Saif al-Islam, a son of Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi, rejected on Thursday a plan by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez to send an international commission to mediate and help resolve the conflict in Libya.

In an interview with British news network Sky News, Colonel Gaddafi's son said that he was not aware of the Venezuelan proposal, but he bluntly rejected a possible international mediation, Efe reported.

Venezuelans, he said, "are our friends, we respect them and we like them, but they are far from here and have no idea" of what happens in Libya. "It is a nice gesture, but we can solve our problems. There is no need for foreign intervention," he said.

Saif al-Islam's statements contradict claims by Venezuelan government officials who said that Muammar Gaddafi and the Arab League are pondering the proposal submitted by the Venezuelan president.

Source: ElUniversal.com