Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, known for his savage killings, was shot dead Thursday in his hometown of Sirte.
Publicly called a “mad dog” by U.S President Ronald Reagan, Gadhafi was responsible for a horrific catalog of crimes committed over the past 42 years, including the support of terrorism.
The flamboyant leader was born to a peasant family in Libya in 1942, and was the longest-serving leader in both Africa and the Arab world at the time he was deposed.
Gadhafi, 69, pleaded with his captors, “Don’t shoot,” when they captured him in the drain where he was hiding. However, his pleas for mercy were ignored, and he was shot dead after being dragged onto the streets and humiliated.
He sustained injuries to his head and legs. The wounded dictator died in the middle of a gun battle between National Transitional Council fighters and Gadhafi loyalists.
Here is a roundup of all the exclusive graphic pictures of Gadhafi in his last moments released to date. Several television channels recorded the death scene as his bloodied body was dragged amid the celebrating crowd.
Take a look at the final minutes of the “mad dog,” Moammar Gadhafi.
Al-Jazeera: Moammar Gadhafi Dead - Video
Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, is pulled from a truck by NTC fighters in Sirte in this still image taken from video footage.ReutersAn anti-Gaddafi fighter points at the drain where Muammar Gaddafi was hiding before he was captured in Sirte.ReutersThe body of Muammar Gaddafi is seen at a house in Misrata on Oct. 20. Gadhafi was killed by Libyans he once scorned as "rats," succumbing to wounds, some of which were seemingly inflicted after his capture by fighters who overran his last redoubt on Thursday in his hometown of Sirte.ReutersThe dead body of Moammar Gadhafi on display inside a freezer in Misrata. His body has been secretly buried on Tuesday.ReutersThe dead bodies of Gadhafi and his son on display inside a freezer in MisrataReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi after his capture by NTC fighters in Sirte.ReutersAnother mass grave holding 267 dead bodies has been discovered in Sirte, the hometown of Moammar Gadhafi. This news preceded the announcement that the Gadhafi family plans to file a war crimes complaint with the International Criminal Court against NATO for its role in Gadhafi's death.ReutersLibya's chief forensic pathologist says an autopsy has confirmed that Moammar Gadhafi died from a gunshot to the head.ReutersFormer Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed on Thursday and recently buried. His son Saif al-Islam Gadhafi and brother-in-law Abdullah al-Senussi has said they want don't want to meet the same ending and have proposed surrendering themselves to the International Criminal Court.ReutersThe body of slain Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi is seen inside a storage freezer in Misrata.ReutersA bullet-riddled picture of Muammar Gaddafi hangs on the wall of a cafetaria at a gas station of Bou Hadi town after anti-Gaddafi fighters took control in Sirte October 3, 2011. ReutersA National Transitional Countil fighter pulls Libya's former leader Muammar Gaddafi onto a miltary vehicle in Sirte in this still image taken from videoReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi after his capture by NTC fighters in Sirte.ReutersFormer Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, covered in blood, is pulled from a truck by NTC fighters in Sirte.ReutersFrame grab of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, covered in blood, being pushed to the ground by NTC fighters in Sirte.ReutersFrame grab of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, covered in blood, being held on the ground by NTC fighters in SirteReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi after his capture by NTC fighters in Sirte.ReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, covered in blood and wiping his face before he is struck in the face by the hand of one of his captors, in Sirte. ReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, covered in blood, after his capture by NTC fighters in Sirte.
ReutersFrame grab shows former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, covered in blood and wiping his face before he is struck in the face by the hand of one of his captors, in Sirte. Gaddafi was captured alive in his hometown of Sirte on Thursday but died later while in the hands of fighters in circumstances that are still not clear. Reuters