Berlusconi sought to ‘eliminate’ Gaddafi

A report says Italyâ„¢s former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi had asked the Italian secret services to Ëœeliminateâ„¢ Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Å“In the middle of the Libyan crisis… Silvio Berlusconi made a rather unusual request to the head of the secret services: ËœCan you eliminate Gaddafi?â„¢” Italyâ„¢s Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper reported on Thursday.

However, Berlusconiâ„¢s spokesman Paolo Bonaiuti has issued a statement, rejecting the report as Å“utterly false, unbelievable, absurd and unacceptable.”

Å“How can they claim Berlusconi could even have thought of committing an abomination of the kind?” Bonaiuti said.

Il Fatto Quotidiano cited an authorized diplomatic source close to the security services.

Å“It appears to have been a rather naive attempt on Berlusconiâ„¢s part to resolve an embarrassing situation,” the left-wing daily stated in its report.

The ousted Libyan dictator had made several visits to Italy. He would stay at a tent set up in the gardens of the Libyan embassy in the Italian capital, Rome. Gaddafi would also attend parties thrown by Berlusconi, who is currently facing charges over corruption, tax fraud, and a sex scandal.

The Italian tycoonâ„¢s relations with Gaddafi caused him embarrassment after the Libyan uprising against Gaddafi in 2011, the report said, quoting Italyâ„¢s former Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa.

Å“He certainly didnâ„¢t talk to me about it, but it is possible. Berlusconi was worried by the idea of finding himself in difficulty because of being thought of as too close to the Libyan leader,” Il Fatto Quotidiano cited La Russa.

Only months before Berlusconiâ„¢s Ëœrequestâ„¢ to the Italian secret services, he had referred to Gaddafi as Å“my friend” in a prime ministerial press conference on December 23, 2010.

Libyans rose up against Gaddafiâ„¢s four-decade rule in February 2011. The dictator was deposed in August 2011, and he was slain on October 20 of the same year.

MR/HSN