Libya: Mission Accomplished?

August 22, 2011

Obama, NATO and its Libyan rebels seems to believe that the fight over Libya is over.

“Tonight, the momentum against the Qaddafi regime has reached a tipping point,” Mr. Obama said in a statement. “Tripoli is slipping from the grasp of a tyrant. The Qaddafi regime is showing signs of collapsing. The people of Libya are showing that the universal pursuit of dignity and freedom is far stronger than the iron fist of a dictator.”

Mission accomplished!

Wait.

There is something curious here:

After six months of inconclusive fighting, the assault on the capital unfolded at a breakneck pace, with insurgents capturing a military base of the vaunted Khamis Brigade, where they had expected to meet fierce resistance, then speeding toward Tripoli and through several neighborhoods of the capital effectively unopposed.
…
Few would have predicted that the rebels would meet so little resistance from the 32nd Brigade, a unit that NATO had considered one of the most elite in Libya and commanded by Khamis Qaddafi, one of the leader’s sons.

When the U.S. invaded Iraq to kick Saddam out his forces melted away only to come back in a years long war against the occupiers and their puppets. This looks similar to me.

Did Gaddhafi plan for this and decided to take the same route?

Whatever. The decades of free education, free healthcare and free housing for Libyans are likely coming to an end. The full force of a neoliberal onslaught will now unfold onto the Libyan people. The tribes, and the coalition, will fight each other over the loot.

This affair is not finished. Obama's "Mission accomplished" banner will be frowned upon for years to come.

Posted by b on August 22, 2011 at 03:29 UTC | Permalink

Comments

Franklin Lamb Wounded in Tripoli
by Paula at PCRC
The Palestine Civil Rights Campaign-Lebanon confirms reports that Franklin Lamb was shot at approximately 11:45 a.m. on Sunday August 21 in Tripoli, Libya outside of the Corinthia Hotel where he has been staying.
Franklin had just returned from a 90 minute bicycle tour of central Tripoli and was walking past the Hotel swimming pool when he was hit in his right leg.
Witnesses report having seen sniper fire coming from the roof of the Marriott Hotel across from the Corinthia.
Franklin is basicly OK. The bullet has been removed and he is resting comfortably and wishes that no one be concerned because he will be fine.
Internet has been cut in Libya and events inside Tripoli are unclear. The PCRC will advise if events warrant.
In solidarity,
Paula
http://www.pacificfreepress.com/news/1-/9531-journalist-franklin-lamb-wounded-in-tripoli.html

Posted by: brian | Aug 22 2011 4:03 utc | 1

my letter to Reporters Without Borders:
hello RSF,
are you aware that independent journalists are being reported as being shot at by mysterious snipers in Tripoli?No other jounalists…And that CNN staff have threatened indepedent jouranlist Mahdi Nazemroay. Franklin Lamb has been shot in the leg by a roof top sniper
Please take action
regards
Brian
============
CNN staff have also directly threatened independent journalists staying in the same hotel as NATO attempts to force through rebels into Tripoli.
Truth journalist Mahdi Nazemroaya fired on at Tripoli hotel by NATO backed terrorists and snipers, threatened by CNN ‘journalist’.
http://www.mathaba.net/news/?x=628168?rss
regards

Posted by: brian | Aug 22 2011 4:03 utc | 2

I would not beliebe anything coming out of Libya
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2011/08/libya-rebels-and-qaddafi.html

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 4:11 utc | 3

i would not believe anything coming out of US!

Posted by: brian | Aug 22 2011 4:55 utc | 4

Gaddhafi unleashes some tanks: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-08/22/c_131066141.htm

Posted by: felix | Aug 22 2011 6:42 utc | 5

NATO has been bombing all kind of military objectives for 6 months (and releasing daily silly random generated reports about what they bomb, who believes that they were still bombing AA missile placements yesterday?).
Do you expect any armed forces to remain in a known place? My guess is that any army base has been empty since months ago.
As we don’t know who the rebels from the mountains south of Tripoli are, and what’s their current arrangement with the factions in Misrata and Benghazi, I would expect more problems from this side. Of course some of the tribes that supported Gaddafi may become militant if they are thrown out of the power arrangement in the middle term.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 7:10 utc | 6

