Top Amin Spy Lives In Libya

By Yunusu Abbey in Tripoli, Libya FORMER State Research Bureau (SRB) chief in Idi Amin's regime, Lt. Col. Farouk Minawa, lives in Tripoli, the Libyan capital. Sources close to him said Minawa, a one time internal affairs minister, has lived in Libya since Amin's ouster in 1979. "The Great Leader (Col. Muammar Gaddafi) granted him political asylum. He is here as a special guest of the Libyan government," said a source. "Amin stayed with him here after the April 11, 1979 liberation war which toppled his regime before he (Amin) went to Saudi Arabia," he said. Amin now lives in Jeddah. "Minawa lives a decent life and runs businesses with some Libyans. He is well off and travels a lot between Libya and other parts of the world on business missions," added the source. When his father died in Mombasa, Kenya, he went and spent about two months there. But Minawa denies any involvement in the SRB atrocities, a source said. He is quoted as saying SRB officials should be the ones to answer any queries regarding the much feared intelligence organisation. Minawa's house is close to a flat in Tripoli where President Museveni and Brigadier Moses Ali are reported to have lived and conducted secret meetings during the bush struggle against the Obote II regime. Brigadier Moses Ali, who then headed the National Rescue Front (UNRF), is reported to have introduced Museveni to Union leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi in the 1980's. Gaddafi heavily supported the UNRF and Museveni's NRA/NRM rebel groups who took over in January 1986. Farouk, as he is commonly known, met a top Ugandan government official in Tripoli and repeated his innocence. Ends