Nearly 15 years after the fall of his father, former Libyan leader Muammar Kadhafi, Saf al-Islam was shot dead on Tuesday at his home in the city of Zintan, north-western Libya.

Media reports saidSaf al-Islam, 53, was at home alone when four armed men broke into the residence and opened fire.

He remained, for many Libyan tribes and especially for his own clan, a powerful symbol of a possible Kadhafi comeback.

His assassination is expected to have lasting consequences for Libyas political future. No other member of the clan, experts say, can match his level of popularity or influence.

Son of former Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi shot dead in home

Rival political camps inLibyacould also be affected. The loss of a figure seen as capable of bringing different factions together is widely viewed as unlikely to serve the countrys broader interests.

However, Saf al-Islams death benefits a number of political actors who viewed him as a rival, saidVirginie Collombier, a political scientist at Luiss Guido Carli University in Rome.

Saf al-Islam Kadhafi was carrying the torch of a united Libya, brought together around a major project of national reconciliation, she told RFI.

That was not well received by the two main centres of power, which saw the emergence of a third force as a potential threat to their ability to reach agreement and share power and resources.

Reconciliation hopes fade

National reconciliation appears to be the first casualty of Saf al-Islam Kadhafis murder. Efforts to bring Libyans into a genuine national dialogue have repeatedly failed.

So far, sevenUnited Nationsspecial envoys have been unable to make progress, blaming a lack of willingness among those in power to commit to reconciliation.

In 2019, the United States administration gaveField Marshal Khalifa Haftarthe green light to attack Tripoli 10 days before a planned meeting. That episode led to the resignation of the UN envoy at the time, Ghassan Salam.

Saf al-Islam Kadhafi, the heir apparent without a crown

Saf al-Islam was the third high-profile Libyan figure to be killed in recent months. Observers say a series of political assassinations risks destabilising the country's internal balance and undermining the political process under way.

His death also comes at a sensitive moment, as the UN attempts to relaunch a new format for national dialogue with a possible deadline mooted for November.

The risk now is that this dialogue process will be seriously disrupted, Collombier warned, adding that renewed tensions cannot be ruled out.

Regional and international players could also benefit from Kadhafis demise. He had frequently criticised the way Libya is currently run, which he believed was heavily influenced by foreign powers, including the US andTurkey.

Saf al-Islam was wanted by theInternational Criminal Courtfor crimes against humanity, linked to his alleged role in the suppression of opposition protests in 2011.

This article was adapted from theoriginal versionin French.

Originally published on RFI