Gadhafi's capture on October 20, 2011.

In Tripoli, hundreds of cars honked their horns, and the air was filled with celebratory gunfire from automatic rifles and heavy weapons.

According to CNN, Gaddafi’s death eases fears that he could still rally his forces to launch a stealth guerrilla campaign against the revolutionary government. Gaddafi ruled with an iron fist for 42 years with little opposition and established a cult of personality.

Ben Wedeman, who has covered the uprising in Libya for months, said one of the biggest risks for Libya moving forward is a strong impulse among rebels and political leaders to commit revenge killings in an attempt to get rid of leftover elements of Gadhafi’s regime.