Rebels shoot wife and girls fleeing Libya because she is called Gaddafi
A woman called Gaddafi and her family were gunned down as they tried to flee Libya, fearing that their name would cost them their lives.
Afaf Gaddafi, who is not related to the toppled leader, and two of her children Yam, 20 months, and Aden, three weeks old, were shot by rebel soldiers as they drove to the airport. Four of the family were killed, including baby daughters Yam and Aden.
Afaf's husband, a graduate of the London School of Economics, is now begging David Cameron to help save his wife's life. Essam Arara is in Britain and had not seen his family since the revolution which toppled Colonel Gaddafi.
Mr Arara said that when the National Transitional Council soldiers realised their mistake they rushed the family to hospital but it was too late to save the children, Afaf's mother and sister.
"None of them are even related to Muammar Gaddafi - it is just a surname given to many thousands of members of his tribe," said Mr Arara, "But my wife and all our relatives were afraid that they could immediately be subjected to revenge attacks just because of their names. So they decided to flee to a safer place.
"If their names had not been Gaddafi they would have stayed at home and all be alive today."
Mr Arara, 36, completed a course in public management, leadership and change, and was in Britain seeking to gain permission for his family to join him when fighting broke out.
His family were driving near the airport to escape the violence when a group of rebels spotted the cars. Everyone but Mr Arara's wife and three-year-old son Ahmed were killed.
"They thought the cars might be carrying Gaddafi loyalists, because there had apparently been some shooting not long before from roughly the same direction," said Mr Arara.
His wife lost an eye and urgently needs specialist treatment to deal with bullet or shrapnel wounds in her arm.
Ahmed was not injured after he was shielded by the body of Mr Arara's sister-in-law.
The surname Gaddafi is common in Libya as it indicates the person is part of the Gaddadfa tribe. There have been reports of many homes belonging to people with the name being either looted or burned in the immediate aftermath of the rebel victory.
Mr Arara, who is staying with friends in Middlesbrough, now hopes that the surviving members of his family will be among the 50 Libyans injured during the revolution that the Prime Minister announced last week would receive treatment in the UK.
"After what my wife and son have been through they cannot face living in Libya," Mr Arara said. "Britain is our only chance for a decent future."
