Strategy! - Libya Edition

[Blaze]

The Maps:

http://port.inst.uhcl.edu/FreemanN/INST6037/libya.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_population_624.gif

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_oilgas_1_624map.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_milit_bases_624map_3.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_tripoli_624map_3.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_624x440_2.jpg

Describe the Revolutionary Forces:

1. Leader/s:


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -

2. Organization:


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -

3. Armaments (Physical and perceived):


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -

Describe the Gaddafi Regime:

1. Leader/s:


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -

2. Organization:


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -

3. Armaments (Physical and perceived):


A. Strengths -


B. Weaknesses -









Discuss

[ELVIS]

http://depressionintrospection.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/antidepressantscartoon.gif?w=436&h=336

[Blaze]

These planes of Gaddafi are really a pain in the arse.

What good is a no fly zone issued by whomever? Useless I tell you.
The planes need to be stopped.

Considering the resources, I would say send in 25, or there abouts, coked-up cowboys to sugar the tanks (or something similar). They have to be coked-up good so they will be skittish, bold, and grandiose in their belief in themselves because they are operating with instinct not training.

[Blaze]

Correction : Ritalin or Pharmaceutical cocaine (or something medically similar) not the slang term I used. :)

[Kristy]

Anyone find it a wee bit ironic that Gaddafi, whether on his medication or off, and Libya with its "sweet crude" is enough to buy the latest in Soviet MiGs or that its the French being the first to call for a "no fly zone" while selling Dassault Mirage's to his air force?

[Blaze]

As long as it is not food or water (morally wrong to destroy), it is best to forgo the possible pillage and destroy assets or severely disable them.

[Blaze]

Despite the creation of a breakaway Kurdish enclave, and the most crippling sanctions imposed in modern times, Hussein held on to power until he was deposed in 2003 by a “shock and awe” air campaign and ground invasion of US troops.

“What happened as we know is that Saddam quickly solidified his support base, and the separation of the Kurdish areas from Baghdad actually helped him, because it isolated the contagion; then he used sanctions to strengthen his position,” says Dodge.

Now, he says, Qaddafi faces a similar situation.

“We have revolt in Benghazi, too disorganized to defeat him, which means either [Qaddafi] can roll it back in or he can just take that portion of the country – a thorn in the side of the regime ever since the [1969] revolution – and isolate it. He then falls back on his heartland, where he’s strong … and then solidifies a potentially defendable position.”

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0308/Why-Libya-s-Qaddafi-could-survive-like-Saddam-in-1991/(page)/2

[Blaze]

True or false???
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

International banks are refusing to clear payments in U.S. dollars for the Libyan oil trade, Reuters ...

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110308-710358.html

[hambon4lif]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_624x440_2.jpgBy their positioning, it looks as if they're utilizing the Sun Tzu strategy, almost to the letter. If Misrata and Zawlya are deliberate diversions, it could be very effective.

[Blaze]

Washington (CNN) -- Libya's helicopter forces are its greatest threat, the head of the Marine Corps said Tuesday.

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, asked Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James F. Amos about Libya's air capabilities during a committee hearing held to discuss the Navy's portion of the 2012 Defense budget request.

"I think it's modest," Amos responded. "I think probably their greatest threat are their helicopter-type forces."

Helicopters would be more difficult to target if the international community set up a no-fly zone. Such a zone would typically be enforced by fighter jets whose speed and altitude make it difficult to target helicopters, which move low and slow.

Amos didn't know how many helicopters and fixed wing aircraft the Libyan government has but said the forces are predominately concentrated in four airbases around Tripoli.

"Has it been your experience in combat if the enemy controls the air above, particularly in terrain like Libya, it gives them an enormous advantage," McCain asked.

Amos would not answer the question directly, calling the environment where the Gadhafi forces are located "very complex."

"Sir, I think there are several things that would give the enemy enormous advantage. One is the ground movement of forces, vehicles, movement on the ground," Amos said. "So I think it's more than just aviation."

The Libyan Air Force has major deficiencies in its operational capabilities, according to Jane's Information Group, which does analysis of military forces. Its assessment notes it is possible that contract officers fly important missions due to the "low standard of locally trained aircrew."

Libya's Air Force command is in Tripoli, according to Jane's. Their helicopter fleet is small, perhaps no more than a few dozen attack helicopters built more than 30 years ago, it says. But the Air Force is believed to have many utility helicopters, as well, which can be used to move troops and equipment.

Compared with NATO pilots, Libya's fighter jet pilots are believed to get four times less training in the air, Jane's says, and Russian pilots who have been to Libya say that the Libyan pilots have a hard time tolerating high-altitude maneuvers. Most fighter jets are the old Soviet-era MiGs, and fewer than 200 are operational, according to Jane's.

McCain expressed frustration with the lack of answers to some of his questions, including a question on whether Amos had heard reports about Gadhafi flying mercenaries from other countries into Libya. Amos said he had not.

"You have been getting regular briefings?" McCain asked Amos. Amos said he had.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/03/08/senate.hearing.libya/

[Blaze]

And finally, the official words for the isolated.

Voice of America ®
A Trusted Source of News & Information since 1942

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Correspondent-Debriefer-An-Inside-View-of-the-Situation-on-the-Ground-in-Benghazi-Libya-117589018.html


Correspondent Debriefer: An Inside View of the Situation in Benghazi, Libya

http://media.voanews.com/images/480*347/reu_benghazi_480_8mar11.jpg

[chefcraig]

By their positioning, it looks as if they're utilizing the Sun Tzu strategy, almost to the letter. If Misrata and Zawlya are deliberate diversions, it could be very effective.

Yeah, I liked Stratego when I was a kid, as well.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e306/flixk/Board%20Games/d7_1.jpg

Yet the older I got, the more I enjoyed Othello. Easier to play when lit. http://www.easyfreesmileys.com/smileys/smoking-030.gif (http://www.easyfreesmileys.com/skype-emoticons.html)

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z163/leekrempel/OthelloBd.jpg

[hambon4lif]

I like 'GO' myself......

Facetiousness? Really??!?!?

[Nitro Express]

Another spat to sell weapons to.

[Nitro Express]

My father in law was a product manager on the Comanche attack helicopter program. It was scrapped because attack helicopters are obsolete due to shoulder fired missiles. They are just too slow. Attack aircraft and drones have replaced them.

[Blaze]

By their positioning, it looks as if they're utilizing the Sun Tzu strategy, almost to the letter. If Misrata and Zawlya are deliberate diversions, it could be very effective.

I ordered the book, the card deck, and the CD. :baaa:


http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51PTQC6P5EL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg

[ELVIS]

With your welfare money ??

[Nitro Express]

They made us read The Art of War in one of my management classes and then in marketing we had to read Guerilla Marketing. Business School was full of warmongers.

[hambon4lif]

With your welfare money ??Are you really a misogynist? Or are you just posting stuff to beat off to?

[Jagermeister]

Are you really a misogynist? Or are you just posting stuff to beat off to?

ELVIS hates women?

[Blaze]

Elvis, you are a ninny.

Nitro,
Elvis does not exactly hate woman. He is simply frustrated. He dressing, acting, and on occasion playing catch (though noted... he has been "cured") as a woman. Perhaps, when he was younger had he more gumption and born in an different era, he would have had the operation. And I think he would have made a quite fine woman. I do not think he would have been near as bitter as a woman as he is a male. :)
Even with his dominate manly features of time, he is quite a warm womanly presence about him.

[PETE'S BROTHER]

ELVIS hates women?

you googled it, dintcha?

[hambon4lif]

Elvis, you are a ninny.

Nitro,
Elvis does not exactly hate woman. He is simply frustrated. He dressing, acting, and on occasion playing catch (though noted... he has been "cured") as a woman. Perhaps, when he was younger had he more gumption and born in an different era, he would have had the operation. And I think he would have made a quite fine woman. I do not think he would have been near as bitter as a woman as he is a male. :)
Even with his dominate manly features of time, he is quite a warm womanly presence about him.I hope he gets reincarnated as a black woman. It would serve his punk-ass right.

[Blaze]

Thank you, people of the internet!

Whooohoo! I got my packages today!

I ordered 2 box sets of The Art of War



One set is shown above. The cards are super cool. They have a text from The Art of War on one side and a commentary explination on the other side.
Both box sets are from the Denma Translation Group. I highly recommend this translation, especially with the commentary.

The other box set is the book with 3 CDs one CD has only the text of the book. The other two have the 2 commentaries included, one for each.

That gives me 2 books, the card set, and the 3 CDs.

I will most likely burn the CDs to a digital file and put the CD box set up for a simple contest of some sort, some where.

They were both very reasonable, therefore the contest is more for fun. Though both box sets are out of print.



Whoohoo. Very useful this book and audio are, especially if one is able to visualize dynamically in a continuum. :baaa:

[PETE'S BROTHER]

Thank you, people of the internet!

Whooohoo! I got my packages today!

I ordered 2 box sets of The Art of War



One set is shown above. The cards are super cool. They have a text from The Art of War on one side and a commentary explination on the other side.
Both box sets are from the Denma Translation Group. I highly recommend this translation, especially with the commentary.

The other box set is the book with 3 CDs one CD has only the text of the book. The other two have the 2 commentaries included, one for each.

That gives me 2 books, the card set, and the 3 CDs.

I will most likely burn the CDs to a digital file and put the CD box set up for a simple contest of some sort, some where.

They were both very reasonable, therefore the contest is more for fun. Though both box sets are out of print.



Whoohoo. Very useful this book and audio are, especially if one is able to visualize dynamically in a continuum. :baaa:

one could make a mint on this site off a blaze thesaurus/translator

[Blaze]

I hope he gets reincarnated as a black woman. It would serve his punk-ass right.

:biggrin:
I up your hopes to a prayer!
Wow, reading my first writing, one would think I have been hanging out with foreigners. :hitch:

[hambon4lif]

That's awesome!

You have to be careful of which version you get, though. That book's been translated almost as many times as the Bible.

Damn good book! By the time you get to the end of it, you'll figure out there is no such thing as an opponent....not a worthy one anyways.

Happy reading!

[Blaze]

I researched the book and various translations throughly before ordering. This translation was highly recommended. I was hesitant of this translation because it was new work. However, I researched the Denma Translation Group credentials and found them superior to the standardized accepted translators. I would agree with others, especially upon hearing the CDs that this translation is now the standard.

I have endeavored into many books that have translation and commentary. The only way this could be improved would be to add the actual script, transliteration, and verbatim translation. However, that would be a thick book and at least 4 more CDs. :)

[Blaze]

If you are far from the enemy, make him believe you are near.
Sun Tzu



What were some of the best large weaponry of the middle ages?

[Blaze]

[Blaze]

http://books.google.com/books?id=JPm9ovP_304C&lpg=PP1&pg=PR10#v=onepage&q&f=false

The art of the catapult: build Greek ballistae, Roman onagers, English ... By William Gurstelle

[BigBadBrian]

I hope he gets reincarnated as a black woman. It would serve his punk-ass right.

I hope you get reincarnated as a man. Then you'll finally know what it's like. :biggrin:

[Blaze]