Pepe Escobar at Asia Times Online has (I think) the most likely prognosis for Libya:
“Afghanistan; Remixed.”
See: http://atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MH20Ak01.html
This conflict will now become just one more in an already too long and growing list of countries we’ve invaded, set up a commercially/politically convenient puppet, and will now spend billions every year helping them oppress, suppress, and terrorise their own people, on our behalf.
Satrapy 2.0

Posted by: ScuzzaMan | Aug 22 2011 7:13 utc | 7

Rumour has it that MQ son Saif al-Islam was shot or arrested it is unclear while he was on the phone with AJ. You think AJ let him down. They have been numerous reports about sniper fire in Tripoli so he could have been shot when his coordinates became known.

Posted by: hans | Aug 22 2011 7:27 utc | 8

this is the view from the Rixos hotel
http://twitter.com/#!/matthewwprice
Brian, all the Libyan actors know each other intimately, they are a country of six million, so their government would be something like London city council. The “opposition”, “transitional council” “rebels” whatever were part of the Libyan government. A tribal system means your loyalty is to your tribe only, not to any political system, and if a tribe switches allegiance, you switch. To be able to do that there have to be completely different rules inside to outside. Tribes are not stupid, so they hedge their bets, just like in the US the same people fund Democrats and Republicans. So it is anybody’s guess what this really was about.

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 8:56 utc | 9

So when does the West start pretending the “rebels” did this all by themselves?

Posted by: joseph | Aug 22 2011 9:11 utc | 10

Well, we don’t know who are that ‘western faction’ of the rebel (there are only a limited number of fighters from Misrata and none supposedly from Benghazi). I thought that region didn’t have so much population, so where did they get the numbers? Flown from other places by NATO? This seems to be the French controlled faction.
I just watched a report in AJE saying that the ‘Misrata faction’ is still fighting around Zlitan (that’s it where they had been for more than a week). And I guess the same happens on Al Brega. Meanwhile the Rixos hotel seems to be on a Gaddafi controlled area and that’s the place where most foreign journalists are staying (I would have thought that it would have been one of the first places to be ‘liberated’). In which section of the city is it located?

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 10:20 utc | 11

Basically the situation seems a bit confusing as usual. But something happened to let the rebels enter Tripoli through the east side so easily.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 10:22 utc | 12

I think, the question is who controls the Oil, Gas, and minerals. It is a lot of strategic goods and money.
Usa-Europe or China. What is the best for us? (in a long term).
Now I am worried about China reactions.
Thats all.

Posted by: an idiot | Aug 22 2011 10:55 utc | 13

Interesting that they are now, rather than from the start, reporting Gaddafi forces deploying tanks which are an ‘easy’ target for NATO air support on isolation … may be not when both forces are completely mixed with the rebel forces (the rebels also are fielding some tanks from the images). Tripoli is quite large and neither side can field an army that can cover the whole city (just a few thousands from either side at most) so it would be easy to move around and ‘control’ different sections of the city.
Searching at Google Maps it seems the Rixos hotel is located on the east side of Tripoli’s Zoo which is close (south east) to Gaddafi main base of Bab al-Azizyah.
We had some images of the oldest Gaddafi son Mohammed (long time out of the power circle) but not from Saif al-Islam (which is also said to have been captured and the spin going that he is going to be delivered to that joke of International Criminal Court) so I don’t put that as confirmed yet (at some point I think I read there were three sons captured).

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 10:56 utc | 14

Map”>http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/54736000/gif/_54736609_trip_key_locs_v2_464map.gif>Map from the BBC web

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 11:10 utc | 15

Next Game: Venezuela or Iran?

