The hard-hitting piece that never ran.
The son of Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi was thwarted in his desire to go game hunting in Kenya's famed Maasai Mara game reserve with his treasured Mark IV hunting rifle, done in by a 22-year-old ban on the sport.
Al Saadi Gaddafi, the third son of the Libyan president, arrived in the Kenyan capital Nairobi in late January with his mother Haifa and an entourage of about 50 people. According to the East African Standard newspaper, the group was shuttled around by helicopters to escape Nairobi traffic, and was given a police escort of more than 30 officers.
Gaddafi, 35, also brought along his rifle in hopes of doing some hunting in the Maasai Mara, which is famed for its population of lion, elephant, leopard, wildebeest and numerous types of antelope. Kenya Wildlife Service spokesman Paul Udoto said Gaddafi never submitted a formal request to go sport hunting in the Maasai Mara. But he said it wouldn't have mattered because sport hunting has been banned across Kenya since 1977.
"We don't have one set of laws for royalties and another set of laws for tourists," Udoto said. "We welcome him to be like the millions of other tourists and take pictures of our animals."
Initial reports suggested that Gaddafi was upset when he learned that he wasn't allowed to hunt in Kenya. But Libya's charge d'affaires in Kenya, Hesahm Ali Sharif, said Gaddafi was simply told that sport hunting was legal in neighboring Tanzania, not Kenya, and he had no problem at all with the news.
"We told him that hunting is not allowed, you should go to Tanzania for hunting," Ali Sharif said. "He accepted everything. Why would he be angry? He respects the law and the government, and he was really happy about Kenya and loved the Maasai Mara."
Gaddafi is a footballer and former captain of the Libyan national team, who played one match with Perugia of Italy's Serie A before he was suspended for a positive steroids test. Gaddafi claims he was taking the drugs to treat back pain.
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