Gaddafi family asset probe has only just begun

 Gaddafi family asset probe has only just begun: "The UK's decision to freeze assets owned by Libya's Muammar Gaddafi and his family is only just the start of the process.

Now the authorities have to identify exactly what those assets are, and how much they are worth.

The announcement on Sunday by George Osborne, the Chancellor, to block the assets of the Gaddafi family and about 20 of their inner circle follows a European Union decision to impose sanctions.

This decision for a Europe-wide crackdown came, in turn, after a vote at the United Nations that countries worldwide should start choking off the family's funds by preventing money from being moved or assets sold.

Some countries - particularly the United States - have been more proactive about freezing assets than others. But slowly the noose is tightening.

On Wednesday, Spain froze a 2,000-property tourism development near Marbella said to be linked to the Libyan leader. Such assets will remain in limbo until they can be handed back to a new government or legitimate authority.

But, as Pepe Egger, of consultancy Exclusive Analysis, points out, it will not necessarily be clear which assets belong to the Gaddafis' personally, and which belong to the Libyan nation."

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