Close your eyes and visualize.
Understand the past as if the future.
Understand the future as if the past.
Now is either one of the two.
To hear become deaf
To see become blind
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1302/620932015_1f3cad80a7_t.jpg

~~~~~
One skilled at moving the enemy

Forms and the enemy must follow,
Offers and the enemy must take.

-The Art of War. SHIH

[Seshmeister]

http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee43/Seshmeister/palin.jpg

[Blaze]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_milit_bases_624map_3.jpg

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51793000/jpg/_51793108_libya_airstrikes_21.03_624.jpg

[Blaze]

[As we watched the news channels report on the missile strikes by the US against a military defence target near Tripoli, several friends in different parts of the city told me they saw ambulances driving around the city in circles - seemingly aimlessly - with their sirens on.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

I could hear people shouting and screaming”

Man detained by secret police
They believe the government was attempting to cause panic among residents here and "give the illusion that there are casualties somewhere".

[Blaze]

The men of Bengahzi'

There is a joke circulating amongst Tripoli's men: "When Libya is liberated, our brothers in Benghazi will march to the capital with containers of women's underwear to distribute to us." ;)

They collapse in laughter as they tell the tale and sip on their coffee.

At least one woman in Tripoli has expressed a similar view, but this was no gag, as far as I'm aware. The incident was witnessed by my relative's friend at a bank in the Souk al-Jumaa district.


Col Gaddafi still has some supporters in Tripoli
An old woman, in her late 70s at least, I'm told, entered the bank to collect her 500 Libyan dollars ($410; £253) in state aid announced a couple of weeks ago.

There were two long queues - one for men and one for women. She stood in the men's queue.

The men urged her to move to the women's section. "Why?" she challenged.

A man told her: "Ya haja [a term of respect for an elderly woman] this line is for men, women is the other one".

She loudly replied: "No. All the men are in Benghazi."

The room is said to have been stunned into silence and she remained in her place until her turn came and she walked out with her money.

It is perhaps a bittersweet private reminder of how frustrated many here are at the lack of efforts in Tripoli in recent weeks to defy the regime and take to the streets.

However it is also placated by the fact that they did try - twice - and were met with a force so brutal that they conceded it was simply a suicidal task. There is considerable anger brewing behind closed doors here in Tripoli.

[Blaze]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_milit_bases_624map_3.jpg

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51793000/jpg/_51793108_libya_airstrikes_21.03_624.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/world/middle_east/11/libya_tripoli_map/img/libya_624x440_2.jpg

[Blaze]

Many local businesses have even reverted to fax machines to communicate with the outside world. The internet has been shut down for almost two weeks now.

Fake smiles
I visited an old friend earlier this week.

His son arrived home from university shortly after we sat down for an afternoon coffee.

When I asked him how his studies were going, he replied: "I was standing talking with a friend on campus just before I left the university and this girl we know came up to us and loudly announced that al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya news channels had been erased from their channel list because she and her family only watch one 'true' channel, al-Libiyah [the state-owned one].


"We just silently nodded with a fake smile and said our goodbyes."

There is disappointment in his voice as he carries on: "I can't believe she is so blind - you think maybe she was pretending because there were people watching us there?" he asks.

His father and I knowingly shook our heads like ageing wise men but could offer nothing in response.

...

Several primary school teachers recount similar stories of young pupils being questioned by school employees aligned to the regime's Revolutionary Committee Movement, which is being used to suppress dissent.

...

Back at my friend's home we briefly switch channels to watch the state-run al-Libiyah. There's a man on the screen "confessing" the error of his ways to the Libyan leader in what appears to be a tent.

My friend tells me of a report he saw on the channel, warning the public of "cars being rigged with bombs in crowded areas" - by the ever elusive al-Qaeda elements in the country, that is.

"This means the regime is going to start doing that," my old friend concludes.

...

[Blaze]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12806112
Canada, Italy, Spain, Belgium and Qatar are also offering military support.

[Blaze]

Libyan armed forces (before unrest)

Service Strength Kit Status
SOURCE: INSTITUTE FOR NATIONAL SECURITY STUDIES, ECONOMIST

Army
45,000
Tanks: 650 Infantry vehicles: 1,050 APCs: 1,080 Artillery: 2,320
Weak and poorly equipped (mostly conscripts)

Paramilitary
40,000
Little known about equipment
Well-armed and highly trained loyal tribesmen and African mercenaries.

Air force
8,000
Combat: 260 Transport: 83 Helicopters: 117
Well-equipped but poorly run. Planes are old Soviet MiG and French-built Mirage craft.

Air defence
15,000
SAM launchers: 400 Anti-aircraft guns: 440
Status unknown but mainly comprised of conscripts

Navy
8,000
Combat vessels: 17 Patrol craft: 10 Landing craft: 4
Status unknown. Ageing Soviet-built craft


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12692068

[Blaze]

Gaddafi's military

Fighter/bomber je
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51608000/jpg/_51608958_sukhoi-getty.jpg
Air power is certainly Colonel Gaddafi's strongest hand in contrast to the rebels, but experts say that so far it has not proved a decisive factor in the fighting. As discussions continue at NATO on potential military options like a no-fly zone, Nato is already closely monitoring Libyan air operations, both to get a picture of how a no-fly zone might be enforced but also to get a sense of how significant the Gaddafi regime's use of air power really is.

Main battle tan
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51608000/jpg/_51608964_govt-tank-cropped.jpg

Tanks are best employed in open warfare where they can manoeuvre effectively. They can be vulnerable in urban areas even to improvised weapons. There have been reports of gas cylinders being used as an incendiary weapon against one government tank.

The very best Libyan tanks - the T72s are likely to be with the elite 32nd Brigade led by one of Colonel Gaddafi's sons. Though, as with so much of Libyan hardware, it's hard to know how much is serviceable. Western experts caution that "elite" in this sense is only a relative term. The 32nd Brigade is better equipped than other Libyan units but its purpose is essentially to protect the regime and its war fighting capabilities are uncertain

Attack helicopte
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51598000/jpg/_51598608_109811753.jpg


It carries a crew of two, in a stepped, tandem arrangement, with the weapons operator sitting just ahead of and below the pilot. It is armed with a multi-barreled machine-gun or cannon and it can fire anti-tank missiles and deliver other munitions against ground targets. In addition it can also carry up to eight infantrymen in its rear compartment.

It gives Colonel Gaddafi's forces tactical mobility and relatively heavy mobile fire-power. NATO aircraft found it quite difficult to track and destroy Serbian helicopters during the imposition of "no-fly zones" in the Balkans. While the terrain in Libya is very different, halting all local helicopter flights might be a difficult task for the commanders of any future "no-fly zone".

Self-propelled howitze
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51608000/jpg/_51608965_90272492.jpg
his is the heavy fire-power of the Libyan Army - a 155mm Palmaria self-propelled howitzer. This is a model specifically built for export by Oto Melara of Italy. So it is a relatively modern weapon very much to NATO standards.

Libya is listed as having around 160 of these long-range guns. Maximum range is some 24 km though it can fire even further with rocket-assisted munitions though it is not clear if the Libyans have this specific ammunition. Maximum rate of fire is six rounds per minute.

This photo is of a parade with the main gun reversed to face the rear of the vehicle. No images of this weapon in action during the current conflict have been seen but it is among the most modern artillery systems available to the Libyan Army.

BMP-1 infantry combat vehicle
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51608000/jpg/_51608966_fighting-veh-afp-cropped.jpg

along with the vehicle's crew, can carry eight infantrymen. They are armed with a medium-calibre smooth-bore gun and machine gun and can also fire guided anti-tank missiles.

They are not especially heavily armoured and vulnerable to relatively light anti-armour weapons like the RPG or rocket-propelled grenade.

Libya is listed in the Military Balance of the IISS as having over 1000 BMP-1s though it is not clear how many are serviceable and how they may be distributed between the Gaddafi loyalists and the rebels

[Blaze]

Key figures in Libya's rebel counci
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12698562

US crew rescued after Libya cras
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12816226
^^

[Blaze]

By BOBBY GHOSH WITH ABIGAIL HAUSLOHNER / BENGHAZI – 2 hrs 27 mins ago
...
Rebels and allied airpower have destroyed all but 11 of the 80 tanks that had been moving on Benghazi; 10 have been captured intact, along with 20 pickup trucks, two armored vehicles and another fitted with radar gear. Anywhere from 400 to 600 government troops have been killed.

...

It all sounds most reassuring, until you drive to the front line between the rebels and government forces. There, 6 miles (10 km) from Ajdabiyah, the mood among rebel fighters is more tentative than triumphant.

...

But the attacks have not curbed Gaddafi's bellicose rhetoric. After dropping out of sight for the first few days, he made a public appearance on March 23, proclaiming before a small group of loyalists, "I am here. I am here. I am here."

...

"The officers and commanders have no control over the youth who are pushing the front line," he said bitterly. "They don't take orders from anyone."

That's OK

...

"You couldn't open a grocery store in one month," says Mustafa Gheriani,

...

the formation of a committee in charge of youth or finance or some other function, only for it to be rendered moot by another committee in a matter of days.

It's called being fluid.

...

deal with municipal challenges like street cleaning and garbage disposal. :baaa:

...

It's not easy to tell them apart, because many of the teachers, oil workers and lawyers turned fighters are dressed in uniforms and armed with weapons that they took from captured military bases or that were abandoned by government troops. :baaa:

...

some of the captured bases were being run by generals and colonels who appeared to be overseeing some basic weapons training. They're rarely seen now;

...

During battle, civilians with megaphones or loud voices often assume the task of rallying the disorganized fighters. :baaa:

...

Since Gaddafi's successful counterattack in early March, many rebels have grown suspicious of the soldiers who come over to their side. "The big problem here is that most of the revolutionary guys don't trust the military people because a lot of military guys were with Gaddafi at the start," says Najla Elmangoush, a criminal-law professor at Benghazi's Garyounis University and a volunteer at the headquarters of the rebels' transitional national council. "We welcomed them when they joined," she adds. "But people are concerned that maybe they'll try any time to change sides." (Gaddafi's son Saif told TIME earlier in the month that many rebel leaders were in touch with the regime.)

...

but paranoia abounds: fighters talk of spies in their midst and snipers lurking on Benghazi's rooftops.

Sniper's makes even the best leery.

...

"They could drop leaflets telling people, 'Stay away from Gaddafi's armor because we're going after them tonight.' Not only would the Libyan civilians stay away from them, but so would the tank crews."

...

Rear Admiral Gerard Hueber, the chief of staff of the Odyssey Dawn campaign, said his targeting priorities included "mechanized forces, artillery, those mobile surface-to-air missile sites, interdicting their lines of communications ... their command and control and any opportunity for sustainment of their activity." The goal, he added, is to hit the armor before it enters rebel-held cities, where any strike from the air would be likely to cause civilian casualties.

...

In the end, a chopper came to pick him up and return him to U.S. hands. "He was treated with dignity and respect," said Admiral Samuel Locklear, the overall commander of the operations over Libya.

...

The wreckage of the F-15 has already become the latest destination for what can only be described as war tourists:Libyans who, emboldened by the allied air strikes against Gaddafi's forces, turn up at the front line for a look. Many have come in the hope of seeing Western jets blow up some tanks. Their cars, indistinguishable from the rebels' vehicles, just add to the traffic chaos

...

Then, when the air strikes fail to materialize, some visitors lose heart and others talk of taking matters into their own hands.

...

"I will drive as far as I can into [enemy] ranks and blow myself up," he says. :ashamed: He doesn't appear to have any explosives prepared. "Or a car bomb," one of his friends suggests. "Or blow up a car bomb," al-Faytoori agrees. "A lot of people here are prepared to do that."

Or build a catapult that lobs cars that blow up on impact.

...

Mohamed, from Tobruk, has fashioned a rebel flag into a bandanna and says he's here to defend Benghazi. How does he intend to do that? "I'm hoping someone will die, and I'll get his weapons."

...

- with reporting by Mark Thompson / Washington and Vivienne Walt / Paris

[Blaze]

France 'shoots down Libyan plane
The incident happened near the besieged western city of Misrata, reports said.

Dozens of coalition missiles have already hit military bases, with the aim of ending Col Muammar Gaddafi's ability to launch air attacks.

UK officials said on Wednesday that Libya's air force no longer existed as a fighting force.

Coalition forces have pounded Libyan targets for a fifth consecutive night.

The French military said their planes had hit an air base about 250km (155 miles) south of the Libyan coastline, in an incident apparently unrelated to the shooting down of the Libyan plane.

French officials did not give any further information on the location of the target or the damage.

[Blaze]

This is where the major action is. There are snipers all along the rooftops of that street. They are firing indiscriminately into the main street and the back streets. They want to strike fear into the people of Misrata. They are wreaking havoc in Misrata and taking the lives of innocent people.

They are moving outwards to the north and north east of that street and are occupying more and more rooftops. They have occupied the whole street so they have a clear pathway into Misrata

...

Yesterday I went out driving around for an hour and all I could find was one bottle of water. People are relying on the old traditional methods of using wells to try to find drinking water.

...

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51822000/jpg/_51822458_011489966-1.jpg

[Blaze]

Tunisia freezes Gaddafi family assets: government source

– Thu Mar 24, 5:10 am ET
TUNIS (Reuters) – Libya's neighbor Tunisia has frozen assets belonging to the family of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, a Tunisian government source said on Thursday.

Western countries, the United Nations and the European Union have already frozen Libyan government and Gaddafi family assets as part of a package of sanctions imposed after Libya's crackdown on a revolt against Gaddafi's rule.

"Tunisia has frozen the assets of Gaddafi and five members of his family following a decision by the United Nations," the source, who did not want to be identified, told Reuters.

The freezing of assets in Tunisia is likely to have a significant impact because Libya has dozens of investments there, including hotels, a chain of petrol stations and a stake in an oil terminal.

Most of those assets are owned by Libyan state investment vehicles, but many of these are de facto controlled by members of Gaddafi's family.
Tunisia is also used by Libya's elite as a base for banking, vacations and healthcare, a practice which dates back to the 1980s and 1990s when international sanctions on Libya meant they had limited access to these services at home.

(Reporting by Tarek Amara; Writing by Christian Lowe)

[Blaze]

Again and again, along the road from the Tunisian border to Tripoli, you see evidence of real tension.
...
n Zawiya, the government vehicle which had picked us up at the border was not allowed to drive us through the centre of town. Instead, we were sent on a long diversion, 12 or more miles (20km), to the south before we could regain the main west-east coastal road to Tripoli.

Was the road itself too damaged for us to pass? Were there, just possibly, some isolated pockets of resistance along the way?

Impossible to find out from our government minders.

No signs of uniformity
"No problem, no problem," was all they would say when I asked them why we could not drive through the middle of Zawiya. But clearly there was a major problem of some kind.

...

Military occupation
There were plenty of black soldiers along the road we travelled, and most of them wore noticeably different uniforms from the standard ones. One of them seemed to speak no Arabic when I called out to him - but there was no possibility of checking.


Once again, when I asked our minders, they answered with their usual mantra: "No problem, no problem."

...

There was plenty of anti-Gaddafi graffiti on the walls which was slowly being replaced by smaller, more regular lettering in green: slogans supporting the regime and claiming that 'the people' backed it.

In fact, every one of the towns we passed through was clearly under military occupation. Down many side streets, small groups of soldiers were hanging around, presumably making sure that no groups of demonstrators could gather.

...
All the evidence is that the fight-back by the pro-Gaddafi forces has been highly effective to the west of Tripoli. This happened before the no-fly zone was established and the targeting of armoured vehicles and artillery began.

But it will be hard to drive Col Gaddafi's men out of Zuara, Sabratha and Zawiya a second time.

[Blaze]

Muammar Gaddafi's presidential bolt-hol

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51817000/jpg/_51817294_compound.jpg

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51816000/jpg/_51816376_compound_464.jpg


A day before the strike, a BBC team had visited the heavily fortified, high-walled complex.

At the south-eastern side of the compound is a football pitch, probably used by the families that inhabit the rows of houses just inside the compound.



"The streets with the low houses reminded me a bit of a refugee camp in Gaza," said one member of the team.

The houses are thought to be military accommodation. The team saw a small child peering out of one of them.

Beyond these houses is a lower wall and then an entrance into the compound's "inner sanctum". All visitors are security checked and have to pass through metal detectors.

The BBC team saw a lot of soldiers inside the compound and some old, light anti-aircraft guns attached to the back of trucks.

"There was a feeling that there were bunkers underground - I saw some air vents," says one member of the BBC team.

Libyan state TV has been broadcasting pro-Gaddafi rallies at the compound on a regular basis.

[Blaze]

France says won't take months to destroy Gaddafi army

– 2 hrs 32 mins ago
PARIS (Reuters) – It may take a coalition of Western powers days or weeks to destroy Muammar Gaddafi's military, but it will not require months, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said on Thursday.
Western warplanes hit Libya for a fifth night on Thursday, but have so far failed to stop Gaddafi's tanks shelling rebel-held towns or dislodge his armor from a strategic junction in the east.
"The destruction of Gaddafi's military capacity is a matter of days or weeks, certainly not months," Juppe told reporters.
He also defended the pace of the operation, adding: "You can't expect us to achieve our objective in just five days."
France spearheaded the U.N.-mandated intervention aimed at halting Gaddafi's counter-offensive against rebel forces who want to end 41 years of authoritarian rule.
Paris is now pushing, along with Britain, for the setting up of a contact group -- to be made up of the main countries involved in the operation and others including Arab nations that back it -- to discuss political governance and strategy for the mission, while NATO runs day-to-day military coordination.
Juppe said Arab leaders needed to understand that the tide of protests sweeping the region would change things for good and that all countries, including Saudi Arabia, needed to take into account the aspirations of the Arab people.
"The process going on in the Arab world is irreversible. People's aspirations must be taken into consideration everywhere, including in Saudi Arabia," he said.

[Blaze]

French strike deep in Libya, targeting arms flow

By RYAN LUCAS and MAGGIE MICHAEL, Associated Press – 6 mins ago
BENGHAZI, Libya – French airstrikes hit an air base deep inside Libya in an effort to stop possible traffic of arms or the flow of mercenaries into Libya, a military official said Thursday.
In a key eastern city, talks between Moammar Gadhafi's forces and between tribal sheiks over their possible withdrawal stalled over a demand that the troops leave their heavy weaponry behind, rebels said Thursday.

The French strikes overnight hit a base about 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of the Libyan coastline, French military spokesman Thierry Burkhard told reporters in Paris on Thursday without elaborating on the target. He said military officials would keep any analysis of damage confidential.
In Tripoli, Libyan deputy foreign minister Khaled Kaim said that the "military compound at Juffra" was among the targets hit before dawn. Libya has at least two air bases deep in the interior.

[Blaze]

http://www.captaindaves.com/images/top-left.gif

http://www.captaindaves.com/med-faq/medical.gif

http://www.captaindaves.com/med-faq/

So now you know - TEOTWAWKI means "The End Of The World As We Know It"

[PETE'S BROTHER]

.
France spearheaded the U.N.-mandated intervention aimed at halting Gaddafi's counter-offensive against rebel forces who want to end 41 years of authoritarian rule.
Paris is now pushing, along with Britain, for the setting up of a contact group -- to be made up of the main countries involved in the operation and others including Arab nations that back it -- to discuss political governance and strategy for the mission, while NATO runs day-to-day military coordination.


this is ridiculous !!

[Blaze]

http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/3d/33d1e357feb122f64fd352dcc558ffee.jpeg

Reuters/Ahmed Jadallah

[Blaze]

Brazilian plastic surgeon says operated on Gadhafi

By STAN LEHMAN, Associated Press – Fri Mar 25, 5:37 am ET
SAO PAULO – It was well past midnight when the Brazilian surgeon says he was escorted deep inside a bunker in the Libyan capital.
His assignment: to shave years off Moammar Gadhafi's appearance

...

Gadhafi wanted an immediate operation, but Ribeiro needed a surgical team and the procedure was scheduled for January 1995.
It began at 2 a.m. in Gadhafi's bunker, which "had two fully equipped and very modern operating rooms, a gym and a swimming pool," Ribeiro said.
"He insisted on local anesthesia saying he wanted to remain alert," the doctor added. "He was a very calm patient."
Sao Paulo-based plastic surgeon Dr. Fabio Naccache confirmed to the AP that he was part of the team and performed a hair transplant on the Libyan leader.
About halfway through, Gadhafi said he was hungry.
"Hamburgers were brought in for all and surgery was interrupted for several minutes while we ate," the surgeon said.
Afterward, Zaid handed Ribeiro an envelope "full of U.S. dollars and Swiss francs." He would not say how much money it contained.

...
The doctor stayed in Tripoli for 10 days while Gadhafi recovered.
Ribeiro said he assumes Gadhafi turned to him because Libyan surgeons were either "incapable of doing what I did or too scared that he would die on the operating table."

Using plastic surgery to change his appearance temporarily is an option to allow freedom of movement, not all plastic surgery requires long healing times.


---------------------------

West strikes Libya forces, NATO sees 90-day campaign

...

SUDAN SAID TO SUPPORT NO FLY ZONE

...

South of the Sahara, local media quoted a cabinet minister as saying Uganda would freeze Libyan assets worth about $375 million in line with a U.N. resolution imposing sanctions on Libya following Gaddafi's violence crackdown.

The United Arab Emirates said it would send 12 planes to take part in operations to enforce the no-fly zone.
Qatar has already contributed two fighters and two military transport planes to help enforce the no-fly zone.
Western jets pounded targets in southern Libya on Thursday but failed to prevent government tanks re-entering Misrata, whose main hospital was besieged by government snipers.

...

BAN: LIBYA NOT COMPLYING WITH RESOLUTION
In Tripoli, a Libyan energy official said on Thursday Libya was short of fuel and needs to import more, but a ship with fuel now bound for Tripoli may be stopped by Western forces.

...

A preacher addressing Friday prayers at Tripoli's Ahmad Basha Mosque, and broadcast live by state run Shababiyah TV, urged Libyans "to confront this new crusader war".

(Reporting by Mohammed Abbas and Angus MacSwan in Benghazi, Hamid Ould Ahmed and Christian Lowe in Algiers, Tom Perry in Cairo, David Brunnstrom in Brussels, Phil Stewart in Moscow, Andrew Quinn in Washington, Catherine Bremer, Emmanuel Jarry and Yves Clarisse in Paris, Rosalba O'Brien in London; writing by William Maclean; editing by Giles Elgood)

-----------------------------

[Blaze]

African Union: Libya needs democratic elections

By LUC VAN KEMENADE, Associated Press – 2 hrs 37 mins ago
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – A top African Union official on Friday called for a transition period in Libya that would lead to democratic elections, a rare rebuke from African leaders who appear to be pushing for political reforms that could lead to Col. Moammar Gadhafi's ouster.
A Libyan government delegation is meeting in Ethiopia with five African heads of state who plan to develop a road map to encourage political reform in the North African country. It couldn't immediately be confirmed if Libyan rebels were also in attendance.
African Union commission chairman Jean Ping said in an opening speech that the AU favors an inclusive transitional period that would lead to democratic elections.
Ping stressed the inevitability of political reforms in Libya and called the aspirations of the Libyan people "legitimate." He said the international community needed to agree on a way forward.
"We are convinced, at the African Union level, that there is a sufficient basis for reaching a consensus and making a valuable contribution to finding a lasting solution in Libya," he said.
The statement calling for a transition toward elections is the strongest Libya-related statement to come out of the AU since the Libya crisis began, and could be seen as a strong rebuke to a leader who has long been well regarded by the continental body.
Libya is one of the largest donors to the AU, and in 2009 Gadhafi was given the AU's rotating, one-year chairmanship.
Gadhafi was also instrumental in the formation of the AU in 2002, and used Libya's oil wealth to fund the transformation of the old Organization of African Unity into the present-day African Union. He often has attended AU summits flanked by a coterie of extravagantly dressed men who call themselves the "traditional kings of Africa" and describe Gadhafi as the lead king.

-----------------------

Zimbabwe prime minister's ally arrested a 2nd time

By GILLIAN GOTORA, Associated Press – 18 mins ago
HARARE, Zimbabwe – A Zimbabwean court on Friday ordered a top political ally of the prime minister to be held in jail after his second arrest this month, attorneys said, arrests that have been criticized by the prime minister's party as being politically motivated.
Energy Minister Elton Mangoma, a founder of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's former opposition party, was arrested Friday over allegations that he interfered in a deal to buy equipment for the state electricity utility, said defense attorney Beatrice Mtetwa.
He was first arrested March 10 on charges he bypassed official procedures to buy gasoline from neighboring South Africa.
Mangoma denies any wrongdoing in both cases that carry a penalty of imprisonment or a fine. After his last arrest, Tsvangirai threatened to pull out of the nation's shaky two-year power sharing coalition.

[Blaze]

Lotted passages:


S.53, A 60-
1 Cor. 16:13

Art of War -Sun Tzu:

For the general there are five dangers-

Resolve to die, one can be killed.
Resolve to live, one can be captured.
Quick to anger, one can be goaded.
Pure and honest, one can be shamed.
Loving the people, one can be aggravated.
Ch8 the nine transformations
Commentary
Willing to die for your cause, being pure and honest, loving the people - even virtues become vulnerabilities when taken to an extreme. Your fixation offers an easy means to turn energy back on you. When these propensities become intensified, they may lead to defeat.

[PETE'S BROTHER]

In the capital, Damascus, people shouting in support of the Daraa protesters clashed with regime supporters outside the historic Umayyad mosque, hitting each other with leather belts.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ml_syria

shit is gettin' syrias :biggrin:

[Blaze]

:facepalm: At a loss of words on the spankings... :) :hitch: :biggrin: ;)

[Blaze]

In Libya, a campaign to confuse

...

From Qaddafi’s certainty that “all my people are with me, they love me all,” to cease-fires declared and ignored, the Libyan leader might appear to be waging a campaign of confusion against his enemies. The seed of such a strategy may be evident in the Green Book, the colonel's 35-year-old guide to political philosophy, which itself embodies – perhaps purposefully – the contradictory and abstruse nature of the long-serving strongman.

...

People who called themselves witnesses told different stories about the event, in which one person – or none – was injured. US-made missile parts littered the area, and there was clear evidence of an impact with shrapnel. But the site may have also been made to look more convincing with what appeared to be gunfire sprayed against some outside walls and white plaster thrown onto interior floors.
Libya's true believersDespite the elaborate theater going on in Tripoli, there is no shortage of true believers in Qaddafi or his regime here. Even away from the official flag-waving loyalists who attend events set up for foreign eyes, they announce themselves.
Unprompted, one Libyan businessman says: “Tell the world about Muammar Qaddafi:

...

'Borderline personality'Qaddafi has a “borderline personality” that “often swings from intense anger to euphoria,” says Jerrold Post, a political psychologist at George Washington University, in a recent analysis in the journal Foreign Policy.

“Under his often ‘normal’ facade, he is quite insecure and sensitive to slight. His reality testing is episodically faulty,” writes Dr. Post, who founded a center for analyzing personality and political behavior during a 21-year career at the CIA.

“While most of the time Qaddafi is ‘above the border’ and in touch with reality, when under stress he can dip below it and his perceptions can be distorted and his judgment faulty,” writes Post. “And right now, he is under the most stress he has been under since taking over the leadership of Libya…. He does sincerely cling to the idea that his people all love him.”