Posted by: an idiot | Aug 22 2011 11:41 utc | 16

This is just in from Lizzie Phelan and it is good news. The Libyan government has implemented a truly brilliant strategy and it has yielded the results they had hoped for. The tribes, true to their word, have come to Tripoli’s aid. A full report will follow later. ~Alexandra
https://libya360.wordpress.com/2011/08/22/lizzie-phelan-report-from-tripoli-august-22-2011/

Posted by: neretva’43 | Aug 22 2011 11:44 utc | 17

El Pais is speaking about ~1700 dead in one day. And mention(ed) Gaddafi tanks in Tripoli (past tense ’cause the present version of the article doesn’t mention it).
I have to wonder though, where do all those ‘new’ militias come from? Apparently all the original militias & rebel groups are still stuck far away from Tripoli. Did Nato (or the French) make a deal with the more Islamist faction and used a network of mosques to organise this Tripoli rebellion ?
Hmm and all those (sophisticated) weapons now in the hands of various groups, rebels, militias, tribes… this promises some more mess in the future.

Posted by: Philippe | Aug 22 2011 11:45 utc | 18

Ummm….how many times do I have to say this. Occupying all of the geostrategically important countries is the future. We might as well get used to it, because unless there is a revolt, which there won’t be, this will be the pattern for decades to come.
The casualties for the occupiers are not that great in comparison, and in the occupiers’ opinion, worth it. With higher and higher unemployment in the U.S., and other Western economies, providing the dispossessed with overseas jobs in occupation will become the norm. And don’t hand me that crap about how they don’t have the money to pull it off. When has money ever stopped them in the past?

Posted by: Morocco Bama | Aug 22 2011 11:59 utc | 19

Are we a nation of illiterate sheep…..the cheerleading exhibited by the mass media news readers and so called experts is mind boggling…..

Posted by: georgeg | Aug 22 2011 12:05 utc | 20

I do not believe in anything what Western media says.
We are in the middle of information warfare – directed at Libyans (Tripoli) loyal to its legal gov., NATO is asking and seeking “uprising”. Without it whole mission is doomed.
Secondly, mercenaries do not have any capability to take anything, let alone the city of million.
Determined defender, ready to die, with determined leadership with sense of historical mission (Qaddafi: “They have come, they have occupied Tripoli. How can you allow the colonialists to occupy Tripoli again, this is unacceptable!”) may defend its homeland indefinitely.

Posted by: neretva’43 | Aug 22 2011 12:50 utc | 21

“Whatever. The decades of free education, free healthcare and free housing for Libyans are likely coming to an end. The full force of a neoliberal onslaught will now unfold onto the Libyan people. The tribes, and the coalition, will fight each other over the loot.”
Not that NATO/GCC designs in Libya are good and worthy of support… but there is a line you are crossing here: ill-tempered rantings like this are reminiscent of Petainist mouthpieces helplessly fulminating against the advancing Red Army. After all: that was not precisely an army of freedom either. Right?
Exactly: right perhaps, but not right enough. Decrying the demise of Gaddhafi as tragic is wrong enough to be comical. Just as implicitly rooting for the Assad crime family is.
Free education and healthcare and subsidized housing exist in all sorts of shitty places on the Gulf that happen to be drowning in oil. Are you going to shed tears for them too?

Posted by: Guthman Bey | Aug 22 2011 13:07 utc | 22

If this is a ‘strategy’ it doesn’t seem to be working very well for Gaddafi and his followers. My guess given the so good timing (for NATO) is that some faction was generously bribed. The regime second that defected a few day ago was a Warfallah. perhaps the leaders of that tribe decided to change sides.
Now the different factions/tribes will have the interest of arming themselves with the spoils as leverage for the new power arrangement.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 13:10 utc | 23

For me, there is only one question to be pondered. Will the vast bulk of the Libyan people be better off, and be able to share in the nation’s wealth when this all shakes out? I, for one, doubt it.

