A nude model and ex-girlfriend of one of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's sons has recalled the terrifying moment when she was captured by Libyan rebels who threatened to 'burn her alive'.
Talitha van Zon, a Dutch model who has appeared naked in soft-porn magazine Playboy, was ambushed and forced to take refuge at a hotel when the rebels struck Tripoli, the Daily Mail reported.
A day before, Zon had been in the company of Gaddafi’s son Mutassim as he was drinking Jack Daniels whisky and Coke and boasting of a victory over the rebels.
Zon narrated how she escaped from the clutches of the rebels by leaping from the hotel's balcony, as she feared that they would burn her alive when they uttered the word ‘petrol’.
“I was shocked when I met Mutassim," Zon said. "He had changed. It was the first time I had seen him since just before the February uprising. He had a beard, he was sitting on a couch strewn with automatic weapons, and he was guarded by unsmiling 16-year-old boys with sub-machine-guns”, The Telegraph quoted the model as saying.
The image of Mutassim plotting the war against rebels sharply contrasted with the fun-loving playboy she had been in a sexual relationship with in 2004.
Zon said she remained in a 'gilded cage' throughout the relationship and was unaware about the lives of Libyans who seemed "happy enough".
Though the relationship with Mutassim lasted just three months, both remained good friends.
Zon said Mutassim had once denied to her that Libyans were suppressed people. According to him, the citizens had free hospital care and schools, and cheap bread and rice.
Zon's last meeting with Mutassim was on August 26 before the rebels attacked Tripoli.