...

Ubiquitous Green BookCornerstone to Qaddafi’s ideology,

...

It also promises to yield the secret of true democracy and freedom with a “third universal theory.”
“In the outside world there is a misunderstanding of this book; they didn’t read it, they thought it was a dictatorial case,” says Hisham Arab, a journalist with the monthly People’s Congress magazine, published by the Green Book Center, which he says is devoted to spreading the “values” of Qaddafi’s book “to the world.”
“A lot of outsiders misunderstand Muammar Qaddafi’s character, so they do not accept Muammar Qaddafi’s thoughts,” says Mr. Arab. “Here we know it – we follow it every day in our lives.”

Concern

...

[Blaze]

Gadhafi son toured US in weeks before uprising

By DANIEL WAGNER, AP Business Writer – Fri Mar 25, 7:56 pm ET
WASHINGTON – A son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi toured U.S. ports and military facilities just weeks before he helped lead deadly attacks on rebels protesting his father's authoritarian regime.

Khamis Gadhafi, 27, spent four weeks in the U.S. as part of an internship with AECOM, a global infrastructure company with deep business interests in Libya, according to Paul Gennaro, AECOM's Senior Vice President for Global Communications. The trip was to include visits to the Port of Houston, Air Force Academy, National War College and West Point, Gennaro said.

The West Point visit was canceled on Feb. 17, when the trip was cut short and Gadhafi returned to Libya, Gennaro said. The uprising there began with a series of protests on Feb. 15.

By late February, forces controlled by Khamis Gadhafi were leading the brutal assault to retake Zawiya, a city near Tripoli that rebels captured soon after the uprising began.

Gennaro said the U.S. State Department approved of the trip, and considered Gadhafi a reformer. He said the government signed off on the itinerary, at times offering advice that affected the company's plans for Gadhafi.

State department officials denied any role in planning, advising or paying for the trip.

"We did greet him at the airport. That is standard courtesy for the son of the leader of a country," said State Department spokesman Mark Toner.

Toner said the government was aware of Gadhafi's itinerary, but "did not sign off on it."

AECOM was not paid to arrange the trip, and did not pay for related expenses, Gennaro said. He said the trip was arranged at the request of a Libyan, whom he declined to name.

...

Khamis Gadhafi was killed earlier this week after a disaffected Libyan air force pilot who crash-landed his jet in the ruling family's headquarters, according to unconfirmed reports cited by ABC News and Al-Arabiya television. He died from burn injuries after the crash, the reports said.

[Blaze]

Libyan rebels regain key city after airstrikes

By RYAN LUCAS and BEN HUBBARD, Associated Press – 1 hr 22 mins ago
AJDABIYA, Libya – Libyan rebels regained control of the eastern gateway city of Ajdabiya

...

In a western city the opposition lost to Gadhafi, a resident said security agents had lists of rebel sympathizers and were dragging them from their homes.

...

Drivers honked in celebration and flew the tricolor rebel flag. Others in the city fired their guns into the air and danced on burned-out tanks that littered the road. Inside a building that had served as makeshift barracks for pro-Gadhafi forces, hastily discarded uniforms were piled on the floor. ???

...

Saif Sadawi, a 20-year-old rebel fighter with an RPG in his hands, said the city's eastern gate fell late Friday and the western gate fell at dawn Saturday after airstrikes on both locations.

...

On Saturday, rebels in Ajdabiya hauled away a captured rocket launcher and a dozen boxes of anti-aircraft ammunition, adding to their limited firepower.
:baaa:

I venture anti-aircraft ammunition can be used against tanks!

...

On Friday, the U.S. commander in charge of the overall international mission, Army Gen. Carter Ham, told The Associated Press, "We could easily destroy all the regime forces that are in Ajdabiya," but the city itself would be destroyed in the process. "We'd be killing the very people that we're charged with protecting."
Instead, the focus was on disrupting the communications and supply lines that allow Gadhafi's forces to keep fighting in Ajdabiya and other urban areas like Misrata, Ham said in a telephone interview from his U.S. Africa Command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany.


...

"They have lists of demonstrators and videos and so on and they are seeking them out. We are all staying home and waiting for this to be over," said the resident, who did not want to be named because he feared for his safety if discovered. He said a friend who helped coordinate checkpoints when the opposition held the city was taken away Friday. -_-

[Blaze]

Iman Al-Obeidi showed no fear when sacrificing herself to expose the depraved nature of Gadafi's associates, supporters, and troops.

Iman Al-Obeidi might not be alive to tell her ordeal again. And if she does live through, she will be a changed soul. God willing, if she does live she will bear her scars to her soul with mercy and nobility.

May the Angels brush Iman Al-Obeidi's path and only the best of Jinns be her friend. ~Amen~

http://news.sky.com/sky-news/content/StaticFile/jpg/2011/Mar/Week4/15960675.jpg

The woman, from Benghazi, was threatened by minders as she spoke

[Blaze]

A shocking scene occurred in Tripoli on Saturday when a gun was pointed at Sky News after a woman tried to tell foreign journalists about being raped and tortured by Libyan officials.




http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/video/sky-news-video/Video/201103415960664?lpos=video_Article_Body_Copy_Regio n_0&lid=VIDEO_15960664_sky-news-video

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A visibly very distressed woman burst into the breakfast room of the hotel where we are staying and attempted to speak out about an ordeal at the hands of Gaddafi supporters.

As correspondents here in Tripoli under the supervision of the Libyan government, we are not allowed to move around freely.

However, it has become apparent to those in the city that there are a clutch of journalists in two hotels.

We were having breakfast in our hotel when the woman broke in and said she'd been picked up at a checkpoint in the city.

http://news.sky.com/sky-news/content/StaticFile/jpg/2011/Mar/Week4/15960665.jpg
The woman was gagged by hand and taken away by minders


She claimed she had been held for two days, and that she had been raped and tortured.
The woman showed marks on her body which she said she had received as a result of beatings by the people who were holding her, Gaddafi supporters.

She showed marks on her legs and on her wrists, which she suggested came from handcuffs.
In a state of great distress, she said she had suffered this beating because she was from Benghazi, the city where the uprising began in the east of the country.


Hers is not the voice they want heard in this country - in the commotion a gun was pointed towards the Sky News team in an attempt to stop them filming
Sky News foreign correspondent Lisa Holland

As journalists tried to speak to her, things got out of control and the police minders waded in, trying to physically shut her up and stop her talking.

Hers is not the voice they want heard in this country. In the commotion a gun was pointed towards the Sky News team in an attempt to stop them filming.

A team from another news organisation had their camera smashed in front of them.

http://news.sky.com/sky-news/content/StaticFile/jpg/2011/Mar/Week4/15960675.jpg
The woman, from Benghazi, was threatened by minders as she spoke

After about 15 minutes the woman was dragged outside the hotel and put into a waiting car.

As I tried to get in the way, a minder put his hand over the woman's mouth to stop her talking.

She was driven away at speed and we have no idea where she was taken. Her story could not be immediately verified, but the scene provided glimpse of the atmosphere in the city.

Government officials initially said they knew nothing about this woman, although another official later added the woman's mental health would be assessed.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Sky-News-Sees-A-Woman-Bundled-Away-By-Minders-From-Tripoli-Hotel-After-Allegedly-Being-Raped/Article/201103415960663?lpos=World_News_First_World_News_A rticle_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15960663_Sky_News_Sees_A_Woman_Bundled _Away_By_Minders_From_Tripoli_Hotel_After_Allegedl y_Being_Raped

[Blaze]

http://media.bradenton.com/smedia/2011/03/26/07/137-720APTOPIX_Libya.sff.standalone.prod_affiliate.69. jpg
AP Photo - A Ministry of Information official, right, grabs Iman Al-Obeidi, who said she spent two days in detention after being arrested at a checkpoint in Tripoli, Libya, and was sexually assaulted by up to 15 men while in custody in Tripoli Saturday March 26, 2011, after storming into the hotel's breakfast room to show her wounds to foreign media. A scuffle between hotel employees, information ministry officials and plain clothed police trying to grab her and stop the press for filming on one side and foreign media representatives followed. Two cameras were smashed on the ground and at least one reporter was beaten and kicked. Al-Obeidi was later taken in a car to an undisclosed location. Left and top right are foreign journalists .


http://media.bradenton.com/smedia/2011/03/26/07/281-Libya.sff.standalone.prod_affiliate.69.jpg
AP Photo - A Ministry of Information official, left, tries to grab Iman Al-Obeidi, who said she spent two days in detention after being arrested at a checkpoint in Tripoli, Libya, and was sexually assaulted by up to 15 men while in custody in Tripoli Saturday March 26, 2011, after storming into the hotel's breakfast room to show her wounds to foreign media. A scuffle between hotel employees, information ministry officials and plain clothed police trying to grab her and stop the press for filming on one side and foreign media representatives followed. Two cameras were smashed on the ground and at least one reporter was beaten and kicked. Al-Obeidi was later taken in a car to an undisclosed location. Center is an unidentified foreign journalist .


http://media.bradenton.com/smedia/2011/03/26/07/410-APTOPIX_Libya.sff.standalone.prod_affiliate.69.jpg
AP Photo - A Ministry of Information official, left, yells at the press to stop filming as he grabs Iman Al-Obeidi, who said she spent two days in detention after being arrested at a checkpoint in Tripoli, Libya, and was sexually assaulted by up to 15 men while in custody, in Tripoli Saturday March 26, 2011, after storming into the hotel's breakfast room to show her wounds to foreign media. A scuffle between hotel employees, information ministry officials and plain clothed police trying to grab her and stop the press for filming on one side and foreign media representatives followed. Two cameras were smashed on the ground and at least one reporter was beaten and kicked. Al-Obeidi was later taken in a car to an undisclosed location. Left and top right are unidentified foreign journalists .





Libyan claims rape by soldiers, is dragged away
By HADEEL AL-SHALCHI - Associated Press

A distraught Libyan woman stormed into a Tripoli hotel Saturday to tell foreign reporters that government troops raped her, setting off a brawl when hotel staff and government minders tried to detained her.

Iman al-Obeidi was tackled by waitresses and government minders as she sat telling her story to journalists after she rushed into the restaurant at the Rixos hotel where a number of foreign journalists were eating breakfast.

She claimed loudly that troops had detained her a checkpoint, tied her up, abused her, then led her away to be gang raped.

Her story could not be independently verified, but the dramatic scene provided a rare firsthand glimpse of the brutal crackdown on public dissent by Moammar Gadhafi's regime as the Libyan leader fights a rebellion against his rule that began last month.

The regime has been keeping up a drumbeat of propaganda in the Tripoli-centered west of the country under its control even as it faces a weeklong international air campaign against the Libyan military.

Before she was dragged out of the hotel, al-Obeidi managed to tell journalists that she was detained by a number of troops who were drinking whiskey. She said a number of others who she said remained in custody. She said she was detained on Wednesday but didn't tell how she escaped this morning. She said she was raped by 15 men.

"They defecated and urinated on me and tied me up," she said, her face streaming with tears. "They violated my honor, look at what the Gadhafi militiamen did to me."

The woman, who appeared in her 30's, wore a black robe and orange scarf around her neck and identified herself. She had scratches on her face and she pulled up her black robe to reveal a bloodied thigh.

The Associated Press only identifies rape victims who volunteer their names.

"As soon as I leave here they will take me right to jail," she yelled at the journalists.
As she spoke, a hotel waitress brandished a butter knife and called her a traitor while another waitress covered al-Obeidi's head with a coat to keep her from talking.

"We're supposed to be all Libyans, we are all brothers, but this is what the Gadhafi militia men did to me," al-Obeidi cried to the hotel staff as she struggled with them and the government minders.
Journalists who tried to intervene to protect the woman were pushed out of the way by the minders. A British television reporter was punched in the face, and CNN's camera was smashed on the ground and ripped to pieces by the government minders.

"Look at what happens - Gadhafi's militiamen kidnap women at gunpoint, and rape them ... they rape them," al-Obeidi screamed before government minders pushed her into a car and drove her away.
At a hastily arranged press conference after the incident, government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said investigators had told him the woman was drunk and possibly mentally challenged.
"We have to find her family and see if she was really abused or not," he said.

Gadhafi's crackdown has been the region's most violent against the wave of anti-government protests sweeping the Middle East. Tensions have been rising between foreign reporters in the Libyan capital and the government minders who have sought to tightly control what they see and whom they talk to. Most of the international press corps is being housed at the Rixos hotel.


Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2011/03/26/3063811/libyan-claims-rape-by-soldiers.html##ixzz1HjC9nmCn

[Blaze]

Iman Al-Obeidi showed no fear when sacrificing herself to expose the depraved nature of Gadafi's associates, supporters, and troops.

Iman Al-Obeidi might not be alive to tell her ordeal again. And if she does live through, she will be a changed soul. God willing, if she does live she will bear her scars to her soul with mercy and nobility.

May the Angels brush Iman Al-Obeidi's path and only the best of Jinns be her friend. ~Amen~

http://news.sky.com/sky-news/content/StaticFile/jpg/2011/Mar/Week4/15960675.jpg

EDIT: Change, "no fear" to "bravery"

[Blaze]

Journalists who tried to intervene to protect the woman were pushed out of the way by the minders. A British television reporter was punched in the face, and CNN’s camera was smashed on the ground and ripped to pieces by the government minders.

“Look at what happens — Gadhafi’s militiamen kidnap women at gunpoint, and rape them … they rape them,” al-Obeidi screamed before government minders pushed her into a car and drove her away.

[Blaze]

Before she was dragged out of the hotel, al-Obeidi managed to tell journalists that she was detained by a number of troops who were drinking whiskey. She said a number of others who she said remained in custody. She said she was detained on Wednesday but didn't tell how she escaped this morning. She said she was raped by 15 men.

"They defecated and urinated on me and tied me up," she said, her face streaming with tears. "They violated my honor, look at what the Gadhafi militiamen did to me."

The woman, who appeared in her 30's, wore a black robe and orange scarf around her neck and identified herself. She had scratches on her face and she pulled up her black robe to reveal a bloodied thigh.

The Associated Press only identifies rape victims who volunteer their names.

"As soon as I leave here they will take me right to jail," she yelled at the journalists.

As she spoke, a hotel waitress brandished a butter knife and called her a traitor while another waitress covered al-Obeidi's head with a coat to keep her from talking.

[Blaze]

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01857/Iman-al-Obeidi_1857847c.jpg

[Blaze]

Yemen president nearing transition deal: minister

SANAA (Reuters) – Yemeni Foreign Minister Abubakr al-Qirbi said he hopes for a deal on a transition of power in Yemen on Saturday, and that the time frame of a transfer of power by President Ali Abdullah Saleh could be negotiated.
"I hope it will be today, before tomorrow," Qirbi, who is serving as caretaker foreign minister, told Reuters, adding that a deal would be based on an offer by the president to step down by year-end after elections and a new constitution.
"President Saleh is willing to look at all possibilities, as long as there are really serious commitments by the JMP (opposition) to come and initiate a serious dialogue between them and the ruling party."
Saleh said on Friday he was ready to cede power to stop more bloodshed in Yemen, but only to what he called "safe hands" after weeks of street demonstrations demanding his immediate ouster.

[Blaze]

Dear,

In 1994, Hutu state radio played a massive role in the Rwandan genocide, inciting violence and giving direction on how and where to kill Tutsis.

Right now in Libya, Gaddafi is using state television much the same way. As a weapon. On his three state-run stations, supporters are urged to hunt the opposition “alley by alley, house by house, room by room.” It's been reported that state programming is used to send coded instructions to loyalists and hired mercenaries.

It's not too late to shut down Libyan state television and save the lives of innocent civilians. But we must act quickly.

Here's how we can help: Libya uses four international satellite providers (ArabSat, EutelSat, AsiaSat, and NileSat) to broadcast. If these companies drop Libyan state television, the propaganda will stop.

Please sign the petition started by Change.org member Carol Hillson demanding that these satellite companies stop broadcasting Gaddafi's incitements to violence.

Satellite providers like these four companies aren't typically involved in the world of activism. It’s possible that they’ve never been petitioned before.

That's why we believe a global outcry for them to cease their broadcasts in Libya could work. And the faster we can produce such an outcry, the more lives we can potentially save.

Please ask CEOs Amin Basyouni, Michel de Rosen, William Wade, and Khalid Balkheyour -- four men who have the power to save countless civilians -- to stop broadcasting Libyan state television:

http://www.change.org/petitions/shut-down-gaddafi-state-tv?alert_id=VGNJeZvfMV_lLXCMZvKUD&me=aa

We’ve won dozens of victories in the past few weeks, but none would save so many lives as this. Please add your name, then forward this email to friends and family.


- Weldon and the Change.org team
OVERVIEW
URGE NILESAT TO STOP BROADCASTING STATE TV INSIDE LIBYA!

The Gaddafi Regime has lost its legitimacy by orchestrating ongoing campaigns of violence and murder on Libyan people. Estimates of the death toll vary. According to Wikipedia it may be upwards of 6,000 while the Interim Government places it at over 8000. Yet State Run TV continues to broadcast and be used by the regime to incite violence against innocent Libyan civilians. Gaddafi has banned all media broadcasts inside Libya except for his 3 channels. They all rely on Nilesat satellites to broadcast.

Tell Nilesat to shut down Gaddafi TV!

UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions and sanctions have been enacted with strong support from the international community. The sanctions include cutting off assets to the regime, travel bans and penalties on companies starting new business in the country. Despite the sanctions Gaddafi continues to terrorize and murder civilians. Recently a no fly zone was put into place by the UNSC to protect the people from violent attacks by the Gaddafi regime and a likely massacre against the million people living in Benghazi. The no fly zone was enacted at the urging of the Arab League and the Libyan people themselves.

Despite these measures by the international community Nilesat and other corporations continue to provide a platform for the Gaddafi's regime to spread its terror propaganda to the Libyans citizens and people around the world. Furthermore, there have been reports from Libya that coded messages have been disseminated to Gaddafi’s mercenaries and security forces via Al-Jamahirya satellite TV channel. Please tell these corporate service providers to stop broadcasting all of the Gaddafi regime’s satellite channels immediately. Tell them to stand with the international community and do their part to protect the Libyan people.

Sign the petition and then share it widely with your friends.

http://www.change.org/petitions/shut-down-gaddafi-state-tv#?opt_new=f&opt_fb=f

PETITIONING
ArabSat(AOC ArabSat)
EutelSat Communications(Investors Dept)
AsiaSat(AS Marketing AsiaSat)
AsiaSat(SCC AsiaSat)
NileSat(Marketing Dept. NileSat)
ArabSat(Saad ArabSat)
NileSat CTO(Salah Hamza)
NileSat contact
NileSat CEO(Amin Bassiouni)
Admin ArabSat
NileSat Bookings
ArabSat Marketing
NileSat contact
NileSat contact
Vanessa O’Connor
Frédérique Gautier
Winnie Pang
HQ AsiaSat
Control Centre
William Wade
Michel de Rosen
Khalid Balkheyou
Eutelsat's broadband subsidiary(Skylogic S.r.L.)
Eutelsat(Sales & Reservations Centre)
ANIS TECHNOLOGY CENTER


10,000th signer — Ghita Johnson from N.O., LA · 18 minutes ago
9,000th signer — Nola Steele from Little Ferry, NJ · about 1 hour ago
8,000th signer — jo southard from sacramento, CA · about 1 hour ago
7,000th signer — Sue Jones from Nampa, ID · about 2 hours ago
6,000th signer — Frank Nazitto from Kings Park, NY · about 2 hours ago
5,000th signer — Jason Carman from Lake in the Hills, IL · about 3 hours ago
4,000th signer — Kathy Reavis from Benbrook, TX · about 14 hours ago
3,000th signer — george weller from reynoldsburg, OH · about 19 hours ago
2,500th signer — Amanda Davis from Mount Clemens, MI · about 20 hours ago
2,000th signer — Gregg Deneweth from Chattanooga, TN · about 20 hours ago

[Blaze]

Yemeni militants seize control of weapons factory

By AHMED AL-HAJ, Associated Press – 13 mins ago
SANAA, Yemen – Islamic militants seized control of a weapons factory, a strategic mountain and a nearby town in the southern Yemen province of Abyan Sunday, said a witness and security officials, as a political stalemate in the capital causes security to unravel around the country.
The fragile nation has been rocked by weeks of mass protests against the long-serving president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who refuses to step down.
Saleh's fate is of deep concern to the U.S. as he is a key ally in the fight against al-Qaida, but with his attention on massive anti-government protests in the capital, security has declined in the provinces.
Residents of the southern Abyan province said police reduced their presence in towns weeks ago. Elsewhere, residents have pushed out police and soldiers and set up their own local militias for self defense.
In the areas they took over, the militants set up checkpoints around the small factory and in the town of al-Husn, patrolling the streets and searching cars, said resident Wahib Abdul-Qader.
They also seized control of a nearby Khanfar mountain that holds a radio station and a presidential guest house, said Ali Dahmash, an expert on Islamic militant groups who lives nearby.
Residents in the nearby town of Jaar, which was seized by the militants on Saturday, said they heard gunfire, but the scope of the battle wasn't immediately clear.
The area lies close to the southern port town of Aden.

Saleh says he wants 'respectful' exit
March 28, 2011
SANAA: Facing intensifying pressure to leave office, the Yemeni President, Ali Abdullah Saleh, has told the al-Arabiya television network he is prepared to step down ''with respect'', even within hours.

But Mr Saleh's intentions remain unclear, with Yemen's official news agency, Saba, reporting that a presidential source had denied the President would step down.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.d45c4e8b31dc4339b301f2ef2e50ca5c-c23566a45769438db461e9efd7455c03-0.jpg
Female anti-government protestors chant slogans during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The US White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on peaceful protesters.(AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.c9031388b933412fbd75a79fff960e90-c9031388b933412fbd75a79fff960e90-0.jpg
A Yemeni girl holds up a placard that reads in Arabic: 'The people want to break the system' during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa,Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on protesters Friday, while saying the violence against protesters in those countries have not risen to the same level as in Libya, where U.S. forces are engaged in military action to stop violence perpetrated by forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi(AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.fa12eda3ab484594ab64e080ce346ba3-fa12eda3ab484594ab64e080ce346ba3-0.jpg
A masked Yemeni girl takes part in a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa,Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on protesters Friday, while saying the violence against protesters in those countries have not risen to the same level as in Libya, where Western forces are engaged in military action to stop violence perpetrated by forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.f824198ccd1e4e34b2328baa5cdec3e6-f824198ccd1e4e34b2328baa5cdec3e6-0.jpg
An elderly anti-government protestor reacts during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa,Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on protesters Friday, while saying the violence against protesters in those countries have not risen to the same level as in Libya, where Western.forces are engaged in military action to stop violence perpetrated by forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.78a48c9f21984cb4b8da1fcbd339eb76-78a48c9f21984cb4b8da1fcbd339eb76-0.jpg
A Yemeni girl, center, looks on during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa,Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on protesters Friday, while saying the violence against protesters in those countries have not risen to the same level as in Libya, where U.S. forces are engaged in military action to stop violence perpetrated by forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110326/capt.a969c17705d449c590f6c780e9855b97-a3dd091e7bad45dfa945014fbeac06ab-0.jpg
Anti-government protestors react during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa,Yemen, Saturday, March 26, 2011. The White House urged governments in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain to cease attacks on protesters Friday, while saying the violence against protesters in those countries have not risen to the same level as in Libya, where U.S. forces are engaged in military action to stop violence perpetrated by forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

[ELVIS]

That propagandist bitch wasn't raped...

[Blaze]

That propagandist bitch wasn't raped...

That is really the least of the worries concerning her at the moment, person who has chosen Elvis as a name and symbol.
The concern is where is she, person who has chosen Elvis as a name and symbol.

Current location

As of 27 March 2011, the location of Iman al-Obeidi is unknown.


Revision history of Iman al-Obeidi
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Iman_al-Obeidi&action=history

(cur | prev) 16:05, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) m (11,966 bytes) (→Gaddafi government's response: ce)
(cur | prev) 16:03, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) (11,968 bytes) (→Gaddafi government's response: ce CNN reporter)
(cur | prev) 16:02, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) (11,972 bytes) (→Gaddafi government's response: tense)
(cur | prev) 16:01, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) m (11,971 bytes) (→Gaddafi government's response: ce name)
(cur | prev) 15:59, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) (11,972 bytes) (→Current location: removed section - her location is reported by NOS.nl as being the headquarters of Libyan National Intelligence)
(cur | prev) 15:48, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) (12,059 bytes) (→Gaddafi government's response: added sources and updates, cited)
(cur | prev) 15:21, 27 March 2011 Cinosaur (talk | contribs) (11,277 bytes) (→Global response: added source on Tweets, cited)
(cur | prev) 12:29, 27 March 2011 Boud (talk | contribs) m (10,957 bytes) (→Current location: i'm not convinced that this is notable as a section, but in any case, an as of tag is needed here)

After international journalists repeatedly demanded to see al-Obeidi and challenged Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim on the issue at a press-conference, Kaim replied that the incident was under investigation and added, "We will let you know."[6] Later in the evening of March 26, Kaim said in a conversation with Sky News and to Nic Robertson of CNN[10] that five men, including the son of a high-ranking Libyan police officer, had been arrested as part of the criminal investigation of the alleged rape. He added that Iman al-Obeidi was held at the headquarters of Libyan National Intelligence and that she was "safe",[6] "doing well",[6] would be provided with legal aid and the media would be able to interview her in the coming days.[6][8][10] He also acknowledged that the security staff had "mishandled" the incident in the restaurant and that they should not have drawn any weapons.[8]


Source 6:
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/26/libya.beaten.woman/
"If you don't see me tomorrow, than that's it," she yelled.
The journalists believed al-Obeidy's life to be in danger, and several of them demanded to see her. At a news conference later, they challenged Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim on what they had experienced.
Kaim told them that authorities were investigating the incident. "We will let you know," he said.
Later, a government spokesman said al-Obeidy was "safe" and "doing well." He said her case was a criminal one -- not political -- and that she has been offered legal aid. Officials later said the woman was sane and would bring criminal charges against her attackers. Journalists would be able to see her, they added.

Source 8:

Does not mention: the media would be able to interview her in the coming days
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Sky-News-Sees-A-Woman-Bundled-Away-By-Minders-From-Tripoli-Hotel-After-Allegedly-Being-Raped/Article/201103415960663?lpos=World_News_First_World_News_A rticle_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15960663_Sky_News_Sees_A_Woman_Bundled _Away_By_Minders_From_Tripoli_Hotel_After_Allegedl y_Being_Raped


Source 10:
Does not mention a conversation.
Moreover why would a NL news source be used and not CNN

22.15 am: "al-Obeidi safe '
Eman al-Obeidi is safe and sound. A spokesperson from the Libyan government said on CNN's Nic Robertson, as twittering it. She is being held at the headquarters of National Intelligence Libya. Her case was "criminal" and not "political", the government spokesman. There are four or five men suspected of possible abuse and rape of women. The spokesman also said that some journalists within a few days with her ​​can talk.

Meanwhile, there is a twitter opened, no doubt by someone other than al-Obeidi itself. The New York Times has an extensive article about al-Obeidi.
http://nos.nl/artikel/228524-conflict-in-libie-26-maart.html



And there is no extensive article that the NL paper is propagating.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/world/middleeast/27tripoli.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

[Blaze]

And when you review the user doing the changes... redflags pop.


This Wikipedian joined Wikipedia 1 years, 2 months, 26 days ago as of March 27, 2011.


Articles created
Themes in Avatar