Posted by: ben | Aug 22 2011 14:32 utc | 24

The Official Story is a bit hard to swallow.
The ‘rebels’ were a hopeless bunch of squabbling wimps and poseurs. Now we’re being asked to believe that they stumbled on a huge cache of weapons which miraculously escaped every one of NATO’s 19,000 bombing sorties. Equally miraculous was the way the weapons transformed them into a cohesive and disciplined fighting force, ready to storm Tripoli.
All the reports up until a week ago were about the ‘rebels’ capturing small rural villages, empty airfields, isolated border crossings etc and to-ing and fro-ing outside modest regional towns.
NATO didn’t trust the ‘rebels’ to create their own no-fly zone and it was pretty obvious that they couldn’t be trusted to mount a successful ground operation.
Xymphora thinks the people who stormed Tripoli were mercenaries recruited and delivered by NATO and that makes more sense than NATO’s Grimm Fairy Tale.
It was always a bit bizarre that NATO claimed not to know who the ‘rebels’ were. But with the benefit of hindsight I suppose mercenaries are indistinguishable from ‘rebels’ to the casual observer.
They’ve done it again, folks.
“We’re history’s actors … and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.”

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Aug 22 2011 15:43 utc | 25

@ 25: Yep, another domino on the road towards the “Global Plantation”?

Posted by: ben | Aug 22 2011 16:04 utc | 26

Juan Cole and Pat Lang are exulting in their “i told you so’s.”
Lang has always been indifferent to the potentially catastrophic aftermath, preferring to let Libyans sort it out amongst themselves (as if that were possible in a petro-state–heck, it’s not even possible in Haiti or Honduras.)
Cole championed the intervention on humanitarian grounds, but will be equally indifferent to the likely bloodbath yet to come. Cole’s cognitive dissonance is in hyper-drive.

Posted by: JohnH | Aug 22 2011 16:20 utc | 27

The thing to keep in mind is that this rebel advance is part of a foreign financed and orchestrated coup against the Libyan government. When Ghadafi was interview months ago by reporters from the American networks, he made a point to break from translation and tell them (in English) that they did not understand how the system works (the one that governs Libya). What is happening now in Tripoli is strange, given that loyalist forces have held up the rebel advance for months, elsewhere.

Posted by: Copeland | Aug 22 2011 16:30 utc | 28

The strategy seems to be to burn down, completely destroy, the areas controlled by the Gaddafi faction this night. Expect a very heavy bombing this night around Bab al-Aziziya to clear all opposition. They have been warning/menacing all day about the matter as an excuse to say that ‘no civilians were harmed’.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 17:20 utc | 29

My guess is that the areas around Bab al-Aziziya are a heavy reinforced underground base. NATO has been pounding the site for months with not much known success other than generating more rubble. The BBC journalist at Rixos reports that the are is still under control of Gaddafi forces with more units moving around at this moment.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 17:25 utc | 30

Thierry Meyssan of Voltairenet’s on the spot account of NATO unloading heavy weapons and fighters at the port and strafing the streets of Tripoli from helicopters.
NATO’s Carnage in Tripoli
http://www.voltairenet.org/NATO-carnage-in-Tripoli

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Aug 22 2011 17:33 utc | 31

This is getting more ridiculous by the moment. Now the only one of Gaddafi’s son, Mohammed, we had some ‘prove’ that had been captured (an audio recording from AJ) is said to have fled with help of Gaddafi forces.
AJA/AJE NATO war propaganda at work. They really deserve a prize. They are doing a superb job. The BBC journalist attempting to reach Green Square (now renamed Google Maps to ‘Martyrs Square’, let’s praise Big Brother) had to turn back because they were fired on last night.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 17:37 utc | 32

From BBC Live report.

1835: Jonathan Head BBC News, Misrata Misrata has sent boatloads of its fighters to support the uprising in Tripoli. But most of its forces are unable to get there because the road is still blocked by determined resistance from Gaddafi loyalists. Opening the road between the two cities would allow much need supplies into the capital and secure the opposition’s hold on western Libya. It is hoping that the news from Tripoli will persuade the remnants of the old regime to give up the fight and avoid more casualties.

They sure would hope propaganda worked to stop the fighting as soon as possible.
Who are this Berber Army from the Nafusa mountains that could take the whole west up to Tripoli by themselves in a couple days while the other Libyan rebels can’t advance a few kilometers in weeks? Will we discover time from now for which side the real ‘mercenaries’ were working for? My guess this is a French supported militia with French supplied weapons, French or Algerian (or any other client state that could supply them) officers directing the action (and providing direct link to NATO air support) and perhaps some miscellaneous group of ‘arab volunteers’.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 17:44 utc | 33

mb is essentially correct. what was the undeserved fate of latin america until the 1990’s under the american boots & brutes is now essentially the destiny of north africa & the middle east
it is a dark, very dark future

Posted by: remembereringgiap | Aug 22 2011 17:50 utc | 34

I watched an edition of AL Jaz on LINK TV late last night. Almost all footage was in Green Square.. I couldn’t help but notice quite a few folk were wearing what looked lie Desert Storm style fatigues… and wonder if those are normally (pre-invasion) seen in Libya?

