Amidst Rumors That Gadhafi’s Been Shot, Swiss and Brits Freeze His Assets

Rumors that Gadaffi's been shot sent oil futures down - Wikipedia

While rumors that Libyan ruler Muammar Gadhafi had been shot surfaced, the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairsannounced it would freeze any and all assets held by Gaddafi or his “environment” to avoid any “misuse of state funds.”

The move by Switzerland’s Foreign Ministry comes amidst increasing violence in Libya, a nation that has progressively appeared more isolated from the rest of the world.  Unlike revolts in Egypt and Tunisia, the uprising in Libya has turned increasingly violent, with rebel forces fighting Gadhafi loyalists for control of the country’s cities.  Escalating violence has rattled markets, especially oil markets, which had been on steep upward trends, punctured Thursday afternoon by rumors that Gaddafi had been shot.  While it is unclear where the rumors came from, U.S. officials were quick to note that they had no reason to believe the Colonel was dead. (Read Egyptian Civil Strife Sends Oil [Brent] Close To $100 On Suez Fears).

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