[Asharq al-Aswat] Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Qadaffy's second-son and presumed heir, Saif al-Islam Qadaffy, gave an exclusive telephone interview to Asharq Al-Awsat, during which he provided his account of the current situation in the country, and looked towards the future. Saif al-Islam Qadaffy had previously been portrayed as something of a political reformer prior to the current crisis, however he has lately issued statements strongly supporting the Libyan regime, toeing the government-line that the protests have been incited by foreign terrorist groups, and even threatening the Libyan people with a civil war in which the regime "will fight to the last minute, until the last bullet."The Western-educated Saif al-Islam Qadaffy studied at the London School of Economics and is president of the Qadaffy International Charity and Development Foundation.
In a combative interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, during which Saif al-Islam Qadaffy often adopted a patronizing Egyptian dialect, the second son of the Libyan leader denied that Colonel Qadaffy had hired African mercenaries to suppress the protestors, or that the Libyan army had been given orders to kill any demonstrators. He also claimed that more than 90 percent of Libya was under the control of the Qadaffy regime, and called on the international community to "leave us alone."