Posted by: Eureka Springs | Aug 22 2011 17:57 utc | 35

There is not any doubt that the forces involved in “liberating” Libya are almost all led and armed by NATO. Nor that NATO is now actually doing most of the fighting, through Special Forces, mercenaries, artillery and aircraft.
The fate of Ghadaffi’s regime is irrelevant. What we are seeing here is Colour Revolutions 2.0. The addition of armed bands and Commando forces to the usual mix of propaganda, provocateurs, bribery and subversion.
This is the tactic of a State bent upon securing world domination, for no particular purpose except to enrich itself. World domination by nihilists prompted by greed.
Nothing can be more dangerous to humanity than for this lunatic plan to continue. It guarantees war and suffering and, very probably, environmental disaster, unless it is stopped.
What is at stake in Tripoli is not the fate of an obscure nationalist experiment, in a country consisting largely of deserts, but whether or not the world will remain complacent in the face of an avowed and active campaign to extend the domination of the ruling class of the United States over the entire planet.
The record shows that there is no collective on earth less capable of using power wisely or with moderation than the one founded in the genocides of aboriginal Americans and the slave and indentured labours of chattel slaves, indentured and trafficked coolies and immigrants, debt peons and convicts. A nation with 6% of the population, 25% of the prisoners and considerably more than 50% of the firepower in the world.

Posted by: bevin | Aug 22 2011 17:59 utc | 36

no it is not over yet
http://twitter.com/#!/feb17voices

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 18:58 utc | 37

Dennis Kucinich: Time to End NATO’s War in Libya.

…US diplomats and world leaders carelessly voiced unsubstantiated claims of an impending massacre in Benghazi. You hear no such appeals to humanity while Nato, in the name of the rebels (whoever they are), prepares to lay siege to Tripoli, a city of nearly 2 million people.
Libyan rebels are now advancing on the capital city of Tripoli with the aid of Nato strikes; this is sure to result in a real bloodbath, as opposed to the one that was conjured in Benghazi this past winter. Nato is assisting rebels who are blocking food, water and medical supplies from coming into the capital city, and is stopping those who need advanced medical care from travelling to Tunisia to access it. Nato is bombing power stations, creating blackouts, and using Apache helicopters to attack Libyan police checkpoints to clear roads for rebels to advance.
Regardless of whether Muammar Gaddafi is ousted in coming days, the war against Libya has seen countless violations of United Nations security council resolutions (UNSCRs) by Nato and UN member states. The funnelling of weapons (now being air-dropped) to Libyan rebels was, from the beginning of the conflict, in clear violation of UNSCR 1970. The use of military force on behalf of the rebels, in an attempt to impose regime change, has undermined international law and damaged the credibility of the United Nations. Countless innocent civilians have been killed, and Nato air strikes continue to place many at great risk.

Posted by: Copeland | Aug 22 2011 19:38 utc | 38

Yeah, Dennis Kucinich is a great guy. He is right.
Speaking cold-heartedly strategically however, NATO planners seem to have circled to bite their own tail – from the moment there was this transition plan of a desperate genius to leave security forces in place (called learning from Iraq).
so the rebels are now asking the same forces to surrender they need for security?
I guess loyalists decided to switch roles, the rebels now are the government having to secure (and getting stretched) whilst they can attack and defend what they chose. Ex-Rebels/NATO also cannot cut Tripolis off now, as now the Transitional Council will be held responsible.

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 19:59 utc | 39

no. 22 Guthman Bey, of course you are right.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Saudi_Arabia
Gaddafi’s Libya or Saudi Arabia is a choice of life styles not social programmes or freedom.