Mantra-Rock Dance
Malati Dasi
Iman al-Obeidi

And for just over a year. The male has worked double time to establish himself with superfluous awards

[ELVIS]

You're on drugs...

[Blaze]

Gaddafi commander: 'I was forced to fight'
A former commander in Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's army has told how he gave himself up to rebel forces after being forced to take part in last week's invasion of Benghazi.

Unwilling to die for a cause he "was not convinced of", Brigadier Mohamed Aladin Hanesh dropped his weapon the moment he saw rebel fighters on the outskirts of the opposition capital on Saturday.
The 56-year-old then fled his armoured column and headed for enemy lines, preferring to take his chances as a prisoner of war in Libya rather than participate in the fierce battle that followed.

After a beating on the scene from his captors, he was taken into a rebel detention centre, from where he told his story to The Sunday Telegraph.

"I was forced to fight," said Brig Hanesh, who still sported fresh scabs across the temple, chin and nose.

"I didn't even know we were going to be attacking Benghazi that day. When we came in I just left my weapon under a tree and then wandered over towards them. At first they were very angry, so they beat me, but since then the treatment has been fine."

Brig Hanesh, a father of four from Tripoli, was one of around five government troops caught during Saturday's battle, in which Gaddafi's armoured column was eventually forced back by a combination of rebel firepower and French airstrikes.

Clad in shabby military fatigues and looking bewildered and nervous, he spoke from a former military police compound which was partly destroyed during last month's anti-government uprising but is now being used as a rebel detention centre.

Rebel authorities allowed him to be interviewed in order to provide reassurance that captured government fighters could expect decent and humane treatment.

While there was no way of verifying his version of events, his account appeared to corroborate the rebel narrative of much of Gaddafi's armies being demoralised and reluctant to fight.

Mr Hanesh, an expert in mine clearance, said he had been previously doing a desk job before being suddenly told at the beginning of the month to report for duty in the city of Sirte, a Gaddafi stronghold west of the rebel frontlines.

He was then ordered to the oil town of Ras Lanuf, the scene of heavy fighting two weeks ago, and then seconded to an elite Gaddafi unit commanded by the dictator's son, Moutassar, which was heading to Benghazi.

"When I was in Tripoli and they first asked me to come, I refused to take any weapons to fight," he said, clasping his hands nervously as he sat in a white plastic chair in a concrete exercise yard.

"But then I was reported to the security forces and told I had no choice but to come. I thought I would be killed or jailed otherwise."

Mr Hanesh found himself in a separate unit at the rear of the armoured column heading towards Benghazi. He was told he would be needed for mine clearance and mine-laying duties, he said, but was given no equipment for either job and had almost no communication with the elite commanders at the head of the column.

"The Gaddafi forces are divided into two groups, the regular ones who have no privileges, and the others whose main purpose is to act as Gadaffi's personal security forces," said Mr Hanesh.

"They know they have the same destiny as Gaddafi, and you can tell their loyalty because they are the ones who own the big farms and have the wealth."

At the column approached Benghazi, Mr Hanesh found himself in a Nissan civilian car at the rear, without even any soldiers in his command.

At one point, he wondered whether the other soldiers were keeping him separate because they themselves planned to defect or mount a coup against Gaddafi. <<<<< ????

Being at the rear, however, also meant it was easy to desert. "I was alone, and so I surrendered the moment I saw the revolutionaries," he said.

Mr Hanesh, who has been told he is unlikely to face a military court, added: "Gaddafi has never been a good man, he has never convinced me of his cause, and the morale among his troops has never been high.

"But I didn't ever want any kind of fighting between Libyans, I thought that would never happen. I would rather things change in a peaceful way than fighting each other."

[SunisinuS]

New information: Stick that in your pipe and smoke it El Rushbo.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/af_libya;_ylt=AmpZWwhmRftQ6Nr6VJ1h21pbbBAF;_ylu=X3 oDMTJzYjU4amZhBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzI3L2FmX2xpYnlh BGNjb2RlA21wX2VjXzhfMTAEY3BvcwMxBHBvcwMxBHNlYwN5bl 90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRzbGsDc3dpZnRzd2VlcHdl

[Blaze]

1710: We're now wrapping up our live updates on Libya and the Middle East for the day. Thanks for following our rolling coverage. You can continue to get all the latest news developments via the front page of the BBC News website.

1703: The BBC's Ben Brown in Ras Lanuf says: "It's been a remarkable day for the rebels. After seizing Ajdabiya, they have advanced westwards alsong the coastal highway at breakneck speed. Town after town as fallen to them - Brega, Ugayla, Ras Lanuf and Bin Jawad. It has been hard at times for us to keep up with them. The rebels are in a state of high excitement, exhilarated. They can hardly believe the progress they have made. They have been firing their guns into the air in celebration, blaring their horns, screeching their tires and doing wheel-spins. But the truth is that they never would have made this breakthrough if it had not been for the devastating coalition air strikes outside Ajdabiya on Thursday and Friday. They destroyed dozens of Col Gaddafi's tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery pieces. The rebels claim that on Monday they could be in Sirte - Col Gaddafi's birthplace and heartland. Yet, the closer they advance towards Tripoli, the more of a fight the regime is likely to put up. Today may have been the easy part."

--------------------------------

by Marc Burleigh – 1 hr 23 mins ago
BIN JAWAD, Libya (AFP) – Libyan rebels pushed westwards in hot pursuit of Moamer Kadhafi's forces on Sunday, winning back control of the key Ras Lanuf oil site and pressing on towards Kadhafi's hometown of Sirte, a central coastal city.

Along the way they captured Bin Jawad, a hamlet 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Ras Lanuf, AFP correspondents reported.
The rebels, on the verge of losing their eastern stronghold city of Benghazi before the air strikes began on March 19, on Saturday seized back Ajdabiya and Brega, 160 and 240 kilometres (100 and 150 miles) to the west.

Spurred on by the air war, the ragtag rebel band thrust another 100 kilometres past Brega to win back Ras Lanuf, routing Kadhafi loyalists.
"Kadhafi's forces are now scared rats," Mohammed Ali el-Atwish, a bearded 42-year-old fighter, told AFP.

"They are dropping their weapons and uniforms and dressing as civilians. We are no longer concerned about Kadhafi's forces at all."

The rebel fighters marked the takeover of Ras Lanuf with celebratory gunfire and fired a rocket propelled-grenade in sign of victory. :pullinghair: :stop:
One of them, Attia Hamad, 34, said insurgents were in full control of the town.

"All of it is in our hands," Hamad said of Ras Lanuf, which Kadhafi's forces had overrun on March 12. Loyalists were "retreating so quickly, they are leaving some fighters behind," he added.



Libya: No arms for rebels, UK's Liam Fox says

Coalition countries attacking targets in Libya will not supply arms to anti-Gaddafi rebels, UK Defence Secretary Liam Fox has told the BBC.

There are reports in the Sunday Times claiming plans to supply weapons to rebels are being drawn up.

But Dr Fox said there was a UN arms embargo across the entire country, adding "we have to accept that".



What will be used when gun powder gets low or worse..... gone...... Waste is not a friend.

[Blaze]

A well-informed Libyan source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi has held a number of secret meetings with officials in the French and British governments, discussing the idea of his replacing his father for a transitional period of between 2 – 3 years, in return for a comprehensive ceasefire and negotiating with the anti-Gaddafi rebels.

The sources also revealed that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi is pushing for assurances that Colonel Gaddafi and his family will be granted immunity from prosecution, and will not be legally punished in any manner.

:lmao:


Ummmmm.... No


http://aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=1&id=24660

[Blaze]

Their bodies are broken -- as broken as their loyalty now to their one-time leader Muammar Gaddafi, whom they say lied to push them into battle against rebellious compatriots in eastern Libya.

Three of them are soldiers in Gaddafi's army, wounded and taken prisoner in different locations a week ago by rebels.

They were lying in beds in a guarded room in a hospital in Benghazi, sleeping, praying and reflecting on how they ended up being cared for by a compassionate enemy that in no way resembled al-Qaida, Israel's Mossad or the foreign terrorists Gaddafi's officers had said awaited them.

Azoumi Ali Mohammed, 25, said he was a reservist taken on March 20 after coalition warplanes bombed his convoy of more than 400 Libyan troops and African mercenaries on a desert road leading from the eastern city of Ajdabiya.

"The planes hit us as soon as we headed out. I saw two people die in front of me. After that I don't know what happened," he said. He showed his bandaged right leg where he was wounded by shrapnel.

Their orders had been to secure the area, and to "fight mercenaries and al-Qaeda," he said.

"I was shocked" to discover the enemy was in fact fellow Libyans, he said, explaining that all their mobile phones had been confiscated in Tripoli to prevent them having outside communications.

Mohammed said that now he had seen the rebellion, and been cared for by its doctors, "I know I want to fight against Gaddafi's forces."

Mustafa Mohammed Ali, a 40-year-old career soldier, survived being shot six times in a rebel ambush as he was driving out of Ajdabiya on March 18.

Three comrades with him, in a four-wheel-drive vehicle flying the green flag of the Gaddafi regime, were killed.

They had been told agents of Israel's Mossad intelligence service had fomented unrest by hiring Tunisian, Egyptian and Syrian fighters on hallucinogenic drugs.

"I was loyal (to Gaddafi). Now I'm not, after finding out the truth about the fighting," he said.

"In Benghazi I found young people making a revolution to escape from the darkness they were living in," he said.

[Blaze]

Uganda will freeze Libyan assets worth $375m (£230m), mainly in the telecommunications, hotel, banking and oil sectors, the government says.

The BBC East Africa correspondent says this is not aimed at putting pressure on Col Muammar Gaddafi but rather to comply with UN sanctions.

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has previously called for an end to the Western air strikes.

Oil-rich Libya has used money to buy influence across Africa.

South Africa has already announced a freeze of Libyan assets, although its president has also condemned the military action.

[Blaze]

Agreeing to be photographed, he looked more like a handsome Fifties screen idol than a battle-hardened military leader.
He had been brought to the location by back roads and he would not stay for long.
‘Of course my life is in danger,’ he said. ‘Gaddafi’s men are still in Benghazi and I am their top target. My bodyguard was shot dead in my car as we drove through the city last Saturday when Gaddafi’s tanks were on their way in. I regret that very much.
‘Inshallah my own family is in a place of safety. I have to move around, never staying in one place for more than two days.
‘It is the price to pay for defying Gaddafi.’


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1370386/Ajdabiya-Libyan-rebels-joy-city-saved-Gaddafis-troops-British-jets.html#ixzz1Hpe2JDsA

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/03/27/article-1370386-0B5A3C2A00000578-156_640x492.jpg

[Seshmeister]

It's remarkable the amount of bullshit that the Daily Mail prints.

The same paper that backed Hitler in the 1930s...

[SunisinuS]

Q-Daffi this is dedicated to you.

[Kristy]

PANIC!

[Blaze]

http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/3d/33d1e357feb122f64fd352dcc558ffee.jpeg

Reuters/Ahmed Jadallah

To give just a couple recent examples:
* At a mass burial Thursday, Libyan Red Crescent workers unloaded 33 coffins for a public, made-for-TV spectacle that officials said was for victims of allied airstrikes. Hundreds of men and a handful of women prayed and chanted anti-Western slogans.
After the ceremony nearly half the coffins were taken away, ostensibly for burial elsewhere at the request of families.
But as shrouded bodies were removed from their coffins at the gravesite, one coffin was found to be empty. The rest were buried in graves originally prepared – but inexplicably never used – for another, separate funeral ceremony for supposed war victims, witnessed by journalists four days earlier.
* At the funeral Thursday, one of the most colorful characters was a man shouting slogans, waving a green flag with a child sitting on his shoulders who was holding a toy assault rifle. Later he was seen in the lobby of a five-star hotel where journalists are staying, hobnobbing with Libyan intelligence agents and minders tasked with monitoring journalists.
The man, who gave the name Osama Bin Salah, said he was a “taxi driver” whose Qaddafi-loving family was blown up by rebels in Misrata. Four days later he is still in the exclusive preserve of such a hotel, the type of which government officials have stated is “illegal” for ordinary people to enter.

http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/p/csm_logo_115.jpg

[PETE'S BROTHER]

Agreeing to be photographed, he looked more like a handsome Fifties screen idol than a battle-hardened military leader.
He had been brought to the location by back roads and he would not stay for long.
‘Of course my life is in danger,’ he said. ‘Gaddafi’s men are still in Benghazi and I am their top target. My bodyguard was shot dead in my car as we drove through the city last Saturday when Gaddafi’s tanks were on their way in. I regret that very much.
‘Inshallah my own family is in a place of safety. I have to move around, never staying in one place for more than two days.
‘It is the price to pay for defying Gaddafi.’


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1370386/Ajdabiya-Libyan-rebels-joy-city-saved-Gaddafis-troops-British-jets.html#ixzz1Hpe2JDsA

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/03/27/article-1370386-0B5A3C2A00000578-156_640x492.jpg

looks like a giant version of the midget father on tlc....

[ELVIS]

It's remarkable the amount of bullshit that the Daily Mail prints.



It makes Faux news seem credible...

[ELVIS]

Pick the woman in this pic and win a prize!!!

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/03/27/article-1370386-0B5A3C2A00000578-156_640x492.jpg


:elvis:

[Blaze]

http://www.engadget.com/2005/11/15/how-to-build-a-wifi-biquad-dish-antenna/

http://www.turnpoint.net/wireless/index.html

[Blaze]

And after some technical difficulty the electrons are flowing...

[Blaze]

The Gaddafi Regime Suffers A Huge Defection

In a thundering blow to Muammar Gaddafi's standing and the morale of his regime, Libya's Foreign Minister Moussa Kusa defected to London on Wednesday night, in the regime's most high-profile break since the Western bombing campaign began nearly two weeks ago - if not, indeed, the most momentous split in the Libyan government in years.
...

Kusa appears to have been the first to flee - but Benotman says he is unlikely to be the last. "I'm aware of dozens of people in Tripoli who are not happy," said Benotman, who was in Tripoli when the revolt erupted in mid-February, and who has close contacts with high-level Libyan officials. "The message being delivered is that they have to make a decision now."
...
As one of Gaddafi's closest aides, Kusa presumably would be informed about Gaddafi's current war plans and his state of mind after 11 days of the coalition's aerial bombing, as well as whether he might be open to negotiating a deal regarding exile for Gaddafi and his family.
...
As one of Gaddafi's closest aides, Kusa presumably would be informed about Gaddafi's current war plans and his state of mind after 11 days of the coalition's aerial bombing, as well as whether he might be open to negotiating a deal regarding exile for Gaddafi and his family.

...

Kusa was a long-standing chief of Libya's intelligence service, before being appointed Foreign Minister in 2009. That means he likely holds critical information which could ultimately lead to international indictments against Gaddafi and his family,

...

Britsh Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Thursday that his government would not give Kusa immunity from prosecution.

...

Wikileaks cable from the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli, Kusa is described as "mostly cooperative in liaison channels and key to our re-engagement."

...

n Tripoli, the government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim denied that Kusa had defected, telling reporters that he was "on a diplomatic mission" to London.

...

[Blaze]

Note before my "technical difficulty" there was a clear statement that the revolutionist did not need nor want more help. To quote... "They got it from here on out"

CIA sends teams to Libya; US considers rebel aid

By ADAM GOLDMAN and DONNA CASSATA, Associated Press – 7 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Robert Gates says that some country other than the U.S. should do the training and equipping of the Libyan opposition groups.
He tells Congress that other countries have the ability to do that mission, and it is not a unique U.S. capability.
Gates says President Barack Obama has no additional U.S. military moves in mind, calling it a pick-up ballgame at this point.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon

...
U.S. officials have acknowledged that the CIA has sent small teams of operatives into Libya and helped rescue a crew member of a U.S. fighter jet that crashed.

...

The administration says there has been no decision yet about whether to arm the opposition groups, and acknowledged that the U.S. needs to know more about who the rebels are and what role terrorists may be playing there.

...

"History has demonstrated that an entrenched enemy like the Libyan regime can be resilient to airpower," McKeon said.

[Blaze]

Loss of Libyan FM may outweigh battlefield gains

...

— a sign that the embattled regime is cracking at the highest levels.

...

Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa, who is blamed for some of Libya's brutality and credited for some of its diplomatic successes, is privy to all the inner workings of Gadhafi's regime.

...

Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa, who is blamed for some of Libya's brutality and credited for some of its diplomatic successes, is privy to all the inner workings of Gadhafi's regime.

...

a rebel leader in Zintan who used only his first name for fear of reprisals. "The regime is currently breaking apart from the inside, and no one is safe. So anyone around Gadhafi knows they will be held accountable and will be punished by the international community."

Corporation before charges goes a very long way in consideration of charges against an individual.

....

The British government said Wednesday that Koussa had arrived in Britain from Tunisia and resigned. Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said Koussa "notified us that he was sick and that he was going to Tunisia."

...

"We are not waiting for individuals to lead the struggle," Ibrahim told reporters in Tripoli, the capital. "This is the struggle of a whole nation. We are not relying on individuals, no matter how high-ranking they are. And so if everyone feels tired or sick or exhausted, they want to take a rest, it just happens. But I'm not confirming anything."
:fufu:

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110331/i/r2856987526.jpg

Despite the setbacks and ongoing airstrikes — now led by NATO — Gadhafi loyalists have been logging successes on the battlefield, retaking much of the territory the rebels had captured since airstrikes began March 19.

The latest fighting centered on Brega, a town important to Libya's oil industry on the coastal road that leads to Tripoli. It has gone back and forth between rebel and loyalist hands, and on Thursday it was a no man's land, with Gadhafi's forces at the western gate and rebels east of the city.

...

with each rocket fired. Spotters with binoculars watched where they landed and ordered adjustments. :baaa:

...

Many people also have fled Ajdabiya, a rebel-held city about 50 miles (80 kilometers) to the east, for fear that government forces were on their way.

Good. Those not ready to fight (perhaps yet) or not able are going toward the revolutionist and not Gadafi.

...

the rebels' weaknesses: some ran screaming to cars after being frightened by the outgoing fire from their own side.

Gun shy is normal and natural. It is a test of Job for those that must learn the hardened heart it takes to not flinch. Prayers.

...

in a story posted on the Council on Foreign Relations' website. "This is the first loss of such a close comrade," he said, adding that he may have be able to identify other potential defectors.

...

His departure suggest that Gadhafi's inner circle "now know how this story ends, and do not wish to be with the dictator when that end comes," he said.

...

[Nitro Express]

Pick the woman in this pic and win a prize!!!

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/03/27/article-1370386-0B5A3C2A00000578-156_640x492.jpg


:elvis:

She looks like Martha Stewart to me.

[Nitro Express]

PANIC!



Buy your gold and year supply of dehydrated food now! Don't wait until the store shelves are bare and it's too late!

[Blaze]

Gates calls for limited role aiding Libyan rebels

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110331/capt.5b0c0cdd21ef4e73a0664d458a9bd48c-5b0c0cdd21ef4e73a0664d458a9bd48c-0.jpg

...

Defense officials slammed the brakes Thursday on any major American role aiding opposition groups and insisted that America should not be the one to arm the opposition force.

...

Gates insisted there will be no U.S. military boots on the ground "as long as I am in this job."

...

Gates defended the intervention noting that, "We may not know much about the opposition or the rebels, but we know a great deal about Gadhafi."

...

Gates and Mullen said Gadhafi's military has been degraded by as much as 25 percent, but Mullen noted that regime forces still outnumber the rebels by about 10-to-1.

...

opposition groups are fractured and operating independently city by city, and 1,000 of the rebels are militarily trained.

...

Gates said that he believes political and economic pressures will eventually drive Gadhafi from power, but the military operation will help force him to make those choices by degrading his defense capabilities.

...

"History has demonstrated that an entrenched enemy like the Libyan regime can be resilient to airpower," McKeon said.

...

Intelligence experts said the CIA would have sent officials to make contact with the opposition and assess the strength and needs of the rebel forces in the event

[ELVIS]

She looks like Martha Stewart to me.

Which one ??

[binnie]

There is a risk that this could de-stabilize the whole Middle East. Other nations in the UN - besides the US, Uk and France - need to be much, much more active in intervention. There is a lot of 'tokenism' going on....

[ELVIS]

Like it was stable before ??

[chefcraig]

She looks like Martha Stewart to me.

Doesn't matter. Either way, binnie would hit it. :sex:

[Blaze]

Libyan rebels cheered by U.S. support and defection

...

Analysts agreed the defection of Koussa, who flew to London on Wednesday, was a blow to Gaddafi, whose forces have gained ground in recent days.
But the top U.S. military officer told Congress Gaddafi was far from beaten. "We have actually fairly seriously degraded his military capabilities," Admiral Mike Mullen said. "That does not mean he's about to break from a military standpoint."

...

Gaddafi's troops have used superior arms and tactics to push back

...

special forces are on the ground identifying targets for air strikes.

...

call is for weapons -- not authorised

...

Rebels said Gaddafi loyalists had killed 38 civilians over the past two days alone in Misrata, the only town in western Libya still under rebel control. "Massacres are taking place in Misrata," a rebel spokesman called Sami said by telephone.

...

enforce a U.N. arms embargo on all sides: "We are there to protect the Libyan people, not to arm the people," NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in Stockholm.

...

for Gaddafi, quick to portray his foes as lackeys of the West.
:BlinkBlinkBlink:

...

we will advance no matter what," said Muneim Mustafa, a fighter with an AK-47 rifle slung over his shoulder.

...

not being offered immunity but encouraged others around Gaddafi to follow suit. "Gaddafi must be asking himself who will be the next to abandon him," he told a news conference.
That question was answered soon afterwards when former Libyan foreign minister Ali Abdussalam Treki -- appointed by Gaddafi to replace his U.N. ambassador, who defected in February -- refused to take up the job.
Treki condemned the "spilling of blood," in a statement send to Reuters.

Corporation before charges are made goes a very long way in consideration of charges against an individual.

...

but note Gaddafi's inner circle consists of family members who may resort to more violence to stay in power.

A government spokesman said Gaddafi and all his sons would stay "until the end." Koussa had been "exhausted," he said, adding: "I don't think his sick leave included London."

...

[Blaze]

Egypt panel seeks to recover Mubarak assets abroad

CAIRO (Reuters) – A committee set up by Egypt's military rulers will travel to Europe aiming to recover frozen assets belonging to deposed President Hosni Mubarak and other leading officials, the state news agency said on Thursday.
European Union governments agreed on March 21 to freeze the assets of Mubarak and 18 associates. Switzerland, one of the countries the Egyptian delegation will visit, froze assets that could belong to Mubarak on February 11, the day he stepped down.
Essam el-Gawahri, a senior justice ministry official heading the committee, said it would "make every effort to restore those assets to the country according to the U.N. Convention against Corruption," the state news agency MENA reported.

[Blaze]

Envoy says high-rank Libyans trying to defect

UNITED NATIONS – Most high-level Libyan officials are trying to defect but are under tight security and having difficulty leaving the country, a top Libyan diplomat now supporting the opposition said Thursday.

...

We know that most of the high Libyan officials are trying to defect, but most of them are under tight security measures and they cannot leave the country, but we are sure that many of them will benefit from the first chance to be out of the country and to defect," Dabbashi said.

...

Asked why senior Libyan officials are defecting — or want to defect — now instead of last month when opposition protests against Gadhafi's 41-year rule began, Dabbashi said it was a reaction to the regime's attacks on civilians.
"The normal human behavior is to disconnect from this regime," he said.

...

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said Wednesday that D'Escoto needs a G-1 visa — the American visa required for diplomatic representation — if he wants to represent Libya.
If he tries to do so on the tourist visa he now holds, she warned, "he will soon have his visa status reviewed."

[Blaze]

Tripoli witness: Humour amid the fear

Libyan inspired 'Possible Scenarios'

Every day analysts abroad - both Libyan and foreign - have been spinning possible scenarios for Libya's future.

Residents of Tripoli have come up with a set of their own fictitious and humour/terror-based outcomes that are far from the traditional outlook.

These are just a few of what I've come across in recent weeks.


If the coalition air strikes overtly go after the leader himself, Col Gaddafi will press a secret button in his bunker which will detonate bombs across the country and wipe it off the map.

If the regime regains control of all of Libya it will dig a very large hole, put all the opposition in it and burn everyone alive.

The leaders of the opposition in Benghazi are secretly regime loyalists. They will reveal themselves soon and we will discover this was all a big lie.

The Libyan leader and his sons will face the public and the world, apologise for all their wrongdoings and ask for forgiveness.

That last one usually draws a roar of laughter in small circles. It may seem impossible to find humour in times of war and fear - but it happens.

[Blaze]

Lots from The Art of War:

The rush of water, to the point of tossing rocks about. This is shih.

The strike of a hawk, at the killing snap. This is the node.

Shih is like drawing the crossbow.
The node is like pulling the trigger.

chapter 5 SHIH


commentary
Shih is the power inherent in configuration. As Lao Tzu says. water is the softest thing in the world, yet here it tosses rocks about as it cascades through the ravine.


The node is that small junture between the sections of bamboo. It indicates the abrupt momment at which something occurs - the present, between past and future. It must be short: its target is always in motion.

The power of shih comes from combining these two elements. When you pull the trigger of a crossbow, its gradually accumulated energy is released all at once, in one spot.

[Golden AWe]

Are they serious about giving weapons to the rebels? Sure worked well in Afganistan...

[Blaze]

there is an imbargo on arms to Libya. To send arms to the Revolutionist would require an UN resolution. There has been some debate if a neighboring country, specifically Egypt, could send arms legally. I did not follow the debate to conclusion. However IMO, Egypt is real busy right now simply setting up a government. That leaves Tunisia, Algeria, Niger, Chad, and/or Sudan as a possible legal route to arms. Though, as I said, I did not follow the debate to completion.

I know the Revolutionist have a strong desire to do this on their own.
For a while they desperately needed communications. This has some what been solved. They "got" that one on their own.

IMO, when fighting in a fishbowl, such as Libya is at the moment, and the other person has more of what you need, one should acquire the other person's excess.

A focus on acquisition of Gadafi's military supplies would be useful.

Maybe, instead of blowing up the tanks with re-purposed anti air craft missiles, some of the cowboys of the youthful exuberance troupes (YET) of the Revolutionist could swarm and acquire, stealth and acquire or trick and acquire tanks. The YET do not need to know how to fully operate a tank, they just need to know how to drive one and keep it gassed to the loading point.

Acquisition would be a useful focus. :)


Remember this is what is being worked with.



Libyan armed forces (before unrest)

Service Strength Kit Status
SOURCE: INSTITUTE FOR NATIONAL SECURITY STUDIES, ECONOMIST

Army
45,000
Tanks: 650 Infantry vehicles: 1,050 APCs: 1,080 Artillery: 2,320
Weak and poorly equipped (mostly conscripts)

Paramilitary
40,000
Little known about equipment
Well-armed and highly trained loyal tribesmen and African mercenaries.

Air force
8,000
Combat: 260 Transport: 83 Helicopters: 117
Well-equipped but poorly run. Planes are old Soviet MiG and French-built Mirage craft.

Air defence
15,000
SAM launchers: 400 Anti-aircraft guns: 440
Status unknown but mainly comprised of conscripts

Navy
8,000
Combat vessels: 17 Patrol craft: 10 Landing craft: 4
Status unknown. Ageing Soviet-built craft


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12692068

I have not read an accounting of what has been destroyed or acquired by the Revolutionist.

[Blaze]

Libyan rebels say airstrike killed 13 of their own

Mohammad Bedrise, a doctor in a nearby hospital, said three burned bodies had been brought in by men who said they had been hit after firing a heavy machine gun in the air in celebration. Idris Kadiki, a 38-year-old mechanical engineer, said he had seen an ambulance and three cars burning after an airstrike.
