Libya: Khadafy family life revealed in the aftermath

Algeria said this week that it had allowed a two-vehicle caravan of Col. Muammar Khadafi's relatives, including his second wife and three of his children, into the country. The flight of his relatives provides new evidence of surrender by the Khadafi clan as rebels tighten their hold on Tripoli, the capital. Khadafi's wife, Safiya, daughter Aisha and two of his sons, Mohammed and Hannibal, all crossed into Algeria. The spouses of Khadafi's children and their children arrived as well. This post gives us a glimpse of how those family members lived while in power in Libya. The value of these images isn't in their artistry or aesthetic, but in their storytelling information as we seek to uncover more behind the scenes of the Khadafi regime that spanned forty-two years. --Paula Nelson (NOTE: Monday is a holiday. See you again on Wednesday.)(31 photos total)

As rebels, looters, and simply the curious rifled through what's left of the estates of Moammar Khadafy and his sons, most were struck by the rather mundane furnishings and peculiar habits they accumulated. In Hannibal Khadafy's home, a torn image of the son was discovered. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

A rebel walks around downed wires, broken glass, exercise machines, and pool toys at an indoor pool at Hannibal Khadafy's home in Tripoli. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

An anti-Khadafy fighter inspects what's left of the furnishings in a bedroom at Hannibal Khadafy's house. The complex overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

A portrait of Khadafy family members, torn and defaced, is next to an armored car at Hannibal Khadafy's house. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

A concealed staircase leads to a tunnel at Hannibal Khadafy's house in Tripoli. He fled with his brother, Mohamed, sister, Aisha, and mother, Safiya, to Algeria. The family was allowed in on "humanitarian grounds," according to the Algerian government. Moammar Khadafy has not been found. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

A Libyan shows a certificate of honor given to Seif Khadafy, the son of the Libyan leader, by Al Ahli soccer club at Hannibal Khadafy's house. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

Hannibal Khadafy''s marine uniform was left behind. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

A Libyan rebel poses for a souvenir picture outside the mansion of Muatassim Khadafy, a son of the embattled leader and the nation's national security adviser before the government abandoned Tripoli. Muatassim lived more ostentatiously than his brothers. His farmhouse in the Ain Zara neighborhood of Tripoli was protected by high walls and gates. A fountain in the driveway featured horse-drawn carriages and a pool bungalow was festooned with Roman columns at the entrance and topped by gold domes. One of the fighters touring the complex commented, “It’s like some Aladdin castle,” according to The New York Times. “He doesn’t care about the Libyan people. Just living in heaven.” (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

A Libyan rebel inspects a clinic at an underground network of bunkers under the mansion of Muatassim Khadafy in Tripoli. Muatassim was described as “ambitious and competitive” and a potential successor to his father in a diplomatic cable from 2009 released by WikiLeaks. (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

The swimming pool at Muatassim Khadafy's manse is pock-marked and empty. Before becoming Libya's national security adviser, Muatassim was considered by Western envoys a non-factor in Libyan political life, a playboy with few interests outside accumulating the accoutrements of a jet-setting lifestyle. (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

Libyan rebels avail themselves to a washroom in the mansion of Muatassim Khadafy. Much of the exterior of the house was charred and damaged. (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

Much of the furnishings of Muatassim Khadafy's bathroom have been stripped, but rebels find a place to take a break in the jacuzzi (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

A rebel tries out a safety bunker in the underground compound of Muatassim Khadafy in Tripoli. Khadafy's father, Moammar, still remains at large despite swarming rebel forces. Some rebels believe he's holed up in his hometown of Sirte. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

Rebels walk through the underground compound of Muatassim Khadafy, whose whereabouts remain unknown. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

A rebel flips through paperwork in the underground compound of Muatassim Khadafy. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

A Libyan rebel walks through the compound of Muatassim Khadafy. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

Photos litter a table in Aisha Khadafy's house in Tripoli. The daughter of Libyan leader Moammar Khadafy has fled to Algeria. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

In the past week, Aisha Khadafy's house in Tripoli had been an attraction for many Libyans, who posed for pictures and combed through the detritus of the only first family most have known. So many people were amassing at the house that rebels closed it to the public. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

Pillows and debris float along the swimming pool at the house of Aisha Khadafy. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

Clothes spill out a closet and cover a bed in a children's room at the house of Aisha Khadafy, the daughter of the Libyan leader. Algerian officials said that she had given birth to a daughter while her family was awaiting permission to cross into Algerian territory. The extended family seeking asylum included many young children. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

The house of Aisha Khadafy was one of the more fashionably decorated among the Khadafy clan. (Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

A rebel fighter poses for a photo as he sits on a two-seater couch framed by a golden mermaid with the face of Aisha Khadafy. (Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)

Rebel fighters and civilians tour Aisha Khadafy's house in Tripoli on Aug. 24 (Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)

Rebels help themselves to some clothes in the house of Aisha Khadafy. (Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)

Aisha Khadafy's house featured an elaborate swimming pool. (Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)

Rebels rollick on a bed at Moammar Khadafy's farm house near the town of Abu Grein. (Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Rebels walk in and along a swimming pool in front of Moammar Khadafy's farm house near the town of Abu Grein, which is west of Khadafy's hometown, Sirte. (Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Moammar Khadafy's farm house near Abu Grein was one of several estates and mansions he owned. Some Libyans who surveyed the homes were surprised that they were not as ornate as expected. (Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Among the mementos left behind at Hannibal Khadafy's house: A photograph of his father, Moammar (left), brother Seif, and mother, Safiya. (Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

Rebels survey the house of Al-Saadi Khadafy, son of Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy, in Tripoli on Aug. 24. Libyans hunting Moammar Khadafy have offered a $2 million bounty on the fallen dictator's head. (Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)

Rebels walk along an escape corridor inside the house of Al-Saadi Khadafy.(Sergey Ponomarev/Associated Press)