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 20:11 utc | 40

To the rescue comes the cavalry.

2142: Kim Sengupta of Britain’s Independent newspaper is in Tripoli near Green Square (renamed Martyrs’ Square by the rebels). He tells the BBC World Service: “For the last five hours we had quite intense clashes which ended temporarily after air strikes – what sounded like helicopter gunships.”

They wouldn’t be using gunships at night and so close without direct communication with the rebel forces in the field.

Posted by: ThePaper | Aug 22 2011 20:55 utc | 41

ok. now we go … Cameron, Sarkozy, Obama …
This here is a now government tweet
feb17voices Feb 17 voices
AJA: Abdel Hakim Bel Haj- head of military council of #Tripoli, confirms he Military Council is coordinating with NATO #Libya
vor 45 Minuten
Feb 17 voices
feb17voices Feb 17 voices
AJA: Abdel Hakim Bel Haj- head of military council of #Tripoli, speaking from there: security situation is under control #Libya
And in this .pdf there is a guy called Abdelhakim Belhaj, Member of the Ex-Libyan Islamic Fighting group – would be the same guy, yes?
http://www.pvtr.org/pdf/Report/RSIS_Libya.pdf
MARCH 2010
INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR POLITICAL VIOLENCE
AND TERRORISM RESEARCH
S. RAJARATNAM SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
NANYANG TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY,
SINGAPORE
LIBYA
MARCH 2010
INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR POLITICAL VIOLENCE
AND TERRORISM RESEARCH
S. RAJARATNAM SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
NANYANG TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY,
SINGAPORE
COMBATING TERRORISM IN
LIBYA THROUGH DIALOGUE
AND REINTEGRATION
“Movement History as Disclosed by him4:
Abu Munther was arrested for two weeks in Libya in 1984.
He was a civil engineering student and had left Libya in
1988 as he felt that there was no freedom to practice
religion. Between 1988 and 1990 he was in Pakistan and
Afghanistan. In 1990 he got married in Algeria. He then
went to London in 1994 where he lived for 4 years. His
children grew up in London. He later spent 2 years in Qatar
where he encountered difficulty in extending his residency.
Without much choice, he then returned to Pakistan and
Afghanistan. He left Kabul for Iran after September 11. He
then spent 1 year in Iran without his wife and children. He
was arrested and transferred to Malaysia. He added that he
was arrested without reason by the US. He was detained
in Malaysia for 7 months. He noted that his treatment in
Malaysia was normal and that he and his family were then
transferred to China. In 2004, in Hong Kong he was arrested
for 10 days by the CIA. There was no punishment meted out
while he was detained.
He had tried to take his family to Norway for political asylum
but he and his family were arrested and brought back to
Libya. He was arrested in Libya in approximately 2004.
He was detained for 6 years. For first 1year and 2 months,
he was placed in solitary confinement and did not see
anything. He made no comment if he was tortured. He
added that he had developed diabetes and heart problems
during this time. He was not allowed to see his family for the
first 8 months of his detention. Abu Munther chose not to
elaborate on the detention conditions in Libya or the way
he was treated. He was sentenced to death in December
2009. He was only told he was going to be pardoned on 21
March 2010 and was released two days later on 23 March
2010.
View of Saif Gaddafi:
He said that Saif was a good man for Libya and despite the
difficulties he was facing from other parties, Saif Gaddafi
was still trying to do a lot.
Final Discussions:
Abu Munther noted that many people in the west did not
treat Islam objectively. He wished that the west would deal
with Islam without preconceptions and objectively. He added
that there ought to be a conference of Muslim people.
He added that he would like to reflect on the real meaning
of Islam to the world as it is. He felt that many think of
Muslims as terrorists but he would now like to clarify that
when Muslims have to fight for their countries there is
reason and a motivating force. He added that many think
that Islam is just about war. He felt that he had wanted to
give an objective example.
Islamic laws has rules against Jihad. While it is used in the
name of Islam to kill others. But it is against Syariah law.
In the history of LIFG there were no operations against
civilians. Operations were only carried out against the
regime and security forces. The LIFG is against all suicide
attacks, before and always.”