:stop: :stop: :stop: :stop: :stop: :stop:

Waste is not your friend!
You do not play with poop..... because waste is not your friend!

Rebels without training — sometimes even without weapons — have rushed in and out of fighting in a free-for-all for more than six weeks, repeatedly getting trounced by Gadhafi's more heavily armed forces. But ex-military officers who have joined the rebel side have stepped up training efforts and taken a greater role in the fight.

"This unfortunate accident was a mistake that was caused by the rebels' advance during the coalition's attack," Ghoga said. "Now the military leadership that has been organized more effectively recently is working on preventing the recurrence of these accidents." :wow:

[Blaze]

...
Rebels control much of eastern Libya, but in the west the only significant city they hold is Misrata, which has been besieged for weeks by Gadhafi forces who have cut off water, power and food supplies.
Medical officials said Saturday that government forces killed 37 civilians over the past two days in an unrelenting campaign of shelling and sniper fire and an attack that burned down the city's main stocks of flour and sugar.
:deep sigh:

...

Rebels control much of eastern Libya, but in the west the only significant city they hold is Misrata, which has been besieged for weeks by Gadhafi forces who have cut off water, power and food supplies.
Medical officials said Saturday that government forces killed 37 civilians over the past two days in an unrelenting campaign of shelling and sniper fire and an attack that burned down the city's main stocks of flour and sugar.

Gadhafi's forces have shelled the city's outskirts and residents are piling into the heart of Misrata, crowding into the homes of relations and even unfinished buildings, the hospital official said. The reports could not be independently confirmed.

...

Gadhafi's government is trying to hold talks with the U.S., Britain and France in hopes of ending the air campaign, said Abdul-Ati al-Obeidi, a former Libyan prime minister who has served as a Gadhafi envoy during the crisis. "We are trying to find a mutual solution," he told Britain's Channel 4 News on Friday.

...

At the same time, Libyan officials scoffed at the rebels' offer of a cease-fire. The rebels set one condition: that Gadhafi pulls his military forces out of cities and allows peaceful protests against his regime.
"You are not making peace if you are making impossible demands," government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said. "It's a trick, it's a trick. I could say to the rebels, I offer you peace — get out of Benghazi on a ship. This is my condition. You can't do that."

That is kind of an odd phrasing and speech. :umm:

[Blaze]

Rebel forces are pressing on to the front line around the Libyan oil town of Brega, BBC correspondents say. More uniformed and better disciplined soldiers seem to be bolstering the usual disorganised rebel fighters, they add

...

Top US military officer Adm Mike Mullen says coalition attacks have destroyed about 25% of the Libyan military's capabilities

...

British officials have questioned Libyan Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa, who fled to the UK on Thursday after resigning his post


A number of close advisers to Col Gaddafi have reportedly left Libya and are awaiting flights out of Tunisia, reports say

0642 The British government has confirmed to the BBC that a senior aide to Col Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, has been in London for a series of talks. Details are scant, but reports in the Middle East suggest Saif al-Islam Gaddafi may have a plan to offer himself as a transitional leader, giving his father the chance to step down. Added to the reported government defections, this has raised rebel hopes, but there has been no sign from Tripoli that Col Gaddafi has any intention of giving up power.


0742 On the issue of the defection of Libya's foreign minister, human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson says the British government can offer Moussa Koussa a plea-bargain, but it has to avoid offering him immunity, which would be illegal in international law. Mr Koussa is a man of infinite treachery, has been accused of involvement in the Lockerbie bombing as well as the torture and killing of Libyan dissidents, the QC tells the BBC news Channel, so nothing he says can be taken at face value.

It is best to negotiate charges before others do. The sooner one steps up the better plea-bargain one will get.

0747 How is the war in Libya being funded? Early on in the rebellion, Col Gaddafi's government reportedly gave away 500 dinars ($400; £250) to every family, and said it would raise state salaries by up to 150%. Some loyalists in Tripoli were given as much as 17,000 dinars, a new car and a weapon. And foreign mercenaries, of whom there are thousands, were reportedly being paid as much as $10,000 to sign on, with a daily wage of up to $1,000. For more details,

0752 In Libya's capital, Tripoli,
the atmosphere is tense,
with shortages of money, fuel and bread. "For those who have been nervously watching scenes on their televisions of the rebels advancing then retreating over and over again, the sense of a stalemate that could prolong the conflict has been gradually sinking in - rather depressingly," one resident tells the BBC.

0809 From Tripoli, our world affairs editor John Simpson says there is no sign whatsoever of the system collapsing, although he adds that often in situations like these the first sign of a government collapse is when it actually happens.

0854Back to Libya now, with LibyaFeb17_com tweeting: "Gaddafi regime quietly putting guards at key positions to prevent defections."
Help them escape.

0916 Our colleagues at BBC Monitoring report that Libyan intelligence chief Abuzayd Umar Durdah has called into Libyan state TV denying claims he had defected. He called into a live discussion programme on the state-owned Al-Jamahiriyah TV channel late on Thursday night, saying: "I don't have one reason to depart the homeland or to betray the people or the leader and the victorious revolution he is leading."

0922 What can we discern from the fighting in Libya? The Economist argues the only emerging pattern is one of wildly see-sawing fortunes, as coastal towns change hands with almost metronomic regularity.
In a leader this week,
the paper argues the coalition's priorities are to halt the advance of loyalist troops, bring some relief to the civilians in Misrata and encourage members of the regime to start looking for a way out.

Sidenote> 0954 Britons are being advised to get out of Yemen, with the UK Foreign Office tweeting: "#Yemen: We strongly urge British nationals to leave now by commercial means. Contact details for airlines in Yemen:http://ow.ly/4qY7p It's highly unlikely that the British government will be able to evacuate you or provide consular assistance if you do not leave now "

1000 Pro-Gaddafi forces have sown land mines in areas around rebel-held Ajdabiya, adding a dangerous new element to the war on the eastern front, human rights and mine experts are quoted as telling Reuters.

016 Over at the Informed Comment blog, Professor Juan Cole
has an interesting take on the impact of Moussa Koussa's defection.
Its importance, he argues, "lies in its being a sign of the winds shifting against Qaddafi with his inner circle, which will affect the loyalty of his outer circle of tribal leaders".

1052 LibyanDictator tweets: "BREAKING: Violent clashes in #Misrata as Gaddafi brigades attempt to push further into city using heavy shelling and mortars."

1213 Meanwhile, Qatar is set to provide fuel, medicine, food and other humanitarian needs to Libya's rebels as part of a deal to market oil from rebel-held eastern Libya, a top rebel finance official is quoted as telling Reuters.

1217 The Arab League has thrown its weight behind Libya's rebel forces. Hisham Youssef, who was the bloc's representative at this week's London conference on the future of Libya, said the Arab League would support whatever end to the conflict satisfies Libya's opposition. "If the opposition is satisfied then we will be satisfied," Mr Youssef told Radio 4's World at One. "And from our contacts with them, it seems that they will only be satisfied when they see regime change."

1236 Perhaps this is better news from the International Committee of the Red Cross in Libya. ICRC officials are in Tripoli at the invitation of Libya's authorities discussing how to expand humanitarian activities nationwide. "The organisation stands ready to assess the situation from a humanitarian viewpoint in some of the worst-affected areas in order to meet the most pressing needs of vulnerable people," said the ICRC in a statement.

1259 This just in from our colleagues over at the Today programme, who have just conducted an interview with Libyan Oil Minister Shukri Ghanim.
The former prime minister denies that he's defected from the regime,
telling Today presenter Justin Webb that he remains loyal to the Gadaffi regime.

1329 The BBC's Nick Springate reports from Libya's eastern town of Brega that for the first time, rag-tag rebel forces have been bolstered by a number of well-armed, seemingly well-trained soldiers in full military attire. It's not clear where they've come from, our correspondent says, but their very presence has boosted morale on the front line. "


1336 Our correspondent says the rebels are now starting a major onslaught on Brega, having given a boisterous reception to two key rebel figures - the former interior minister and the former head of the armed forces. Brega's significance is as one of the major oil towns on the route to Col Gaddafi's birthplace of Sirte, our correspondent adds.

1405 As if the unrest reverberating around the Mediterranean coastline wasn't enough, the region has just been hit by more shockwaves in the form of a magnitude 6.2 earthquake centred beneath the island of Crete. :umm:

1409 Back to Libya now, where Libya Feb 17 tweets: "Opp. official says Qatar agreed to give revolutionaries money to buy weapons in exchange for oil - #libya #feb17 - http://t.co/eWhA75f."


1435 This just in from the US: The CIA has sent a small, covert team into rebel-held eastern Libya while the White House debates whether to arm the opposition,<-no believe
NPR reports.
The operatives are in Libya to gather intelligence to help direct Nato airstrikes and to help train inexperienced rebel fighters, it says. <- yes

1444 An update on Emam al-Obeidi, the woman who burst into a Tripoli hotel on Saturday to tell foreign journalists that she'd been raped by Col Gaddafi's soldiers, before being dragged out of the hotel by security officials. She hasn't been seen since. Her parents have told the BBC they're sad about what happened, and that they're proud of their daughter. ~`~

1517 Spain says it will create and fund two humanitarian "land corridors" to send aid to the rebel-stronghold of Benghazi in eastern Libya. Secretary of State for Co-operation Soraya Rodriguez says Madrid has struck a deal with the Arab Medical Association, based in Cairo, which will convey humanitarian supplies.

1524Hiefa, who has contacts in Misrata tells the BBC: "Now there is a battle between the rebels and Gaddafi's force in Misrata in the heavy transport road. Gaddafi's forces have been able to access the main warehouses of goods supply. They are bombing the fuel and water stores. At the same time, Gaddafi's forces are bombing the city centre heavily and randomly. {edited for length}

1531 Nato says sandstorms have been hampering its ability to identify air strike targets in Libya, although the weather was said to be improving on Friday.

sidenote>1600 Arab affairs commentator Sultan Al Qassemi tweets: "Radio Sawa: Eyewitness says Bashar's "baltagiya" (thug) security officers were dressed in civilian clothes & all wore a blue ribbon #Syria"

1606 Following on from Spain's announcement that it will fund "humanitarian corridors" to Benghazi, the EU now says it will mount a military operation to support humanitarian assistance - if asked to by the UN - called EUFOR Libya.

1631 Back now to Libya: Gunfire has been heard near Col Gaddafi's fortified compound in
Tripoli, Reuters reports. Resident said they saw snipers on rooftops and pools of blood on the streets. The reports cannot be verified.

1655 adeb91 tweets: "Revolutionaries retook #brega #libya today, as professional fighter moved to front lines, more organised and better equipped today. #feb17"

1659 We're ending our live coverage for the day,

[Blaze]

This could take time, partly because the Libyan leader is said to have built up a huge reserve of funds that he is now drawing on.

The International Monetary Fund has estimated the value of Libya's gold reserves at $6bn (£4bn). And Ibrahim Dabbashi, the Libyan deputy representative to the UN who has defected to the rebels, says the cash reserves, which would be easier to use for direct payments, are worth "tens of billions".

He says it was widely believed among senior Libyan officials that a stash of this money and gold was moved to the Libyan south in shipping containers during the 1990s.

"Now we know clearly that these amounts are being used for financing the recruitment of mercenaries, for buying armaments, and for financing the war," Mr Dabbashi said.

Burn it~

...

Gaddafi handouts
It is not known how fast Col Gaddafi might be getting through his funds, but he has certainly been displaying new levels of largesse.


Fuel shortages have been reported in Tripoli
Early on in the rebellion his government gave away 500 dinars ($400; £250) to every family, and said it would raise state salaries by up to 150%.

Some loyalists in Tripoli were given as much as 17,000 dinars, a new car and a weapon.

And foreign mercenaries, of whom there are thousands, were reportedly being paid as much as $10,000 to sign on, with a daily wage of up to $1,000.

In one sign that it was under pressure the Libyan central bank has begun recirculating old, large banknotes.

Fuel shortages have also been reported, though Mr Priddy said that as long as Col Gaddafi retained control of the Azzawiya refinery, he was likely to have enough petrol for military operations.

...

[Blaze]

Libya holding huge gold reserves IMF data show


Libya has declared gold reserves worth more than $6bn at current prices, thought to be held largely at home.

The reserves are substantial, ranking in the global top 25, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) data.

They could potentially be used to finance Colonel Gaddafi's government at a time when it is subject to international financial sanctions.

It might be possible to transport the gold to other African countries and sell it.

Sahara Desert
This is rather speculative, it must be said, but the gold could in principle generate millions of dollars in revenue, which could be used for example to pay foreign fighters.

Raising cash this way would face challenges.

Transport out of Libya would be difficult - using the country's Mediterranean ports would be too dangerous with military action under way.

Continue reading the main story
Forex Gold Index(pm fix) $/oz
LAST UPDATED AT 01 APR 2011, 11:20 ET

price change %
1418.00 -
-21.00
-
-1.46
The alternatives would involve the crossing of borders with other African countries in the Sahara Desert.

It's also unlikely that Libya could get anything close to the international market price for any gold disposed of in this kind of unconventional way.

Nonetheless, there are possibilities for a government desperate to raise funds.

The gold reserves that Libya could dip into are very large for what is a small country in terms of population - with six million people - and in terms of economic activity.

Shrewd investment
The IMF data show Libya's reserves to be 4.6 million ounces, a figure of nearly 144 tons. At current market prices the value is over $6bn.

There are twenty countries with larger gold reserves. But, with the exception of Lebanon, they are all much richer or much larger in population.

Britain for example has twice as much gold, but ten times the population and an economy more than 30 times the size.

A closer comparison is Algeria, which is, like Libya, a North African oil producer - it has 20% more gold reserves, but more than five times the population.

So why does Libya have such a large holding of the precious metal?

Given how the the gold price has climbed in recent years, you might argue that it is the result of shrewd investment decisions.

But Colonel Gaddafi does have past experience of being on the receiving end of international sanctions.

So the fondness for gold could well reflect a desire to have an asset that can be kept at home, away from foreign enemies.

It is not one that is easy to turn into cash in current circumstances.

But it is more usable than financial assets or stakes in firms in the countries that are trying to starve him of funds.

[Blaze]

http://www.economist.com/node/18488264

[Blaze]

Lotted from The Art of War

One skilled at moving the enemy

Forms and the enemy must follow,
Offers and the enemy must take.
chap5 SHIH

commentary
Do not fight head-on. Instead, shape the ground. This narrows the other's course of action, leading them where you want. They have no alternative. If your offer is made from the perspective of victory, they choose it as if it were their own idea. This is skill.

[Blaze]

No updates today. Reviewing some pages.

Lots - Two fell.

The Art of War

Invincibility is defense.
Vincibility is attack.
Defend and one has surplus.
Attack and one is insufficient.

chap4 FORM

Commentary
A conventional military logic might say: "Attack when you have a surplus; defend when you are insufficient." This maintains a commitment to gaining victory through attack. By contrast, The Art of War points to the vulnerability of attack and the subtle power of defense.

The Art of War

Of old the skilled first made themselves invincible to await the enemy's vincibility.

Invincibility lies in oneself.
Vincibility lies in the enemy.

chap4 FORM

commentary
Prepare conditions of invincibility within your own sphere. But this is not yet victory. You must wait for the enemy's vincibility to arise. Sjill is knowing that moment.

[Blaze]

I have reviewed the origins of ntclibya.org to the best of my ability. There is limited information. Registrant Name:Identity Protection Service
However, the information appears useful, up to date, and analysis of the data availed shows no red flags.

The site and related feeds exhibit an expected volunteer exuberance and novice.

http://ntclibya.org (http://ntclibya.org)

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/revolution-map.png

[Blaze]

http://ntclibya.org/arabic/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/east-coast-map.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/arabic/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/west-coast-map.jpg

[Blaze]

Media

Photo Gallery: The photo gallery does not provide descriptions.
- The descriptions written are my observations.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0117.jpg

If I recall my ships correctly ( and I do not think I do) It appears the Revolutionist have commandeered at least one Frigger.


http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0121.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0130.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0168.jpg

[Blaze]

The Civil Brigade attends to the very important task of order in chaos. Such tasks will help restore order quickly.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0025.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/183039_138327002899791_133738650025293_264331_3554 097_n.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/183298_138327049566453_133738650025293_264333_7535 730_n.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/183547_138326976233127_133738650025293_264330_7273 180_n.jpg
Good day care is hard to find even in war.
I say that jokingly.
However, by not placing children in centralized daycares their survival rates increase, by keeping children scattered the chances are lowered of a large loss of children at one time.

[Blaze]

Good to see water, traffic control, and peace officers. ;)

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0034-680x1024.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0099.jpg

[Blaze]

Market places and news gathering locations continue.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0013-1024x680.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0015-1024x680.jpg

[Blaze]

Let us not forget war is occurring all around the order.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0299.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0004-1024x680.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/34dfghjkl-1024x685.jpg

[Blaze]

Possibly 2 less tanks. Too bad tanks are a pain to refunction once disabled.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC0081.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC01301.jpg

[Blaze]

Ah, the irony of commandeered air support.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0041.jpg

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0003.jpg

Or is that the USA's pilot?

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_00151.jpg

[PETE'S BROTHER]

Blaze
One of the D'monds
Crazy Ass Mofo



C.U.N.T. Ambassador
Member No
24297

Join Date
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[Blaze]

Blaze
One of the D'monds
Crazy Ass Mofo
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/customavatars/avatar24297_10.gif


C.U.N.T. Ambassador

Member No
24297

Join Date
Jan 2009

Last Online
Today @ 09:57 AM

Location
Directly under God

Posts
2,866
Status
Invisible
:cool8:






Blog Entries
40
Thanks 732

Thanked 139 Times in 120 Posts

Rep Power
6

Kisses 4 U

Three of them

This photo is my new desktop photo.

http://ntclibya.org/english/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DSC_0050.jpg

[Blaze]

The council derives it legitimacy from the decisions of local councils set up by the revolutionary people of Libya on the 17th of February. These local councils facilitated a mechanism to manage daily life in the liberated cities and villages. The council consists of thirty one members representing the various cities of Libya from the east to the west and from the north to the south. The aim of the Transitional National Council is to steer Libya during the interim period that will come after its complete liberation and the destruction of Gaddafi’s oppressive regime. It will guide the country to free elections and the establishment of a constitution for Libya.

The Council members representing Al Buntan, Al Gubbah and Benghazi have been named while the names of those representing Ajdabiya, Zintan, Misratah, Nalut and Ghat have not been disclosed due to security reasons. The council is awaiting the nomination of representatives from the central and southern regions as well as Tripoli.

The Council notes that it is the only legitimate body representing the people of Libya and the Libyan state and calls on all the countries of the world to recognise it and deal with it on the basis of international legitimacy. The Council also notes that it will honour and respect all international and regional agreements signed by the former Libyan government, emphasizing its aspirations in seeing Libya play a significant role in the establishing international peace and security.

The Council also stresses that the heads of envoys and Libya’s representatives in the UN, the Arab League and all international and regional organisations, and our embassies and diplomatic missions who have joined this revolution are the legitimate representatives of this Council in these places. We also request from those who have yet to transfer their affiliation with this Council to do so.

The Council will seek to maintain peace and security in the liberated cities with all its strength. It will also plan and work towards liberating the remaining cities still kidnapped by the tyrant Mu’ammar Gaddafi and his gang. Here, we call on all the people of Libya to participate in achieving these lofty goals through the commitment to the noble Libyan ethics and by prioritising our country before the self in the same way our ancestors did to liberate it from the Italian colonizers.

Long live Libya free and dignified.

http://ntclibya.org/english/about/

[Blaze]

The Libyan Republic
The Interim Transitional National Council

Decrees and Announcements

Links -
31 March 2011- Statement of TNC on Counter-Terrorism (http://ntclibya.org/english/counter-terrorism/)
29 March 2011- A vision of a democratic Libya (http://ntclibya.org/english/libya/)
27 March 2011 – Statement regarding Eman Al-Obaidi New (http://ntclibya.org/english/statement-regarding-eman-al-obaidi/)
25 March 2011– Statement about Treatment of Detainees and Prisoners New (http://ntclibya.org/english/prisoners/)
22 March 2011 – Statement by TNC on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1973 (http://ntclibya.org/english/statement-resolution-1973)
21 March 2011 – Statement of Affirmation (http://ntclibya.org/english/the-statement/)
19 March 2011 – Meetings Mintues & Outcomes (http://ntclibya.org/english/meeting-on-19-march-2011)
5 March 2011 – Founding statement of the Interim National Council (http://ntclibya.org/english/?page_id=55)

[Blaze]

Libyan woman who claimed rape is free

http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/p/ap_logo_106.png
By HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, Associated Press – 1 hr 10 mins ago
TRIPOLI, Libya – A Libyan woman who burst into a Tripoli hotel to tell foreign journalists that she was gang raped by Moammar Gadhafi's troops says she is not in custody.
Iman al-Obeidi made headlines last week when she was dragged away from the hotel by government officials as she screamed her allegations of rape. A government official said she was a prostitute, but her family said she is a lawyer.
On Sunday she told a Libyan dissident network based in Qatar that she was examined by a doctor to prove the rape charge. She told CNN she was detained and beaten when she tried to reach reporters a second time.
A woman the government said was al-Obeidi's lawyer told The Associated Press Monday that her client was refusing to speak to reporters because her case was under investigation.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110404/ap_on_re_af/af_libya_woman_attacked

No one has seen her. There has been only a phone call to a person that would not recognize her voice. :(

[Blaze]

Volunteers flock to Libya rebel army boot camp

BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – Ashraf Mohamed Salem has never fired a gun in his life.

But the 27-year-old science student was one of several hundred eager volunteers who showed up at the Benghazi military barracks on Monday for a basic training course so he can join the rebel army facing Muammar Gaddafi's troops.

"We want to protect our families but we have no experience. I hope we will be good enough to go to the frontline but if not we will defend our homes," he told Reuters.

He said he had worked supplying food to the frontlines during the uprising against Gaddafi that broke out in mid-February but now he had decided to fight.

"I've never fired a gun before. That's why I'm here, to learn."

The rebel army is largely made up of young civilians and their fortunes have ebbed and flowed in the face of Gaddafi's better-armed and experienced troops.

The front line is now around Brega, about 230 km by road southwest of Benghazi.

Their lack of training and military experience has been a concern not only to the rebel leadership but also to the foreign governments which have backed them with air strikes but are reluctant to commit ground troops to help topple Gaddafi.

The rebel leadership is making a concerted effort to improve matters. In the past week, there have been signs that former army officers were asserting more control over the often anarchic scenes at the frontline.

The recruits training at the Benghazi barracks were under the instruction of former army officers who had joined the rebel side, most of them coming out of retirement.

Fosi Al-Hado, a former marine commander in a slouch hat and camouflage uniform, said there little time to teach them a lot.

"We are training them with the weapons we have," he said. "Kalashnikovs, rockets launchers, machine guns. These are the only weapons that are available. We want long distance weapons, heavy artillery, missiles, to give us the advantage."

The training lasts a week and mostly covers weapons. Tactics will have to wait until later, said Hado, who said he had fought in conflicts in Uganda, Chad and Lebanon.

The best recruits are sent to the front but other fighters are needed to defend the city and strategic locations.

He said all the instructors were Libyan. No foreign personnel could be seen on the parade ground when Reuters visited the camp.

"We have no foreigners," Hado said. "We are all Libyans."

U.S. and Egyptian soldiers have been reported to be training rebels in camps in east Libya but neither their governments nor the rebel leadership have confirmed this.

ALL CLEAR

Groups of recruits sat in circles on the parade ground around rocket launchers and cannon, listening intently to the instructors.

"This goes in this hole here. Is that clear?" said one instructor putting the barrel of an anti-aircraft gun back together.

"Yes," the recruits responded in a chorus.

Their numbers included students, doctors, businessmen and engineers as well as workers or unemployed people.

While Gaddafi is known for employing female bodyguards, there were no women fighters among the rebels, unlike in rebel armies in Nicaragua or Sri Lanka. They are assigned to other jobs in the revolutionary movement, an official said.

Hisham Mohamed, 32, a communication student, said he a personal reason for joining the fight.

"I've never had training before, never had a gun. I'm here because Gaddafi detained my brother. Since 1996. We don't know where he is or if he is still alive."

Because of this, he and his family were barred from getting government jobs, he said.

Commander Hado said it was likely to be a long and difficult fight.

"We have the will. We are fighting a professional army but we have God and right on our side. When Gaddafi goes, I'll go back to retirement."


By Angus MacSwan – Mon Apr 4, 9:40 am ET

[Blaze]

Britain not eyeing 'exit strategy' for Kadhafi

– Mon Apr 4, 9:23 am ET
LONDON (AFP) – Britain is not pursuing an exit strategy for Moamer Kadhafi, Prime Minister David Cameron's spokesman said on Monday as the Libyan leader's envoy toured capitals discussing a solution to the crisis.

Kadhafi's Deputy Foreign Minister Abdelati Laabidi was to travel to Turkey and Malta on Monday.
He has already been in Athens, where "according to what the Libyan envoy said the regime seems to be looking for a solution," Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas said.
Cameron's spokesman said the British government's position on Kadhafi was clear.

…

A military plane from Jordan landed in Benghazi on Monday carrying medical supplies. Jordanian Col. Aqab Abu Abu Windi, who arrived on the plane, said it contained seven and one half tons of medical supplies to help the Libyan people and promised, "This plane is just the beginning."

…

PM boost Libya jet numbers at Italian base

– 1 hr 24 mins ago
GIOIA DEL COLLE, Italy (AFP) – Prime Minister David Cameron made a surprise visit Monday to the Italian base hosting British jets enforcing a no-fly zone over Libya, and announced four more planes for the mission.

Flying into Gioia del Colle in southern Italy, he said Britain would be deploying four new Tornado jets "in the next couple of days" to boost the NATO-led mission to protect civilians from Moamer Kadhafi's forces.

"Which will mean we will have 10 Typhoons for the mission in terms of the no-fly zone and we'll have a total of 12 Tornado ground attack aircraft involved in operations," he told reporters travelling with him.

…
Britain sends telecoms equipment to Libyan rebels
By DAVID STRINGER, Associated Press – 1 hr 57 mins ago
LONDON – Britain announced Monday it will supply communications equipment to Libyan rebels to help them withstand attacks by Moammar Gadhafi's regime.

Foreign Secretary William Hague also told the House of Commons that the United Nations and the European Union may consider dropping sanctions against some members of Gadhafi's regime if they abandon their support for the Libyan dictator. It was unclear if the offer could extend to Gadhafi's family, many of whom face sanctions.

…
