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SALEH SNOUSSI were privy to the situation. This hiccup rattled the prison officials and they were forced to seek instructions from the higher authorities. When these arrived, Colonel al-Jibali called in those of his deputies who were directly concerned and informed them that they were instructed to continue handling the matter as they had before. “What about the goods and supplies we receive?” Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar asked. Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar headed the security office in the prison, maintained the prisoners’ records and was a powerful figure in the prison administration, serving as the link between the prison office and the security agency charged with arrests, interrogations and torture. Colonel al-Jibali replied: “We’ll take everything just as we’ve done in the past and dispose of it just as we previously disposed of only a part of it.” This meant that the top prison officials would get all the goods intended for more than a thousand victims of the massacre – over and above their customary cut, which was half of all the goods intended for the living prisoners. Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi, who was responsible for welcoming the visitors, receiving the goods, and selling them on, pointed out: “But we’ll also have to start looking for new markets and new middlemen.” Colonel al-Jibali answered: “Well, you have only two days to make all the arrangements before the visits start.” Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar warned Chief Corporal Sahban alGamoudi in a half-serious, half-joking tone: “Make sure your poor planning for selling the goods on doesn’t lead to something much bigger being uncovered. If it does, you’ll be facing the gallows, for sure.” The Chief Corporal reassured him: “Don’t worry about that, Sir.” Colonel al-Jibali terminated the meeting, since there was nothing else new to discuss besides the windfall of extra goods – twice the amount they had previously handled.They left the logistics to Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi who would search for places to store the goods safely and ways to avoid attracting attention and raising suspicions. The Chief Corporal encountered no difficulty in coping with this unforeseen problem. After explaining that the items had been confiscated by the National Guard and were now being resold to the country’s citizens, he found middlemen and merchants willing to purchase the goods for resale in stores and shops in the city of 70 BANIPAL 43 – CELEBRATING DENYS JOHNSON-DAVIES
page 73
SALEH SNOUSSI Tripoli and in its far-reaching suburbs. Once permission had been granted to reopen private stores and shops, which had been outlawed for more than a decade, the fever to open more outlets became infectious. It was a reaction to the shortages people had experienced for a number of years following the ban on local commerce.The National Guard had launched investigatory raids on stores operating without a licence.They closed the shops down, confiscated the goods and then sold them off, splitting the profits with the guardsmen who had conducted the raids. The door of the prison opened at ten, as usual, to receive the visitors, who had stood crowded together outside for hours. Some of them had arrived before dawn, having spent the previous day travelling along the coastal road from distant cities in the far east of Libya – places like Tobruk and Derna.Those who had flown were a privileged minority. The majority had come by land and reached Tripoli in the first hours of dawn.Their resources had not allowed them to spend the rest of the night in a hotel and so they had camped near the prison, battling drowsiness and fatigue in hope of being among the first to deliver the supplies they had brought to the prison office. That would save time so they could begin their return trip early that same day. The guards began to receive the goods, which were packed in cardboard boxes, each inscribed with the name of the prisoner for whom they were intended. Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi stood surrounded by the guards who assisted him. They were busy receiving the boxes and carrying them to the storerooms under the supervision of Corporal Ma‘tuq Madi, who personally inspected them first to make sure they did not contain any contraband items. Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi did not alter his usual behaviour, with which the visitors were familiar – his shouting, displeasure with the behaviour of some of them and refusal to accept some items, claiming they were forbidden even though there was high demand for them in the market, they would fetch a high price and would be welcomed by the merchants he traded with. The visitor would continue pleading with him not to reject the items. Then, he would take the visitor aside and tell him: “I cannot receive this from you publicly because if I did that would open the door for everyone to bring this type of prohibited item to the prisoners and then the merciless prison authorities would find out. But BANIPAL 43 – SPRING 2012 71

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SALEH SNOUSSI

were privy to the situation. This hiccup rattled the prison officials and they were forced to seek instructions from the higher authorities. When these arrived, Colonel al-Jibali called in those of his deputies who were directly concerned and informed them that they were instructed to continue handling the matter as they had before.

“What about the goods and supplies we receive?” Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar asked. Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar headed the security office in the prison, maintained the prisoners’ records and was a powerful figure in the prison administration, serving as the link between the prison office and the security agency charged with arrests, interrogations and torture.

Colonel al-Jibali replied: “We’ll take everything just as we’ve done in the past and dispose of it just as we previously disposed of only a part of it.” This meant that the top prison officials would get all the goods intended for more than a thousand victims of the massacre – over and above their customary cut, which was half of all the goods intended for the living prisoners.

Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi, who was responsible for welcoming the visitors, receiving the goods, and selling them on, pointed out: “But we’ll also have to start looking for new markets and new middlemen.”

Colonel al-Jibali answered: “Well, you have only two days to make all the arrangements before the visits start.”

Sergeant al-Hadi Ammar warned Chief Corporal Sahban alGamoudi in a half-serious, half-joking tone: “Make sure your poor planning for selling the goods on doesn’t lead to something much bigger being uncovered. If it does, you’ll be facing the gallows, for sure.”

The Chief Corporal reassured him: “Don’t worry about that, Sir.” Colonel al-Jibali terminated the meeting, since there was nothing else new to discuss besides the windfall of extra goods – twice the amount they had previously handled.They left the logistics to Chief Corporal Sahban al-Gamoudi who would search for places to store the goods safely and ways to avoid attracting attention and raising suspicions. The Chief Corporal encountered no difficulty in coping with this unforeseen problem. After explaining that the items had been confiscated by the National Guard and were now being resold to the country’s citizens, he found middlemen and merchants willing to purchase the goods for resale in stores and shops in the city of

70 BANIPAL 43 – CELEBRATING DENYS JOHNSON-DAVIES

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