Posted by: somebody | Aug 22 2011 21:05 utc | 42

Who’s under arrest ?
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/muammar-gaddafis-son-seif-al-islam-appears-despite-reports-of-arrest/story-e6frf7lf-1226119301193

Posted by: felix | Aug 23 2011 0:03 utc | 43

“So when does the West start pretending the “rebels” did this all by themselves?”
I was listening to the Diane Rehm show on NPR while driving this morning. I believe it was Robin Wright who answered the question whether Syrian protestors would be inspired by the success of the Libyan rebels. Her answer was an enthusiastic yes, how could they not be inspired by the success of the “ragtag” rebels. Nothing about the hundreds of “ragtag” American cruise missiles, thousands of “ragtag” NATO sorties, etc.

Posted by: BobS | Aug 23 2011 0:42 utc | 44

Libya is Iraq 2.0 — Pepe Escobar
http://rt.com/usa/news/pepe-escobar-libya-iraq-132/

Posted by: Linda J | Aug 23 2011 1:48 utc | 45

bevin@36: I would tend to agree with your assessment. We truly live in a very dark time.

Posted by: ben | Aug 23 2011 4:39 utc | 46

yes, and he was in a good mood
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/54761000/jpg/_54761484_012710002-1.jpg
he is showing the rebel victory sign in that image, by the way.
Libya is such a Rorschach test. Everybody sees in there what they usually see in the world. It is something new:
1. Libya is not occupied.
2. Everybody there has a gun now, including women.
3. Alliances might change by the hour.
4. The most organized militias are owned by the former regime and the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group.
5. NATO coordinates with the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group. They cannot really know what they hit now. Might be somebody like general Younes.
6. NATO’s puppets in Libya have no militia on the ground, NATO cannot protect them from the air.
7. A deal of Saif al Islam with the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group is likely.

Posted by: somebody | Aug 23 2011 4:58 utc | 47

August 23rd:
“To my left is the old city which is in rebel hands – the rebels have got the harbour, the corniche, they’ve got Green Square. But to my right, where the fighting is going on, there are a series of tall government buildings where the rebels have taken up positions and they are now duking it out with Gaddafi forces in Bab al-Azizya, which is Gaddafi’s compound and the area where the Rixos hotel is situated. There is just a big battle going on [sound of shelling] that’s a big mortar. It is clear that the city is not in rebel hands, nor is it entirely in government hands. What we are looking at now is a Beirut-style situation. The west of city – the opposition have taken control of that – and the mood there is much calmer. But here in the heart of Tripoli there is this just this almighty fight.”
http://audioboo.fm/boos/447731-fierce-fighting-resumes-in-tripoli-luke-harding-reports-after-appearance-of-saif-al-islam-boosts-morale-of-gaddafi-loyalists-libya

Posted by: felix | Aug 23 2011 8:56 utc | 48

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MH24Ak01.html
the vultures circle:
http://aangirfan.blogspot.com/2011/08/libyas-future.html
including bizarrely:
‘Raphael Luzon, the leader of the Libyan-Jewish community in the UK has said that he has been invited to run for political office in the post-Gaddafi era.
Raphael Luzon told the Jerusalem Post that rebel leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil has invited him to return to Libya and run in elections.
Luzon said he was invited to take part in the elections “because they would like it to be open to all people including women and Jews.”
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women and jews? How will that square with their sharia law?

Posted by: brian | Aug 23 2011 21:36 utc | 49

the lackey house negro speaks:
‘Tonight, the momentum against the Qaddafi regime has reached a tipping point,” Mr. Obama said in a statement. “Tripoli is slipping from the grasp of a tyrant. The Qaddafi regime is showing signs of collapsing. The people of Libya are showing that the universal pursuit of dignity and freedom is far stronger than the iron fist of a dictator.”
No mention of the use of US/NATO war planes and helicopters strafing civilians in this puppets speech: killing> 1300 people! This man should be inpeached quickly then sent to the Hague as a 1st class war criminal.
If US is an eg of democracy, Libya is definitely better off without it.

Posted by: brian | Aug 23 2011 21:39 utc | 50

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