"In the case of anyone currently sanctioned by the EU and U.N. who breaks definitively with the regime, we will discuss with our partners the merits of removing the restrictions that currently apply," Hague said. "Sanctions are designed to change behavior and it is therefore right that they are adjusted when new circumstances arise."

Hague told lawmakers that Britain had responded to a request for telecommunications equipment from rebel leaders in Libya following a new round of meetings in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. He said his own attempts to talk with the rebels had been hampered by their poor communications equipment.
…

Italy rejects Gadhafi regime's diplomatic push

By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA and ALESSANDRA RIZZO, Associated Press – 28 mins ago
ISTANBUL – A diplomatic push by Moammar Gadhafi's regime ran into trouble Monday as opponents at home and abroad rejected any solution to the Libyan conflict that would involve one of his sons taking power.

While a Gadhafi envoy lobbied diplomats in European capitals, Italy became the third nation to declare that the rebels' interim council in Libya is the only legitimate voice for the people of the North African nation.

Italy is the third country, after France and Qatar, to give diplomatic recognition to the rebel council,

…
Libya rebels dismiss deal with Kadhafi son
by Joseph Krauss – 41 mins ago
BENGHAZI, Libya (AFP) – Libyan rebels on Monday dismissed any possible peace deal which might see Moamer Kadhafi's son left in charge of the war-wracked country.

…
Libya rebels reject transition under Kadhafi sons
by Joseph Krauss – 17 mins ago
BENGHAZI, Libya (AFP) – Libyan rebels insisted Monday that the whole Kadhafi family must leave before there can be any truce with regime forces amid reports that his sons are offering to oversee a transition.
…

[Blaze]

Libya crisis: Rebels in race to train recruits

By Wyre Davies
BBC News, Benghazi
http://www.bbc.co.uk/media/images/51605000/jpg/_51605427_011013048.jpg

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51985000/jpg/_51985929_mortartraining.jpg
Training sessions in Benghazi are sometimes carried out using outdated equipment

At a military base in Benghazi, rebel leaders are in a desperate race to train new recruits.

They learn how to assemble and dismantle a heavy machine gun. Half an hour on this, then on to another lesson - perhaps the mechanics of firing a mortar shell with accuracy or how to handle an AK47.

This is how Libya's rebel army is being trained.

As one group of young men sits attentively on the floor of the parade ground in Benghazi, an instructor shows them how to arm and fire a mortar shell.

Most of these men have never seen a mortar round before, fired a gun or been anywhere near the front line.

Men like Salam bin Fayed - an engineer by trade ...

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51985000/jpg/_51985934_salembinfayed.jpg
Salam bin Fayed is nervous about moving to the front line

Read the rest of the story -> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12954610

[Blaze]

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110405/i/r365789229.jpg
Rebels load weapon on road to frontline
Rebels load a weapon on the road to the frontline in Brega April 5, 2011. Libyan rebels fled east under heavy rocket fire from leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces in the oil town of Brega on Tuesday in a sixth day of fighting that has failed to give either side the upper hand. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110405/capt.c4a24002adc84359a0267d04d1ac7aaa-c4a24002adc84359a0267d04d1ac7aaa-0.jpg
Libyan rebels salvage reusable parts
Libyan rebels salvage reusable parts of a machine gun mounted on the vehicle belonging to pro Gadhafi forces, that rebels claim were targeted by a NATO strike along the front line near Brega, Libya Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Libya's rebel forces are looking more effective on the front and even scrapping back some of the territory lost to Moammar Gadhafi's army, but the rag tag fighters are still a long way from being able to march to Tripoli.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20110405/capt.photo_1301969417768-3-0.jpg
Rebel fighter scans
A rebel fighter scans for loyalist troop activity near the key old port of Brega. The Libyan government said Tuesday it was ready to negotiate reforms, but refused any talk of Moamer Kadhafi stepping down saying he was a unifying figure after ruling the nation for four decades. (AFP/Odd Andersen)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20110405/capt.photo_1301942576084-3-0.jpg
Moamer Kadhafi's forces
Moamer Kadhafi's forces have been targeted by air strikes since March 19 under a UN mandate to use "all necessary measures" to protect civilians, but the siege has still not been broken.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110405/i/r1854684218.jpg
Rebels walk near their truck to frontline
Rebels walk near their truck on the road to the frontline in Brega April 5, 2011. A Western air strike destroyed two of Muammar Gaddafi's military vehicles in the east Libyan oil town of Brega on Tuesday allowing rebels to edge forward, but diplomatic efforts to end the war remained stalled. REUTERS/Youssef Boudl

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110405/capt.377b09f7deac47b698e65158d27cc886-377b09f7deac47b698e65158d27cc886-0.jpg
Libyan rebel, defected from pro Gadhafi
A Libyan rebel, defected from pro Gadhafi forces, wears his medals along with a dagger and a hand grenade as he stands outside Brega, Libya, Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Libya's rebel forces are looking more effective on the front and even scrapping back some of the territory lost to Moammar Gadhafi's army, but the rag tag fighters are still a long way from being able to march to Tripoli. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20110405/capt.d0e6c47c10b74ee6865ee017c5e1b25b-d0e6c47c10b74ee6865ee017c5e1b25b-0.jpg
Libyan rebel salvages live ammunition
A Libyan rebel salvages live ammunition from a vehicle belonging to pro Gadhafi forces that rebels claim were targeted by a NATO strike along the front line near Brega, Libya Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Libya's rebel forces are looking more effective on the front and even scrapping back some of the territory lost to Moammar Gadhafi's army, but the rag tag fighters are still a long way from being able to march to Tripoli. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110405/i/r1043946484.jpg
Rebels gesture from their trucks
Rebels gesture from their trucks to a passing vehicle carrying a multiple rocker launcher on the road to the frontline in Brega April 5, 2011. A Western air strike destroyed two of Muammar Gaddafi's military vehicles in the east Libyan oil town of Brega on Tuesday allowing rebels to edge forward, but diplomatic efforts to end the war remained stalled. REUTERS Youssef Boudl

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110405/i/r2132530605.jpg
Men unload fuel supplies for ambulance
Men unload fuel supplies for an ambulance from a truck outside Brega in eastern Libya April 5, 2011. A Western air strike destroyed two of Muammar Gaddafi's military vehicles in the east Libyan oil town of Brega on Tuesday allowing rebels to edge forward, but diplomatic efforts to end the war remained stalled. REUTERS Youssef Boudlal

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110405/i/r1224193703.jpg
Men carrying weapons pass truck loaded
Men carrying weapons in a truck pass another truck loaded with fuel supplies for ambulances and rebels' trucks outside Brega in eastern Libya April 5, 2011. A Western air strike destroyed two of Muammar Gaddafi's military vehicles in the east Libyan oil town of Brega on Tuesday allowing rebels to edge forward, but diplomatic efforts to end the war remained stalled. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

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Luis Moreno-Ocampo
International Criminal Court ( ICC ) Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo checks his email after an exclusive interview with Reuters in the Hague April 5, 2011. The United Nations Security Council is responsible for any political decisions on Libya, the prosecutor said on Tuesday, underlining his role is limited to investigating crimes. To match Interview LIBYA-ICC/ REUTERS/Jerry Lampen

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Luis Moreno-Ocampo
International Criminal Court ( ICC ) Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo puts on his robe after an exclusive interview with Reuters in the Hague April 5, 2011. The United Nations Security Council is responsible for any political decisions on Libya, the prosecutor said on Tuesday, underlining his role is limited to investigating crimes. To match Interview LIBYA-ICC/ REUTERS/Jerry Lampen

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Man hands weapon to near truck loaded
A man hands a weapon to another near a truck loaded with fuel supplies for the rebels outside Brega in eastern Libya April 5, 2011. Rebels have clashed with Muammar Gaddafi's forces in the east Libyan oil town of Brega for five days, rebel fighters said. REUTERS Youssef Boudlal

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Libyan rebels run from artillery shells
Libyan rebels run for cover from artillery shells fired by forces loyal to leader Moamer Kadhafi outside the eastern oil town of Brega on Tuesday. (AFP/Mahmud Hams)

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Rebel fighters try
Rebel fighters try to salvage the machine gun mounted on the back of a burning government military vehicle which had been manned by loyalists to Muammar Gaddafi after it was hit by a NATO air strike on the eastern outskirts of Brega April 5, 2011. Rebels have clashed with Gaddafi's forces in the east Libyan oil town for five days, rebel fighters said. REUTERS/Andrew Winning

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Rebel fighters attempt
Rebel fighters attempt to salvage a heavy machine gun mounted on the back of a burning vehicle used by forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi after it was hit by a NATO airstrike on the eastern outskirts of Brega April 5, 2011. REUTERS/Andrew

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Rebel fighter prepares
A rebel fighter prepares to tow away a government vehicle mounted with heavy machine gun after it was hit by a NATO airstrike on the eastern outskirts of Brega April 5, 2011. An air strike destroyed two government military vehicles on Tuesday in the east Libyan oil town of Brega, where rebels have clashed with Muammar Gaddafi's forces for five days, rebel fighters said. REUTERS/Andrew Winning

[Blaze]

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EDITOR 'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN carry basin
EDITOR'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN ON GUIDED GOVERNMENT TOUR Workers carry a basin as they clean a police station which was burnt during unrest, in the centre of the city of Zawiyah April 5, 2011 REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

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EDITOR 'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN
EDITOR'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN ON GUIDED GOVERNMENT TOUR A damaged police station is seen through broken glass, in the centre of the city of Zawiyah April 5, 2011.

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Smoke-damaged portrait of Moammar Gadhafi
In this image taken during an organized trip by Libyan authorities, a smoke-damaged portrait of Moammar Gadhafi stands on the wall of Libyan police station burned by Zawiya rebels during fighting almost three weeks ago in the coastal city of Zawiya, 30 miles (50 kilometers) West of Tripoli, Libya, Tuesday, April 5, 2011.

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Muammar Gaddafi
EDITOR'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN ON GUIDED GOVERNMENT TOUR A nurse, who is a supporter of Muammar Gaddafi, chants slogans in front of a picture of him during a protest at a hospital in the city of Zawiyah April 5, 2011.

[Blaze]

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– Tue Apr 5, 12:09 am ET

NEW YORK – A Libyan woman who says she is the person who burst into a Tripoli hotel to tell foreign journalists that she had been gang raped by Moammar Gadhafi's troops told a CNN interviewer Monday that she is out of custody but is receiving death threats from regime loyalists.

CNN said it was confident that the woman interviewed is in fact Iman al-Obeidi, who made international headlines on March 26 when she was dragged away from the Rixos Hotel by government agents as she screamed her allegations of rape to foreign reporters.

The CNN interviewer, Anderson Cooper, said the network could not be certain the woman they spoke to by telephone is al-Obeidi, but they were satisfied it was her after days of research and from the testimony of several people who had talked with al-Obeidi at the hotel and with the women interviewed. She spoke in Arabic through a female translator, but was not shown on camera.

The story she told was also consistent with the account al-Obeidi gave at the hotel.
She said, "There is no safe place for me in Tripoli. All my phones are monitored, even this phone I am speaking on right now is monitored. And I am monitored."

"Yesterday I was kidnapped by a car and they beat me in the street, then brought me here after I was dragged around," she said.

"Yes, yes, I want to leave Tripoli. In the middle of the night I get nightmares, and I feel threats 24 hours a day. They are constantly threatening me, with death."

The woman interviewed by CNN said that after the initial hotel uproar, Gadhafi's militamen bought her new clean clothes and took her to the Libyan TV station to have her broadcast a recantation of her story, to say that the rebels had raped her, but she refused to do so.

"The TV station has no credibility and I was fearing the consequences," she told CNN. "Behind the camera, I was facing 15 Kalashnikovs."

On Sunday and Monday, al-Obeidi did telephone interviews with two TV networks, but she was not seen. A government official said she had an agreement not to talk to reporters, but she was blocked from getting to the reporters' hotel again on Sunday.

The last time al-Obeidi, who is from eastern Libya, which is now in rebel hands, was seen was when she was dragged away from the hotel on March 26. She had gone to the hotel after she said she had escaped her gang-rape ordeal.

She said that Gadhafi forces originally abducted her from a taxi at a checkpoint, repeatedly raped her and held her captive for two days.

"Of course they had my hands tied behind me, and they had my legs tied, and they would hit me when I was tied, and they would bite me, and they would pour alcohol in my eyes so I would not be able to see," she told CNN.

"One of them, when my hands were still tied, before he raped me he sodomized me with his Kalashnikov rifle," she said.

"They said, 'Let the men from eastern Libya come and see how we treat their women, and how we rape them, and abuse them.'"

She managed to escape after she was untied by another captive, a 16-year-old girl, she told CNN.
The woman who spoke to CNN claimed she was detained and beaten when she tried to reach reporters in the Rixos Hotel a second time on Sunday.

She told CNN that she earlier was stopped from leaving the country at the Tunisian border and returned to Tripoli. The Tunisian border is to the west of Tripoli.

On Sunday a Libyan dissident network based in Qatar played a phone interview where a woman claiming to be al-Obeidi said Libyan authorities had declined her request to join her parents in Tobruk. Tobruk, near the Egyptian border, is under rebel control.

Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said al-Obeidi had made a deal with the attorney general not to speak to reporters so as not to compromise her case, and that he was aware that al-Obeidi was trying to reach media on Sunday.

"She broke her agreement with the attorney general by trying to speak to the media and was taken away," Ibrahim told The Associated Press.

Ibrahim said he didn't know what happened to al-Obeidi after she was taken away from the hotel.
Afaf Youssef, a woman the government said is al-Obeidi's lawyer, told The Associated Press on Monday that her client was refusing to speak to reporters because her case was under investigation.

Youssef said she was one of two lawyers taking up al-Obeidi's criminal case against the men who she says raped her. She also denied earlier government claims that al-Obeidi was a prostitute.

Al-Obeidi's rape claim could not be independently verified. The Associated Press identifies only rape victims who volunteer their names.


Thank you. ~`~

[Blaze]

Foreign minister appears to soften on Gaddafi exile
TUESDAY, 05 APRIL 2011 12:05 JB NEWS
Stalwart Espersen apparently swayed by PM’s announcement that impunity deal may be best feasible solution

Foreign minister Lene Espersen has apparently softened her stance on a hypothetical impunity deal for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi as one solution to the conflict in Libya.

The Conservative Party member’s latest statement came in reaction to remarks from the Liberal prime minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, that he would “never rule out anything” in order to find a solution, even allowing Gaddafi to flee to a friendly country that would protect him from prosecution for alleged crimes against humanity.

”If [Gaddafi] suddenly ended up in Venezuela, it would be difficult to pursue him. But the Libyan people would be better off than if he was still sitting in Tripoli,” the prime minister told Politiken newspaper on Sunday.

Just the week before at a conference in London on the Libyan conflict, Espersen stated unequivocally that Denmark would not support an impunity deal for Gaddafi.

“It is extremely important for Denmark and the international community that no country offer Gaddafi a deal promising impunity,” Espersen told conference attendees.

But following the prime minister’s statement, yesterday Espersen appeared to have softened her position, reports Berlingske newspaper.

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An injured man flashes a victory sign inside a Turkish ship carrying 250 wounded people from the besieged Libyan city of Misrata, at a port in Benghazi. It is appearing more likely that Denmark would support exile deal for Gaddafi as a way to stop fighting (Photo: Scanpix)

[Blaze]

Gaddafi peace plan not "credible" but may buy time
Mon Apr 4, 2011 2:50pm GMT


By William Maclean, Security Correspondent
LONDON (Reuters) - Peace proposals by Muammar
Gaddafi insisting on a future political role for his family are
almost certainly non-starters but may buy Libya's leader the
time he needs to drive a wedge in coalition ranks.

Gaddafi's chances of stirring interest in an interim
political settlement may improve if a military stalemate
endures, making his hopes for his sons seem less unrealistic.
Diplomatic activity generated by his proposals may act as a
stalling tactic that wins him time to build defences in his
western strongholds, shore up tribal loyalties and divide and
weaken the international coalition.

But there is no sign he has won broad interest in the West
for his terms for ending a war threatening to destabilise an
oil- and gas-rich region on Europe's southern flank. The notion
of any role for the Gaddafi family in government is simply too
much for his foes to stomach, analysts say.

Sources familiar with three scenarios floated by Gaddafi for
an interim settlement say they share two unacceptable features
-- that Gaddafi remain as a sort of national figurehead, albeit
retired, and that one of his sons take a role in a unity
government with the opposition, possibly as leader.
Experts on Libya said the proposals were not realistic.
"It can't be done," said Oliver Miles, a former British
ambassador to Tripoli.

"As soon as Gaddafi steps down, his sons are dead in the
water politically, because it's Gaddafi who calls the shots.
"In theory, according to Gaddafi, he's already a figurehead
and holds no official role, so it should not matter if he stays
or goes. The reality, however, is otherwise."

A diplomat familiar with the discussions said: "Various
scenarios are being discussed...Everyone wants a quick solution.
"Gaddafi's entourage wants to preserve the regime by all
means, even if it means sharing power with one of the sons or
stepping down symbolically."

LONG WAR MAY SUIT GADDAFI

Italy, once Gaddafi's closest Western partner, dismissed a
message carried by an envoy of the Libyan leader about ways of
halting the fighting and said Gaddafi must leave power.

Speaking after meeting Ali Essawi, a member of the Libyan
rebel council, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said a divided
Libya was not acceptable and the rebel council was the only
legitimate interlocutor.

He described proposals carried to Greece on Sunday by Deputy
Libyan Foreign Minister Abdelati Obeidi as "not credible".
Essawi said the idea of some form of transitional government
headed by one of Gaddafi's sons was "not an option".

Obeidi was due later in Turkey, a Muslim NATO member which
has said it is seeking to broker a ceasefire.

A North African political analyst, who declined to be
identified due to the sensitivity of the subject, said one of
Gaddafi's proposals was for his son Saif al-Islam to take over
as interim leader pending political reforms to be negotiated
with the Libyan opposition, and for Gaddafi himself to retire.

Saif al-Islam, Gaddafi's most prominent son, has in the past
advocated reforms to promote government transparency and
accountability, free enterprise and human rights. But he
delivered a jarring television address early in the conflict,
warning Libyans against revolt.

Gaddafi has described the rebels as "armed gangs" backed by
al Qaeda and said they are bent on terrorising ordinary Libyans,
who he says support him and his rule.

For their part, the rebels have refused any talks with
Gaddafi except to discuss the manner of his departure from power
after more than four decades of ruling the North African state.

Saad Djebbar, a former legal adviser to the Libyan
government, said it was likely that the flurry of peace feelers
from Tripoli were just Gaddafi's way of buying more time.
"He has said repeatedly in public during this crisis that he
is a long-term player while he see his enemies as short-term
players. He needs time and he feels he can get it this way."
A drawn-out conflict might hurt the coalition's ambitions
just as much as Gaddafi's, if not more.

LIBYA WAR NEEDS "HEROIC" DIPLOMATIC EFFORT

Without effective diplomacy to end the war, suggested
Shashank Joshi of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI),
Gaddafi's rhetoric portraying the coalition as Western crusaders
could find an increasingly receptive Arab audience even though
some Arab countries are fighting alongside Western forces.

In a commentary, Joshi said the underlying reality was that
"the Arab presence is a thin veneer over another transatlantic
war, and that veneer is one that will be worn away further over
time without a heroic diplomatic effort".

In the battle for leverage in any future negotiations, the
West has not always played its cards adroitly.

The coalition scored a public relations coup last week when
Gaddafi's foreign minister, Moussa Koussa, defected to Britain,
a move seen as likely to demoralize Gaddafi's encourage.
But other loyalists may not follow his example because
Britain has said publicly Koussa would not be granted immunity
from prosecution for any terrorism acts tied to Libya.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said British officials would
meet Scottish prosecutors on Monday to arrange a police
interview with Koussa over the 1988 Lockerbie bombing in which
270 people were killed.

Djebbar said Britain's treatment of Koussa was "a gift to
Gaddafi. Gaddafi will point to that and say to his followers
'you'd be better off staying with me'."

Miles agreed that the treatment of Koussa would have
discouraged those wanting to defect. "It would have been better
to say nothing in public about immunity at all," he said.

[Blaze]

Gadhafi's cash doesn't buy friends

By Shashank Bengali
sbengali@mcclatchydc.com
Published: Tuesday, Apr. 5, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 6A

CAIRO – For decades, Col. Moammar Gadhafi splashed his oil wealth around sub-Saharan Africa with pompous abandon, building cellphone networks and luxury hotels, cozying up to kings and guerrillas, hosting peace summits and loudly proclaiming his dream to lead a "United States of Africa."

Now, just when Gadhafi could use a few friends, his African beneficiaries haven't exactly rushed to his side.

The three African members of the U.N. Security Council – South Africa, Nigeria and Gabon – voted with the United States and Britain last month to authorize "all necessary measures" to stop Gadhafi from harming Libyan civilians. The African Union, the league of nations that Gadhafi championed more consistently than anyone, has been divided over the U.S.-led military campaign against him and uttered just a whisper of disapproval.

South Africa, some of whose anti-apartheid fighters trained in Libya starting in the 1970s, slighted Gadhafi again when one of its former senior judges, Navi Pillay, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, recommended that Libya be suspended from the organization's human rights council.

Uganda – where Libyan state money funds phone and pharmaceutical companies and built the country's biggest mosque – hastily backtracked last week from a reported offer of asylum to Gadhafi should he resign.

"It was a hoax. It is not true," an irritated Tamale Mirundi, a spokesman for the Ugandan president, said by phone from Kampala, the Ugandan capital.

Gadhafi's eager, eccentric but ultimately ineffective pursuit of an African sphere of influence encapsulates his dealings with the rest of the world over his 40-plus years in power. He was long on shtick – sweeping rhetoric, elaborate ceremonies, outlandish outfits topped by an oversize gold brooch in the shape of Africa – but experts say that his actions betrayed a man interested mainly in himself. His impulsive and often disastrous meddling in far-flung countries and conflicts alienated African leaders much as it did the West.

"If all this mythology had been true, you'd be expecting the African Union to be jumping up and down saying, 'My gosh, our brother is being bombed to smithereens by the Western imperialists,'" said Steven Friedman, the director of the Center for the Study of Democracy at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. "The mythology has been broken by his actions. If he does have any remaining friends in Africa, they're not terribly influential."

In the current crisis, unconfirmed reports said that African fighters for hire, perhaps Tuareg tribesmen from neighboring countries such as Chad, have backed Gadhafi's forces in western Libya. If true, it would hardly be the first time that he's courted armed men from Africa's ungoverned spaces.

Over nearly 42 years in power he offered shelter, financial support and military training to a hodgepodge of leaders and movements, from Idi Amin, who slaughtered tens of thousands during his reign in Uganda, to the African National Congress, which led the fight against white apartheid in South Africa.

The ANC's Nelson Mandela had particularly warm relations with Gadhafi, whom he called "brother leader."

"There are a number of cases where Gadhafi earned himself justifiably a large measure of good will with his support of African liberation movements," said J. Peter Pham, director of the Michael S. Ansari Africa Center at the Atlantic Council, a Washington research center. "On the other hand, there were many cases where the rebels he supported were warlords."



Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/04/05/3527940/gadhafis-cash-doesnt-buy-friends.html#ixzz1Ifr2LpOH

[Blaze]

For The Love of Russia
A personal word

Yesterday, I spent the day finding out why Serbia would hold such support for Gadafi. To say the least it is complicated.

However, I noted key points.

While looking for a good quote on fighting corruption other than one of mine, I found:
"one does not fight corruption by fighting corruption,"

It appears first to be quoted in an article by Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld in September 1999 in reference the Russian money laundering scandal of that same period. Later the quote was attributed to Daniel Kaufmann. More than likely though it was just standardized internal motto from the World Bank.

The quote is noteworthy and worth so many words because while looking at Serbia, why they would remain supportive of Gadafi; I noted some patterns. Mainly, after the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, I noted:

“Following the Kosovo War, due to the many weapons in the hands of civilians, law enforcement inefficiencies, and widespread devastation, both revenge killings and ethnic violence surged tremendously. The number of reported murders rose 80% from 136 in 2000 to 245 in 2001. The number of reported arsons rose 140% from 218 to 523 over the same period. UNMIK pointed out that the rise in reported incidents might simply correspond to an increased confidence in the police force (i.e., more reports) rather than more actual crime. According to the UNODC, by 2008, murder rates in Kosovo had dropped by 75% in five years.”

In addition, due to the corruption already established, the area has remained a hot bed of horrific crimes of profit by organized criminals.

“Kosovo is extremely vulnerable to organized crime and thus to money laundering. In 2000, international agencies estimated that Kosovo was supplying up to 40% of the heroin sold in Europe and North America. Due to the 1997 unrest in Albania and the Kosovo War in 1998–1999 ethnic Albanian traffickers enjoyed a competitive advantage, which has been eroding as the region stabilizes. However, according to a 2008 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, overall, ethnic Albanians, not only from Kosovo, supply 10 to 20% of the heroin in Western Europe, and the traffic has been declining”.

All of that is very concerning. Nevertheless, what came to my attention along with this (and is of considerable note) are articles that gave details on strategy used against NATO air strikes.

For example, the use of well-made decoys (an old but useful trick), using civilians as shields, burning tires, and many other examples scattered in various documents scattered across the Net. In short, Kadafi will employ successful tactics his criminal friends used previously.

NATO herself learned many lessons from the first humanitarian mission, the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.

Keep in mind, NATO is a just a booster. Calling on NATO is like calling your persnickety cautious aunty. You know if the reason is good she will help, but goodness she is going to inquire about everything, twice. Eventually, she will sunder away, ballyhoo and pour over details for years.

The quote I opened with was incomplete.

"One does not fight corruption by fighting corruption," he said. "One has to instead go to the tougher, more systemic weaknesses and implement the appropriate political and institutional reforms."
----------------------------------------------------

- Russia brought a case against the Bank of New York concerning the scandal http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article1803772.ece
- http://www.acdemocracy.org/viewarticle.cfm?id=260
- http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/95071/merida/index.html
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosovo#Rule_of_law
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosovo#Rule_of_law
- http://iinternational.org/showCnews.php?id=513&referrence=page%3D45

[Blaze]

Lots –
2 fell again

The Art of War
The Military is based on guile,
Acts due to advantage,
Transforms by dividing and joining.

Chap7 THE ARMY CONTENDING
Commentary
These are three fundamental elements of action. Guile alters the other’s perception of the world. Then advantage arises in unanticipated ways, as conditions open and close. The all-victorious military is founded in deception, motivated by victory and endlessly transforming.

The Art of War
Swift like the wind,
Slow like the forest,
Raiding and plundering like fire,
Not moving like a mountain,
Difficult to know like yin,
Moving like thunder.

Chap7 THE ARMY CONTENDING
Commentary
Yin is the mate of yang. It is dark, quite, hidden.
Six ways of moving. Six ways of being and changing. These powers of the natural world are the powers of the skillful general, of the victorious military. Who can resist the wind or move a mountain?

[Blaze]

Ultranationalist Serbs Organize Pro-Qaddafi Campaign

By Iva Martinovic, Charles Recknagel
BELGRADE -- As the NATO bombing of Libya continues, Serbian ultranationalists are trying to stoke support for Muammar Qaddafi by portraying both Tripoli and Belgrade as twin victims of Western aggression.

The pro-Qaddafi campaign comes as Serbia today marks the 11th anniversary of the start of NATO's bombing campaign to end the Serbian crackdown on Kosovo. To mark the anniversary, air-raid sirens sounded out across Serbia today.

The efforts to link Serbia and Libya as victims of Western aggression is spearheaded by leaders of ultranationalist parties. But it also has echoes in the government's own ambivalent posture toward the UN-approved Libyan operation.

"I can say that we are deeply concerned and unhappy because of the current situation in Libya," Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said earlier this week.

"We are a country that has a bitter experience and as such calls for the cessation of all combat activities and of the use of excessive force by all sides in the conflict so that destruction and civilian suffering would end."

The government has stressed that it fully supports Libya territorial integrity and sovereignty but that it also supports the UN Security Council's decisions. Belgrade has suspended all activities with Libya's Defense Ministry but taken no other actions against Tripoli.

Cheering On Qaddafi

Nationalist leaders have gone far beyond Serbia's official ambivalence. They have called for a rally on March 27 in Belgrade to protest the bombing of Libya and, to build support, regularly rail against Operation Odyssey Dawn.

Dragan Todorovic is the head of the parliamentary caucus of the Serbian Radical Party, whose leader Vojislav Seselj is being tried for war crimes in The Hague:

"Qaddafi absolutely has our support and we absolutely think that nonmeddling in one country's affairs has to be respected and that citizens of that country should choose the government that suits them," Todorovic said.

But if this language sounds blunt, it only suggests the kind of anger ultranationalist organizations are stoking among their members.

Numerous pages on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, and other social-networking sites have sprung up over the past weeks to support Qaddafi and link his story to that of the ultranationalists' hero, former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic.

One of the most active of the Facebook pages, Support for Muammar al-Gaddafi from the People of Serbia, hosts hundreds of messages from people urging Qaddafi to persevere and recalling Serbia's situation 10 years ago.


A Serbian Facebook page in support of Muammar Qaddafi
Some of the messages read like greetings cards to Libya's leader: "They should know we are with them! That's how it used to be for us but no one gave us support!"

Remembering 'Target'

But others focus purely on Serbia in 1999: "Target! How I remember running as a child with a couple of friends to the demonstrations, with a paper target fixed to my chest. Does anyone else remember the slogans? I remember a few. 'Only Clinton shoots in the back!', 'Monica, clench your teeth!' does anyone know a few more?"

In 1999, many Serbs took part in demonstrations to protect sites in Belgrade and elsewhere during NATO's March 24-June 10 bombing campaign. The demonstrators wore paper bull's-eyes emblazoned with the word "target."

Traces of the bombing can still be seen throughout Serbia today. In the capital, the Milosevic-era Defense and Interior Ministry buildings still stand in ruins on one of the main avenues.

The Human Rights Watch advocacy group put the civilian death toll of the NATO bombing at around 500. Official Serbian figures say some 2,500 civilians were killed and 12,500 injured during the 11 weeks of bombing.

Welcome In Tripoli

The ultranationalists' pro-Qaddafi campaign has received appreciative attention in Tripoli, where state-run television has broadcast some of the Internet content to show that Qaddafi has supporters in other countries.

A Libyan opposition group called the Libyan Youth Movement advised media this week that Serbian hackers have tried to bring down websites linked to anti-Qaddafi forces.

The Libyan Youth Movement said it estimated there are over 50,000 active Serbian Qaddafi supporters online and suspected "there are powerful nationalist organizations and political parties" behind the movement.

Some Serbian political commentators say the pro-Qaddafi movement is aimed at building support in Serbia against efforts to eventually bring the country into the European Union. Milan Pajevic of the Isak Fund says Serbia needs to carefully weigh its interests.

"There is no difference between the position of Croatia or any other European country and what should be Serbia's position," Pajevic says. "Besides this institutional, formal process of EU integration, Serbia is a European country and should behave in line with and in agreement with its partners."

Old Friends

The fact that ultranationalist Serbs are trying to link their country's bombing over Milosevic's crackdown on Muslim Kosovars with the fate of Libya -- an officially Muslim nation -- might seem a curious way to stoke political anger against the West.

But analysts say that the effort not only plays on memories of NATO's 1999 campaign but also upon decades of officially close ties between the former Yugoslavia and Qaddafi. Both countries were among the founding members of the Nonaligned Movement (NAM), which was established in Belgrade in 1961.

Those ties between Tripoli and Belgrade continued despite the breakup of Yugoslavia. Qaddafi consistently expressed support for Milosevic against the West, particularly during NATO's 1999 bombing campaign, and Serbia kept close ties with Libya in the form of weapons trade and a business presence.

Serbian President Boris Tadic has flown to Tripoli several times since he was first elected in 2004, and has been given state awards by Qaddafi. Several other Serbian officials have also visited Libya in recent years.

Serbia has several times found itself in the news in connection with the Libya crisis, including media reports that Serbs had piloted planes that reportedly bombed protesters in the eastern city of Benghazi. Belgrade has denied those reports, as has Qaddafi.

Qaddafi made the denials in an exclusive interview he gave to the private Serbian television station Pink just hours after the UN Security Council voted in January to impose sanctions against him, his family, and close aides. He told Pink that "the Arab media tried to bribe [the Serbs] to say that they bombed civilians" and also rejected charges his forces had violently suppressed opposition protesters.

The nationalists' embrace of Qaddafi contrasts sharply with the activities of Serbian pro-democracy youth activists who helped train Egypt's antigovernment demonstrators in the nonviolent resistance tactics that helped push President Hosni Mubarak's from power last month.

Nedim Dervisbegovic of RFE/RL's Balkan Service also contributed to this report

[Blaze]

African Mercenaries in Libya - Part III


Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi could not only face The International Criminal Court in The Hague for crimes against humanity in his country, he has been involved in terrorist and criminal acts in Northern Ireland, when Libya supplied arms to the IRA during its terror campaign, and Sierra Leone, when Gaddafi masterminded the 11-year civil war that left over 50,000 dead.

Aroun Rashid Deen a journalist from Sierra Leone living in New York comments that "It was also part of Gaddafi's broader agenda included in his geopolitical ambition to destabilize much of West Africa and establish satellite states in the region to be headed by puppet regimes that will be doing his bidding. The decade-long war ripped Sierra Leone apart. Thousands of its victims, whose arms and legs were chopped off by rebels, were reduced to being paupers, roaming the streets as beggars in Freetown and other cities. Children as young as a day old were also among those whose arms and limbs were hacked off by Gaddafi's rebels. Pregnant women, too, were disemboweled with delight in their display of ghastly brutality."

For now, Gaddafi is trying to retain power by arming thousands of Africans with the complicity of African governments, building a strong African anti-West block. The media outlet News Days of Zimbabwe reports it is difficult to believe that gunmen with military experience were hired and flown out of various African nations without the knowledge of security services in those countries, suggesting some African governments have cooperated with the plan or at the very least looked the other way.

If Gaddafi stays in power, he will keep on threatening his own people and the whole world, through violence and terrorism as he did in the past. The United States is bracing for possible Libyan-backed terrorist attacks. The New York Times writes that, asked if American officials feared whether Gaddafi could open a new terrorism front, President Obama's top counter-terrorism official John O. Brennan said: "Gaddafi has the penchant to do things of a very concerning nature. We have to anticipate and be prepared for things he might try to do to flout the will of the international community."[1]

East Africa

Djibouti

No clear information on mercenaries heading to Libya

Eritrea

Unconfirmed sources say huge numbers of foreign mercenaries from the African country of Eritrea have arrived by ship at the port (ferry terminal area) in Tripoli, Libya on Tuesday, March 15, 2011. The mercenaries were seen roaming around on the streets of Tripoli. In the past four weeks the Eritrean government has been said by credible sources to have sent two battalions of Eritrean army of artillery unit and a commando unit to Libya in the last four days to support Gaddafi

Eritrea sent these two battalions through Chad. A Chadian member of government told a French intelligence personnel in Chad that Eritrea sent the two battalions as cover-up as "bakers, technicians, cooks, nurses and drivers to help in the humanitarian activities". The Chadian intelligence officer believes that the Eritrean artillery unit may have played a major role in the recent battle gains around Tripoli for Gaddafi[2]

Ethiopia

Ibrahim Dabbashi, Libya's deputy UN ambassador, who has turned against the Gaddafi regime, said Ethiopians were among the mercenaries that that came in support of the Libyan leader[3].

The video below shows Ethiopian mercenaries being captured in Libya.

http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/31896

Uganda

No clear information on mercenaries heading to Libya.

However, Uganda has accused Gaddafi of involvement in recent terrorism attacks in which two suicide bombs killed 76 people as they watched the FIFA World Cup final in Kampala last year[4]. Furthermore, Wikileaks revealed that Uganda's leader, Yoweri Museveni, fears the Libyan leader is out to shoot down his Presidential plane and he has since asked US security agencies for surveillance protection whenever he is flying[5].

Somalia

There is no confirmed news that Somali merceneraries are present in Libya. On the other hand, there is evidence that Somali immigrants have been harassed for having been taken for mercenaries and that at least four of them have been killed[6].

Sudan

Reports claim that Darfur rebels areamong mercenaries in Libya (See Hudson-NY Report: Gaddafi Mercenaries in Libya)[7].

Tanzania

No clear information on mercenaries heading to Libya

Kenya

Kenyan mercenaries are among foreign soldiers helping Gaddafi. This was confirmed by Gaddafi's former Chief of Protocol Nouri Al Misrahi in an interview with the Al Jazeera broadcasting network. When asked where the mercenaries came from and how they were recruited, the first country he mentioned was Kenya. He then clarified that they were not sent officially by their governments, but were recruited directly by the regime[8].

Diplomatic relations between Libya and Kenya resumed in 1998, after 11 years ago after they were severed. The relations between the two countries severed in 1987 after Kenya accused Libya of supporting a rebel movement in its universities and in providing aids to Kenyan opposition groups[9].

West Africa

Benin

According to Saudi-owned satellite channel, Al-Arabiya, last February four planes with mercenaries took off from Benin and landed to Benghazi in order to help Gaddafi.[10]

Burkina Faso

Tuaregs from Burkina Faso have been hired by the Libyan regime. The Tuareg community is composed of some 1.5 million people spread across Algeria, Burkina Faso, Libya, Mali and Niger. According to the AFP, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has recruited some 800 Tuareg separatist fighters from Niger, Mali, Algeria and Burkina Faso[11]. According to news reports in Libya there are also non-Tuareg mercenaries from Burkina Faso. However, there is not enough clear information.

Burkina Faso is one of the African countries which enjoyed the most benefits from Libya's investment. In this country, Gaddafi expanded its infrastructure and built the hospital. Traditionally, the government of Burkina Faso has established close partnership with Gaddafi.

Former leader of the opposition coalition of Burkina Faso Hama Arba Diallo said "Gaddafi is not only investing in Burkina Faso, […] and we are very grateful. What happened in Libya […] become a burden for us all," said Diallo[12].

Cape Verde

No information on mercenaries heading to Libya.

Ivory Coast

No information on mercenaries heading to Libya.

The Ivory Coast is now facing a political and humanitarian crisis.

Gambia

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh declared that the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, should resign. Jammeh's declaration came as a surprise. Gaddafi was actually considered as the mentor of the Gambian President, who is one of the African most cruel dictators. Gambian opposition's media outlet, Freedom Newspaper, reports the following: "Speaking on behalf of The Gambian leader, during in a nationwide televised speech, the Head of Gambia's Civil Service Dr. Njogu Bah said Gaddafi has lost the will of the people, and should resign in the interest of peace, stability, and tranquility in Libya. Mr. Bah says power belongs to the people, and the mass revolt in Libya clearly manifests that Libyans want to see an end to Gaddafi's rule"[13].

Gambia was considered to be one of Libya's major ally. In 1994, Gaddafi helped Jammeh, at the time he was an army Lieutenant, to topple the democratically elected Government of former Gambian President Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara. Libya also provided bilateral support to Gambia in the areas of military hardwire (weapons), agriculture, education, and other areas of national development[14].

There is no clear information on mercenaries from Gambia in Libya. The Gambian President stated: "We are calling on all Gambians in Libya and around the world not to be used as mercenaries because the current revolution taking place in Libya is one that will not fail, Allah willing. Any Gambian that is captured as a mercenary in Libya should not expect any intervention or support from the Gambia government."[15]

Ghana

According to media items, Ghanaian mercenaries are fighting in Libya. Rumors say that Ghanaians are being offered US$2500 dollars per day to go fight on behalf of the Gaddafi regime[16]. However, many simple Ghanaian workers have been captured by Libyan rebels, who thought that they were mercenaries.

Guinea Conakry

Many Guineans have expressed sympathy with the Libyan leader, and denounced the air raids on Libya. Pro-Gaddafi Guineans said they would seize this opportunity to show their gratitude to the Libyan leader who has always been kind to Guinea[17].

According to Guinean media, hundreds of Guinean soldiers went to fight in Libya allegedly sent by their own government.[18]

Guinea Bissau

No information on mercenaries heading to Libya.

Liberia

News items reports that mercenaries from Liberia are fighting in Libya[19].

Gaddafi is also responsible for financing and supporting former Liberian President Charles Taylor, facing trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity as a result of his involvement in the Sierra Leone Civil War.

Mali

BBC reports that Tuaregs from Mali confirmed that a large number of their community's members were hired by Gaddafi[20].

Furthermore, the Rebel National Libyan Council claims Mali sent regular troops to assist Gaddafi[21]. The government of Mali denies the allegations. However, reports state that a discreet recruitment office for mercenaries was installed in a Libyan hotel in the Mali's capital, Bamako[22].

Niger

Tuareg from Niger have been hired as mercenaries. According to French daily, Le Monde, Gaddafi has often used battalions of Tuaregs, picking these rugged warriors from tribes living in Southern Libya but mostly in the Tuareg communities of Mali and Niger. One of Gaddafi's closest advisors is also a Tuareg[23].

The Rebel National Libyan Council claims that Niger sent regular troops to assist Gaddafi[24].

Nigeria

Nigeria backed the UN's No-Fly-zZone resolution over Libya. Nigeria's permanent representative to the UN, Prof. Joy Ogwu, said, in a statement after the vote, that the Federal Government declared: "the current state of affairs leaves an indelible imprint on the conscience and moves us to act. The magnitude of this humanitarian disaster is, indeed, what compelled Nigeria to vote in favor of this resolution."[25]

Nigeria's backing possibly comes as a reaction to Gaddafi's remarks in 2010, when the Libyan leader stated that Nigeria should be split into a Muslim and a Christian country to end communal clashes. Nigerian politicians, religious leaders and civil society reacted strongly, calling Gaddafi anything from "mad" to "evil," "ignorant," "reckless" and "inflammatory."[26] After Gaddafi's remarks, Nigeria recalled its ambassador to Libya but few months later the two countries mended their relations.

Media items report the presence of Nigerian mercenaries in Libya. Two men, identified by Libyan rebels as Nigerians in civilian clothes, were shot and killed during a firefight in Benghazi[27].

Senegal

Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade is a Gaddafi's supporter. Wade has been considered for long time as Gaddafi's protégé.

There is no clear information on mercenaries from Senegal in Libya.

Sierra Leone

No confirmed news about the presence of mercenaries from Sierra Leone.

However, some unconfirmed rumors have been floated by the fact that Gaddafi has been hiring mercenaries from states and organizations from which had received support in the past; and Gaddafi had, in the past, supported Sierra Leone's Revolutionary United Front (RUF), a rebel army that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, starting in 1991 and ending in 2002.

Aroun Rashid Deen a journalist from Sierra Leone living in New York writes of Gaddafi's involvement in Sierra Leone's internal affairs: "Gaddafi was the mastermind and key financier of the brutal war that left hundreds of thousands dead in Sierra Leone in West Africa in the 1990s. The war would not have happened in the first place had it not been for the desire of the Libyan leader to punish the government of Sierra Leone for what he regarded as its siding with the West in the 1980's when Gaddafi was at loggerhead with particularly the United States and Britain."[28].

Togo

No information on mercenaries heading to Libya.


by Anna Mahjar-Barducci
April 6, 2011 at 3:30 am


----------------------------------

[1] http://www.indianexpress.com/news/us-fears-gaddafi-may-lash-out-with-terror-at/764903/
[2] http://mahta.net/2011/03/eritrean-mercenaries-arrive-in-tripoli/
[3] http://ayyaantuu.com/thousands-killed-in-libya-unrest-ethiopians-were-among-the-mercenaries.html
[4]http://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/7397.html
[5]http://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/7397.html
[6] http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=92154
[7] http://www.hudson-ny.org/2000/gaddafi-mercenaries-in-libya
[8] http://www.africanews.it/english/kenyan-%E2%80%98dogs-of-war%E2%80%99-fighting-for-gaddafi/
[9] http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/980529/1998052908.html
[10] http://illassa-benoit.over-blog.com/article-benin-le-president-beninois-boni-yayi-aboumon-envoie-des-mercenaires-pour-sauver-le-dictateur-libyen-kadhafi-67995447.html
[11] http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/6889/World/Region/Gaddafi-recruits--Tuareg-mercenaries.aspx
[12] http://www.worldnewsco.com/5002/muammar-gaddafi-king-of-kings-in-africa/
[13] http://www.freedomnewspaper.com/Homepage/tabid/36/mid/367/newsid367/5957/Breaking-News-Gambia--GAMBIAS-PRESIDENT-CALLS-FOR-QADDAFIS-RESIGNATION/Default.aspx
[14] http://www.freedomnewspaper.com/Homepage/tabid/36/mid/367/newsid367/5957/Breaking-News-Gambia--GAMBIAS-PRESIDENT-CALLS-FOR-QADDAFIS-RESIGNATION/Default.aspx
[15] http://articles.cnn.com/2011-02-25/world/gambia.libya.unrest_1_african-union-mercenaries-gambian-leader?_s=PM:WORLD
[16] http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=203647
[17] http://en.ce.cn/World/Africa/201103/24/t20110324_22324043.shtml
[18] http://guinee.over-blog.net/article-exclusif-des-militaires-guineens-parmi-les-mercenaires-en-libye-67972138.html
[19] http://www.iss.co.za/iss_today.php?ID=1239
[20] http://uk.ibtimes.com/articles/118924/20110304/libya.htm
[21] http://www.afrol.com/articles/37494
[22] http://www.dotspress.com/libya-has-recruited-hundreds-of-mercenaries-from-niger-mali-algeria-and-burkina-faso/771152/
[23] http://www.worldcrunch.com/niger-trail-gaddafis-african-mercenaries
[24] http://www.afrol.com/articles/37494
[25] http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201103193293550
[26] http://www.afrol.com/articles/35705
[27] http://nationalmirroronline.net/news/8225.html
[28] http://www.shout-africa.com/top-story/libya-indict-muammar-gaddafi-now-for-war-crimes-in-sierra-leone/

Link to article -> http://www.hudson-ny.org/2025/african-mercenaries-in-libya-3

[Blaze]

Late-waking rebels run from Kadhafi's artillery
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110405/wl_africa_afp/libyaconflictrebelsretreat

Gosh, they should have called for strike before they went to bed. Then at least their time and equipment would have been well spent as bait.

It is very difficult to not crack a joke about nap-time.
The ninnies!

[Blaze]

By DAVID STRINGER, Associated Press – Wed Apr 6, 3:43 pm ET

APNewsBreak: Top Libyans said to be very scared

LONDON – Libya's former-energy minister said Wednesday that several members of Moammar Gadhafi's inner circle want to defect, but many are too scared to abandon the dictator fearing the safety of themselves and their families.
Omar Fathi bin Shatwan, who also served as industry minister, told the Associated Press that he had fled by fishing boat to Malta on Friday from the western Libyan city of Misrata.

Shatwan, who left the government in 2007, said he still had contact with some government figures and explained that many feared for their safety. In some cases, their families are under siege, he said.

"Those whose families are outside Libya will flee if they get a chance," Shatwan said. "But many can't leave, and all the families of ministers are under siege."

Shatwan said he had last had contact with Gadhafi in 2006, and had not spoken with the tyrant's sons since leaving office. "Ministers who are friends of mine, I have spoken to them," he said.
The 59-year-old said he had spent 40 days at his home in Misrata before escaping from Libya,

It is difficult to help whole families escape.

[Blaze]

U.S. official: Frozen Libya assets exceed $34 billion

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Libyan assets frozen by the United States as part of sanctions against Muammar Gaddafi and his top officials have now risen to more than $34 billion, the Treasury's top official for sanctions, anti-terrorism and money laundering said on Thursday.
David Cohen, who is nominated to take over as the Treasury's undersecretary secretary for financial intelligence, told a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing that European authorities have frozen a "substantial amount" of other such assets. He said the amount is difficult to gauge, but probably is less than the more than $34 billion frozen by U.S. authorities.
(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by James Dalgleish)

Residents shelter from mortars in Libya's Misrata

ALGIERS/BEIRUT (Reuters) – People in the Libyan city of Misrata are crammed five families to a house in the few safe districts to try to escape mortars raining down from government forces, a rebel spokesman said on Thursday.
Not good. That will give an advantage in killing large quantities of people.Killing large quantities of people is a calculated risk. Depending where you have the mental state of the opposing army it can inspire a tougher battle or be a huge moral blow. Either way, a humans are lost. People that could take to arms or support services.



MORTARS ON ROOFTOPS
Rebels in Misrata, Libya's third-biggest city about 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli, control the Mediterranean Sea port and the northern and eastern districts. Until now they have been under fire from long-range artillery.
But residents say pro-Gaddafi forces, backed by tanks and snipers on rooftops have been able to push gradually into more of the city, and are now using shorter-range mortar fire.
"Because there are few safe areas in Misrata, many families are now living together in the same house," said Misrati. "Houses are overcrowded and you find at least four of five families together in one house.
"The snipers are on top of 14-storey buildings ... Now they brought the mortars up on to the buildings too, to reach more areas inside Misrata," he said.

I guess sharp shooting is not a common thing most people learn. It just seems as if thier should be some buck shooters in the Revolutionist Army.

Five Libya rebels said killed by NATO strike

This is a fact of war. As Gadafi camouflages his Army to look more and more like the Revolutionist it is simply impossible to tell from air.

PLUS--->>> If Gadafi has gotten communication channels by hacking, which it is safe to assume he is trying, his army can send false information and set traps.

France said on Thursday that while the West must work harder for a political solution in Libya, the outside world should also do more to support the rebels.
"Gaddafi has clearly lost all legitimacy, his camp is disintegrating and we are seeing new defections every day. On the other hand his force and rebel forces continue to fight each other without any side winning," Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said.

"No, it's not convincing at all. NATO has other means. I requested there be combat helicopters like Apaches and Tigers. These damage tanks and armored vehicles with exact precision without harming civilians."

That will still be difficult with Gadafi playing camouflager... And takes time to arrange.

Contact group on Libya to meet in Doha on April 13
LONDON – A group set up to guide the international intervention in Libya will hold its first meeting in Qatar next week, officials said Thursday.
Britain's Foreign Office said the contact group, which includes European powers, United States, allies from the Middle East and a number of international organizations will meet in Doha on Wednesday.
The ministry could not confirm precisely who has been invited to attend. British government officials said the U.S. would be represented, and that the Arab League is also expected to be at the talks.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said last week that he planned to travel to the talks alongside about a dozen other Arab, European and international officials.
The group was established during a summit in London last week to act as the political guide to the NATO-led military operation and humanitarian assistance mission in Libya.

Side note ->> S.Africans 'must vote ANC for Mandela health'

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) – South African youth leader Julius Malema urged voters to back the ruling African National Congress in local polls to keep former president Nelson Mandela healthy, media said Thursday.
It annoys me when a someone has a name I hold dear it a batty manipulative loon.

Side note ->> $1.5B in penalties for Nigerian bribe scheme :baaa:

US: FARC, Taliban are among largest traffickers

Criminals are always a concern.
Fighting corruption with corruption will give you more corruption.
You are the one that is accountable for your own deeds,

[Blaze]

The deep roots of Qaddafi's psychology of violence

Tripoli, Libya – The video clip ran late at night on Libya’s state-run TV with a warning: not suitable for children.

It was a gruesome scene that appeared to show an antigovernment mob beating the dead body of a Col. Muammar Qaddafi loyalist in the rebel bastion of Benghazi.

Such visceral imagery has long defined political discourse in Libya. The roots of extreme violence stretch back to the colonial period under Italian rule. But from the earliest years of his reign, Colonel Qaddafi has employed violence – from assassinating dissidents abroad to killing opponents at home – to sow fear among Libyans and warn against dissent.

For more than four decades, the self-declared “Brother Leader” has waged a form of psychological warfare against his own people, analysts say. And taking what he believes to be the lessons from the recent dictator-toppling revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, Qaddafi today continues to use brutal images to undermine the rebellion, which he consider a personal affront to his near-perfect rule that must be tackled with “no mercy.”

The rebel forces, shaped likewise by that violent history, know the power of persuasion achieved with propaganda gore, and spread their own version.

“Our country is different from others in the world,” says a Libyan professional in Tripoli who could not to be named for security reasons. “Here [people] are welcoming. But if you touch them [aggressively] even a little bit, they will pound you in response.”

The rebels hand out their own imagery of government crimes, and say one reason for their fight is because the preponderance of violence comes from a regime that has used violence as a tool of control for nearly 42 years.

Credence of that view is mounting daily in news reports of regime-inflicted violence, from eyewitness accounts of Libyan soldiers branded traitors and killed by their own side, to apparent evidence of serious abuses found in a burned-out police station west of Tripoli.

The dangers are so widely accepted that even the fear of a vengeful bloodbath by Qaddafi forces, if they routed the rebels weeks ago, was enough to prompt a US- and European-led military intervention.

Decades of brutality

At the same time, government officials distribute their own atrocity videos, of acts carried out by rebel “terrorists” who must be hunted down – in the words of Qaddafi – “alley by alley.”

“Libyans have had a very rough time over the last century or so,” says George Joffe, a Middle East and North Africa specialist at Cambridge University. “Under the Italian occupation they saw their numbers halved, and they just simply died off like flies in concentration camps during the Italo-Sanussi wars, and that certainly left a mark.”

“And … under the Qaddafi regime," says Mr. Joffe. "there has been an extreme intolerance of any dissidence of any kind at all, and the population has been very profoundly disciplined by the regime itself.”

Add the longstanding confrontation between tribes, which provides a further reason for violence – as manifest in the execution of those involved in a 1993 coup – and “you can see where some of this viciousness comes from,” notes Joffe.

True believers blame the rebels

For true believers, the government’s application of force is justified and always right, and Qaddafi’s use of violence is no different from any other government protecting itself from its enemies. Libya’s leader has also learned, argue some, lessons from the pro-democracy revolts sweeping the Arab world.

Qaddafi “looks at Tunisia and Egypt, because what made Ben Ali and Mubarak leave? It was blood,” says Abdul Jalil, a television host working with foreign journalists on behalf of the government. “[Qaddafi] is not stupid. He knows what happens when you kill people.”

Still, Mr. Jalil has no time for rebels who capture loyalists and “slit their necks from ear to ear, they burn people. Muammar Qaddafi did not do these things in all his life.” So he says he understands the calculation in towns that have risen up against the regime.

“Speaking individually, with more than 300,000 people in Zawiya, if I have to kill 500 people to protect 300,000, then I will kill them – even if they are Libyans.”

Qaddafi's psychological game

Such cold calculations may partly stem from the chronic uncertainty that has characterized life in Libya throughout the Qaddafi era, a “psychological game” that has “kept Libyan society off balance,” says Mansour el-Kikhia, chairman of political science at the University of Texas, San Antonio.

“It’s like having people in a bag, and shaking the bag and you keep shaking it, never allowing them for one second to come to a rest, to think about it,” says Mr. Kikhia, a Libyan dissident and author of the 1997 book “Libya’s Qaddafi: The Politics of Confrontation.” “So they spend their whole time, their whole existence just thinking about how to make it from one hour to the next.”

Kikhia left Libya in 1980, not long after seeing five people – two of them his personal friends – hung as a public spectacle in three locations in Tripoli. Traffic was diverted to force drivers to the scene. “They showed it on television, so every Libyan can see… ‘Don’t oppose me, in any way.’ "

For decades, Libya has been charged with serious human rights abuses such as routine torture. Some events have been formative, such as the death of some 1,200 inmates in 1996 – the figure calculated by a Human Rights Watch source – when the regime responded to a prison revolt by opening fire with heavy machine guns.

In decades past, Libyan dissidents abroad – dismissed as “stray dogs” by Qaddafi – were tracked down and assassinated in the United States and Europe. But such actions are not acknowledged publicly.

"My father didn’t kill anybody…. He didn’t say, ‘Go and kill innocent people,' " said Seif al-Islam, Qaddafi’s most influential son, when asked about the risks of criminal proceedings in a BBC interview broadcast on Tuesday.

The International Criminal Court has another view, says the Court's lead prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo. He told Reuters this week that Libya explored ways to put down protests, after the events in Tunisia and Egypt.

Think you know the Middle East? Take our geography quiz.

“The evidence we have is that the shootings of civilians was a predetermined plan,” Mr. Moreno-Ocamps said. “The planning at the beginning was to use tear gas and [if that failed to work] … shooting.”

According to Mr. Islam, it was the rebels that committed crimes. “They hang people, they execute people,” he told the BBC. “You saw the picture of cutting the hands and the legs and head of one guy in front of the people. So do you think the Libyan people are barbarians, and wild and happy with that? Of course not.”

Added Qaddafi’s heir apparent: “Listen: God [is] with us, because this time we are fighting [for] the right cause.”

That perception of serving a higher purpose, among the Qaddafi family and their supporters, may in fact be adding fuel to the repressive drive against the rebels.

“[Qaddafi] thinks that he has created the ideal political system, and that’s what’s been introduced into Libya,” says Joffe of Cambridge University, about the tangle of ideas found in Qaddafi’s famous Green Book, which he has widely distributed throughout Libya since 1975 as a guide to his "democratic socialism" philosophy.

“Now when it is rejected by Libyans, in the rebellion in the east, this is more than just simply a political dispute – this is a personal rejection, which he takes very personally,” says Joffe. “And since he considers the system to be in some ways perfect … he takes this as a personal insult which he must personally avenge.”

But Libyan officials maintain that does not mean targeting civilians, regardless of their role in the uprising.

“Have they seen us attacking or killing civilians? They haven’t,” says Musa Ibrahim, the government spokesman, about loyalist attempts to capture the rebel-held enclave of Misratah.

Yet hundreds of wounded were evacuated by sea from the city this week: 71 by the French charity Doctors Without Borders, and 250 by Turkey.

Many evacuees recounted stories of Libyan snipers shooting civilians, and tanks blasting the town indiscriminately.

“As a Libyan citizen, I will not stand and speak for a government that kills civilians. I will never do that,” said Mr. Ibrahim on Monday night. “The team that works with me here … we are young men and women.

Do you think we are going to stand here, face the whole world … to defend a government that kills civilians? What do you think we are, monsters?”

And yet, evidence appears to grow of regime abuses. The New York Times reported discovering a number of photographs, their provenance still unclear and during an official trip on Tuesday, on the second floor of a police station destroyed during fighting in the city of Zawiya, 20 miles west of the capital.

The Times reported that the images showed “corpses bearing the marks of torture;” one of a man with scars across his back, and another with his hands bound. There were also photographs of puddles of blood and one of a long pruning saw; their provenance was not clear.

Al Jazeera English on Tuesday interviewed a former Libyan soldier, who said he had witnessed the execution of fellow soldiers accused of sympathy for the rebels in Qaddafi’s hometown of Sirte.

Such violence appears to have spurred lethal antagonism on the rebel side. Kikhia of the University of Texas says that rebel friends of his on the frontline in Misratah have been astonished at how many nations are represented fighting alongside loyalist forces, from Algeria and Chad to Ukraine and Serbia.

"When they catch them, they kill them straight away,” says Kikhia of rebel treatment of the mercenaries.

He says he counsels them to avoid such retribution because “Qaddafi is not our teacher,” and “the point of this whole revolution is to end what Qaddafi has been doing, to end [his] atrocities."

Kikhia says the rebels should instead heed the example of Omar Mukhtar, the Libyan who led a rebellion against Italian Fascist rule in the 1920s, when the resistance chief was confronted by a similar problem.

“Someone said they wanted to kill the Italian prisoners, and Omar Mukhtar told them, ‘Don’t do that,’” explains Kikhia. “One of his fighters said, ‘But they kill us.’ And Omar Mukhtar said to him, ‘But they are not our teachers. Therefore we should not learn wrong from them.’”


By Scott Peterson – Thu Apr 7, 7:00 am ET

[Blaze]

NATO: We did not know Libya rebels used tanks

NATO jets attacked a rebel convoy between these two towns Thursday, killing at least five fighters and destroying or damaging a number of armored vehicles.
...

"A no-fly zone is not equipped to contend with guerrilla warfare or with a stalemate that places rebels and loyalists at close proximity with one another." he said

Despite the attacks on anti-aircraft sites, Gadhafi's forces still pose a danger for NATO warplanes. They retain radars and surface-to-air missiles, as well as automatic cannons and shoulder-launched missiles that can hit planes at altitudes up to 5,000 meters (15,000 feet).

Over the past week, Gadhafi's forces had switched tactics by leaving their heavy armor behind and using only light trucks armed with heavy machine guns and fast-firing anti-aircraft cannons on the front lines between Brega and Ajdabiya. These have proven very effective in disrupting repeated rebel attempts to push west toward Tripoli, but Gadhafi's forces have not been able to drive the rebels back toward Benghazi or establish a solid front line in that sector.

"These trucks cannot hold ground," Harding said. "When you see their tanks coming up, those are the vehicles that can cause the greatest harm to civilians."

On Thursday, the situation in that sector "was very confusing, vehicles going back and forth," he said.


'Four reporters missing' in Libya as others expelled

– Thu Apr 7, 11:48 am ET
PARIS (AFP) – Two US journalists and a Spanish and a South African reporter were reported missing Thursday in east Libya, as the Kadhafi regime expelled 26 foreign reporters from Tripoli, media watchdog RSF said.
"Reporters Without Borders has learned from a reliable source that four journalists -- a South Africa, two Americans and a Spaniard -- have been missing in the east of the country since April 4," it said in a statement.
The watchdog reiterated its concern about Rana Akbani, a woman reporter of Syrian nationality, who it said has been missing in eastern Libya since March 28.
...
Reporters Without Borders has previously condemned the detention of Lofti Ghars, a journalist with Canadian and Tunisian dual citizenship who works for Al-Alam TV.
He was arrested by pro-Kadhafi forces on March 16 as he arrived in Libya from Tunisia, it said.
Three Al-Jazeera journalists who were arrested in early March -- Mauritian reporter Ahmed Vall Ould el-Dine, Norwegian photographer Ammar Al-Hamdane and British photographer Kamel Ataloua -- were meanwhile still being held by Kadhafi forces, it added.

Microsoft executive held by Libyan authorities


– Thu Apr 7, 12:06 pm ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Microsoft is seeking the release of its country manager in Libya, who has been in the custody of the Libyan authorities for two weeks, the US software giant said.
The Seattle, Washington-based company said Khalid Elhasumi has been held by the authorities in Tripoli since March 19 and Microsoft has been working with his family and international organizations to help get him released.
"We continue our efforts to ensure his safety and soonest possible release," Microsoft said in a statement.
"We are hopeful that the authorities will release Khalid soon," said Ali Faramawy, Microsoft's vice president for the Middle East and Africa.
"We are in close touch with his family and are actively working to provide support and ensure his safety," Faramawy said.
Wael Ghonim, an executive at another US technology giant, Google, became a prominent voice of the protesters who eventually secured the ouster of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.
Microsoft, however, said it did not know why its Libya country manager was being held. "We currently have no information about the reasons for his detention," it said.
Microsoft said Elhasumi joined the company in 2010 and manages its operations in Libya which opened in 2006.

Are the Libyan Rebels Hapless Fighters or Abandoned by NATO?

Uri Friedman – Thu Apr 7, 12:23 pm ET

Scan the news today and you'll see two narratives bubbling to the surface regarding the Libyan rebels: first the rebels are unhappy with NATO and second the rebels are a hapless fighting force. Both could be true, but this is a rundown on who's saying what.

THE REBELS AND NATO

The Associated Press, reporting on rebel claims that NATO mistakenly struck opposition forces for the second time in a week, explains that rebel fighters are increasingly angry about their coordination with the military alliance and quotes one fighter shouting, "Down, down with NATO" (CNN's Ben Wedemen quotes another fighter putting it even less diplomatically: "f**k you NATO!"). The AP adds that opposition commanders have recently complained about NATO airstrikes "coming too slowly and lacking the precision to give the rebels a clear edge."

THE REBEL ARMY

Meanwhile, at The New York Times, C.J. Chivers concludes that the rebel military is "not really a military at all." The rebel fighters may be brave, he says, but their numbers are few and they have no communication equipment or command structure and scant training, fighting experience, or understanding of offensive and defensive combat. "When their morale spikes upward," Chivers writes, "their attacks tend to be painfully and bloodily frontal--little more than racing columns down the highway, through a gantlet of the Qaddafi forces' rocket and mortar fire."

At The Atlantic, Ryan Calder tells of one rebel fighter who drove a car filled with propane into Muammar Qaddafi's military base in Benghazi, but of other unarmed fighters who fled shelling in the town of Brega before foreign photographers had a chance to finish snapping their photos. "These are the ragtag rebels," he says:


???>>>>Groups of four or five buddies who carpool to the front in their own cars, high-school teachers and high-school dropouts, petroleum engineers and shepherds and bakery owners, packing their own lunches of macaroni and beans, wearing construction helmets and plastic safety goggles for protection, and carrying the Kalashnikovs they managed to buy on Benghazi's streets.

As we learned from The Daily Show last night, Fox News' Geraldo Rivera apparently agrees with Chivers and Calder. As he scampers about in the midst of a firefight in Libya, Rivera warns the West not to arm the rebels: "I swear to God, if you give these people weapons more powerful than they have right now, they will be a grave danger to themselves and others. The real danger here are these crazy kids with machine guns. They have no discipline in combat."


Directed by adults, Libyan children salute Gaddafi

"The children were brought here. This is their education. They shout all day instead of studying," said the man, shaking his head. He said he always supported Gaddafi but was upset with the authorities allowing Libya to descend into civil war.
"Cameron is a problem, he is bombing Libya," he said, in a reference to Britain's part in the NATO campaign against Libya. "But this is a problem too," he added, pointing at the children.

While the propaganda machine works overtime to prop up the image of a strong state, weeks of conflict and Western air strikes seemed to have loosened Gaddafi's hold on people's minds.
Even during the most tightly controlled events, dissent is always evident. People are talking about change with varying degrees of openness, saying it is time for Gaddafi to go.
"People need to hope for change," a bookshop owner said quietly on a recent visit. "Nothing more needs to be said."
Ali, owner of a clothing shop, said he could not forgive a government that had given orders to shoot its own people during peaceful anti-government protests in February, a chain of events at the start of the uprising that led to the war.
"I used to love Gaddafi but many people have died," he said. "It changed everything. Business was good before February. We cannot live like this. Things have to change."
On the surface, Gaddafi's influence is still strong in Tripoli. People avoid eye contact with foreign journalists.

Europe, US moving to help cash-needy Libya rebels

– Thu Apr 7, 3:53 pm ET

BENGHAZI, Libya (AFP) – Europe and the United States are moving to help Libya's rebels after talks convinced them the insurgency is a bona fide democratic movement, sources involved in the talks said on Thursday.

But that aid is "non-lethal" -- meaning no weapons were being provided -- and within the limits of UN Security Council resolutions imposing sanctions on Libya and allowing international military action to protect civilians, they said.

The Western allies were setting up a communications system between the rebel military and NATO's base organising air strikes.

They were also examining ways to help the Libyan opposition overcome a liquidity crunch and providing "big behind-the-scenes political assistance," the sources said on condition they not be identified.

One source stressed that the Western input was just an "engagement" and was in "no way forcing a solution" on the rebel's political body, the Transitional National Council (TNC).

[ For complete coverage of politics and policy, go to Yahoo! Politics ]

Three Western envoys have held talks with council members in recent days.

They are Antoine Sivan, a French diplomat who worked in Iraq and Qatar; Christopher Prentice, the British ambassador to Italy who was using experience gained in Iraq, Jordan and Sudan; and Chris Stevens, a US diplomat who used to work in the American embassy in Tripoli.

None has spoken publicly about their conclusions from the talks. But their delegations and spokespeople for the rebel council have all said that the Western powers were satisfied with the rebels' democratic aspirations.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Mark Toner gave an upbeat assessment.

"We've been encouraged by many of the public statements they've made, as well as what they've said in private, in terms of respecting human rights and also in terms of trying to create a democratic transition that's inclusive," Toner said.

"So we've seen the right things. There's not necessarily a checklist or a laundry list, but we believe it's moving in the right direction," Toner told reporters.

"And I would just add that we're well aware that there's an urgency here, and we're trying to move as quickly, but as prudently as possible," he said.

Unlike France, Italy and Qatar, the United States has not recognized the TNC, saying it needs to understand the movement better.

Concerns of Al-Qaeda infiltration in the rebel movement -- a major initial fear for Washington -- were also comprehensively debunked during the discussions, they said.

Those reassurances were bolstering the council's bid to become recognised internationally as the only representative body of the Libyan people.

France, Italy and Qatar have already made that step.

Britain was generally aligned with its allies on recognition, given that it wanted to see Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi and his family depart, but did not want to "tie itself in knots" by making such a clear-cut statement, one source said.

After the days of exploratory talks, the envoys had successfully impressed upon the rebels that "NATO was not a magic wand" that could achieve their military aims of taking control of all the country, another source said.

They had also talked over the "complex and unresolved issues" involved in trying to free frozen Libyan funds abroad to help the rebellion finance its civilian activities in the east of the country.

Oil companies, notably, "have to be careful to operate within the law," one source said, a day after the insurgency shipped out its first cargo of oil it plans to sell through an escrow arrangement with Qatar.

"The issue of liquidity is a real one," the source said, adding that legal studies were being made to see how seized money could be signed over to the TNC.

Additionally, "if the regime were to collapse and suddenly the whole country became the responsibility of the TNC, then they clearly understand there would be pressing immediate needs," the source said.

"There would be suddenly a requirement to convince their population that they have the capacity and a plan to restore services, to pay salaries, to set in motion a political process in line with their vision," the source said..


Even after oil sale, Libyan rebels face challenges

Quoted from -oon Wed Apr 06, 2011 02:11 pm PDT Report Abuse
That is just good military strategy to remove the enemy's source of income...dont underestimate Ghadafi
Rebels blame Libya air strike on mistake by NATO
He said rebels had transported 20 tanks to the front line at Brega for the first time, but at about 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m. EST) the advance was hit. "We were taken by surprise by a vicious attack by airplanes on our tanks."
"We had informed them about the time those tanks were leaving Benghazi," he said. "And we had also informed them that in the early morning they would be advancing toward Brega."

That is a big loss of life and armor. Did Gadafi intercept (hack) the communication lines and lead the Revolutionist to believe they were informing NATO?

NO MILITARY SOLUTION
The debate underscored tensions within Washington about how to best influence events in Libya, where poorly trained rebels are outgunned by Gaddafi's loyalist forces despite a coalition air campaign.
Asked by Senator Lindsey Graham how the war would end, Ham said: "I think it does not end militarily."
He said there was a low likelihood that rebels would be able to fight their way to Tripoli and oust Gaddafi by force.
"That's a very honest answer. I would assess (the chance) as almost impossible," replied Graham, a Republican.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20110407/i/r161812931.jpg
Rebel fighters sit in vehicle in Ajdabiyah
Rebel fighters sit in a vehicle in Ajdabiyah April 7, 2011. REUTERS/Esam al-Fetori
:umm: :gasp:
May the Angels brush your path and only the best of Jinns be your friends


Libya rebels unlikely to oust Kadhafi: US general
– Thu Apr 7, 10:26 pm ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Western allies have stepped up "non-lethal" aid to Libyan rebels hours after a rebel armoured unit was hit by apparent NATO 'friendly fire', sources said.
The aid is authorised by UN Security Council resolutions imposing sanctions and allowing military action to protect civilians, sources said Thursday.
The aid includes establishing a communications system between rebel fighters and NATO's base organising air strikes.

My personal view at this point would be that that's probably not the ideal circumstance, again, for the regional reactions that having American boots on the ground would entail."
Amid calls by some senators to arm and train the rebels before it was too late, Ham said that he had "some indication that some Arab nations are in fact starting to do that at present."

UNICEF: Snipers targeting children in Libya city

– Fri Apr 8, 7:31 am ET
GENEVA – Snipers are targeting children in the besieged rebel-held Libyan city of Misrata, the U.N.' s children agency said Friday.
Hundreds of residents have been killed and wounded in the assault by Gadhafi's forces on Libya's third-largest city, and residents are running short of water, food and medicine.
"What we have are reliable and consistent reports of children being among the people targeted by snipers in Misrata," UNICEF spokeswoman Marixie Mercado told reporters in Geneva.
The information was based on local sources, Mercado said. She was unable to say how many children have been wounded or killed in this way.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said it is sending a team to Misrata by boat Friday and would investigate the reports of snipers targeting children.
A spokesman for the Geneva-based aid group, Christian Cardon, told The Associated Press that children and other civilians not involved in hostilities are never a legitimate target in an armed conflict. "But without having any more information, we can't comment on what is happening there," he said.

Rebels repel Gaddafi assault on Misrata's east
By Mariam Karouny – Fri Apr 8, 8:22 am ET
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Libyan rebels said on Friday they had repelled an assault by government troops on the eastern flank of the coastal city of Misrata but the fighting had forced residents to flee the area.
A rebel spokesman said forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi had advanced on the heavily populated Esqeer district in an effort to loosen the rebels' grip on Misrata where families are crammed together in the few remaining safe districts.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it expected a humanitarian vessel it had chartered to reach Misrata by midday on Saturday, but gave no details of the relief cargo it was carrying.
"The attack from the east has been repelled now and the (pro-Gaddafi) forces have been pushed back," a rebel spokesman who gave his name as Hassan al-Misrati told Reuters by telephone.
Gaddafi's armor also shelled areas around Misrata's strategically important Tripoli road, which cuts through to the city center from the western outskirts. :baaa:

+++++++
By Alexander Dziadosz – 2 hrs 57 mins ago
AJDABIYAH, Libya (Reuters) – Libyan rebels painted the roofs of their vehicles bright pink on Friday to avoid more friendly fire casualties after a NATO air strike killed five fighters.

Changing the color regularly once communications have been fully established would be a good.
Or rotating color tops by day of the week.
Hell, it was most likely a ingenious young man that started a trend. Bravo, if so.
I can almost hear the conversation. :hitch: ;) :baaa:
...
Outside Ajdabiya, rebel fighters slapped peach-colored paint on their vehicles to try to distinguish from the pro-Gadhafi units.
"We are painting the trucks so NATO won't hit us," said Salam Salim, a 29-year-old rebel militiaman.

U.S. sanctions 5 senior Libyan government officials
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Friday increased pressure on Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and extended financial sanctions to five senior Libyan government officials and two entities controlled by Gaddafi's children.
The U.S. Treasury Department said it added Libya's prime minister, oil minister, finance minister, Gaddafi's chief of staff and the country's internal security director to its sanctions blacklist.
The sanctions prohibit U.S. transactions with them and seek to freeze any assets they may have under U.S. jurisdiction.
(Reporting by Rachelle Younglai; Editing by Theodore d'Afflisio)

"They have a choice to make, and we will make that choice as stark as possible."

A ship from the U.N.'s World Food Program reached Misrata on Thursday, delivering 600 tons of food as well as medical supplies. The food, including flour, vegetable oil and high energy biscuits, are enough to feed 40,000 people for a month, the Rome-based WFP said in a statement.

[Blaze]

Opps missed some of my editorials that I normally highlight in green

[Blaze]

I have been locked out of my communications portal since this morning. It could be another 24 hours at least before the mail I sent is read.

Interesting piece on speaking your mind using Egypt as an example.


And now for something almost completely positive: Every day I receive a digest of news articles from the Middle East, almost all of them translated from Arabic. Reading these pieces is often like trying to pierce a veil woven of metaphor and coy allusion. Here, for example, is a recent article from the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar on efforts to foster reconciliation between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas: "The problem is that the initiatives are not serious, especially since they are accompanied by conditions and counterconditions and they all serve the game of political cards between this or that side. … This game of cards and passing balls does not have any implementation signs, at least for the time being, on the grounds of reality." This is how you write when you have internalized the idea that you can't say what you think.


Now, increasingly, you can say what you think -- at least in Egypt, Tunisia, and a few other countries in the region. Here's a piece from the English edition of Al-Masry Al-Youm, Egypt's bestselling newspaper, ridiculing the pap extruded by the country's state media since the Six-Day War with Israel, which was trumpeted as a great victory until the truth dawned [a few days later] that it was an utter fiasco: "Since then, and for the last 45 years, Egyptian television has been stunted. Bland, dull, unimaginative, and chronically incapable of delivering accurate and relevant news in an appealing fashion, state television has been on autopilot and content with simply existing."

Al-Masry is Egypt's boldest daily, and English editions are granted more latitude than Arabic ones. But I have been increasingly struck by new tones of voice glimmering through the fog of polemic and circumlocution in the wider Arab media. We tend to think about political change as a matter of elections and laws and new institutions, but such transformations take hold in people's minds by offering new ways of thinking, speaking, and writing. Saying what you think is habit-forming.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/04/08/good_news

Qaddafi's Great Arms Bazaar

And we've been looking at weapons and munitions -- lots of them. These arsenals represent a matter of pressing concern for human rights organizations because in the wrong hands, powerful military weapons can wreak havoc on the civilian population. In 2003, Human Rights Watch researchers deployed all over Iraq to inform U.S. authorities of the massive, unsecured weapons caches that we had found scattered across the country, urging them to secure the stocks. But the U.S. and allied armed forces, too busy looking for nonexistent weapons of mass destruction, failed to act. We watched in despair as weapons stocks were looted in places like Baquba, where Saddam's Second Military College had vast supplies of powerful munitions.

Everyone paid the price for the failure to secure those weapons:

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/04/08/qaddafi_s_great_arms_bazaar

The Mind of Muammar
What can we learn from reading the Libyan dictator's Green Book?

Very interesting quick read for those that have never never read the Green Book.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/04/05/the_mind_of_muammar



I am on respite tomorrow.

[Blaze]

This is noteworthy enough to add to the collection of news stories about Libya.


Kadhafi ordered sex drugs for Libya rapes: prosecutor


http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/p/afp_logo_51.png

– Wed Jun 8, 7:36 pm ET

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – Investigators have evidence that Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi ordered mass rapes and bought containers of sex drugs to encourage troops to attack women, the chief ICC prosecutor said Wednesday.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo said he may ask for a new charge of mass rape to be made against Kadhafi following the new evidence.

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor is expecting a decision from judges within days on his request for charges of crimes against humanity to be laid against the Libyan leader, one of his sons and his intelligence chief.

"Now we are getting some information that Kadhafi himself decided to rape and this is new," Moreno-Ocampo told reporters.

He said there were reports of hundreds of women attacked in some areas of Libya, which is in the grip of a months-long internal rebellion.

There was evidence the Libyan authorities bought "Viagra-type" medicines and gave them to troops as part of the official rape policy, Moreno-Ocampo said.

"They were buying containers to enhance the possibility to rape women," he said.

"It was never the pattern he used to control the population. The rape is a new aspect of the repression. That is why we had doubts at the beginning, but now we are more convinced that he decided to punish using rape," the prosecutor said.

"It was very bad -- beyond the limits, I would say."

Kadhafi's regime had not previously been known for using rape as a weapon against political opponents and Moreno-Ocampo said he had to find evidence that the Libyan leader had given the order.

In March, a Libyan woman made international headlines when she entered a Tripoli hotel and said she had been raped by Kadhafi troops.

Iman al-Obeidi was detained but managed to escape from Libya. She ended up in Qatar but was deported back from there to rebel-held Libya. She is now resting at a refugee centre in Romania.

Moreno-Ocampo issued arrest warrants last month against Kadhafi, his son Seif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanussi. ICC judges are to announce in days whether they agree to the charges.

The Libyan government does not recognize the international court's jurisdiction.

[Blaze]

Rob Crilly is a noble! Indeed he is! He exposed one of the Media outlets for the C.U.N.T.s they are...
Thank you Rob Crilly For standing up! Thank you for exposing the lie. God willing, others will follow your suit. Many today loosened their gags not only of their voice, but also their courage, their heart, and their soul.
https://twitpic.com/show/large/6yi2o7

Sidenote~
[retracted] says he is this that or the other, but in truth he is not. He knows that segments of the media must come down. But he keeps his f'loons brains washed in mock nobility. Indeed, he is one of the naked C.U.N.T.s and this is the reason a faction indeed broke away when chance upon a bounty bot. You know, F'loon when someone says don't look over here. Indeed you should look over there.

[Blaze]

Greetings,
The new operation location & updates:
http://oolith.wordpress.com/campaigns/libya/


Regards,






================================================== ====================


Notice:
The below are letters I wrote to concerning a profile here.
They will serve as my counter-statement






05-27-2013, 11:24 AM

Gentlemen,

ClarathecarrotAKA Thome has used my personal details in a post and referenced them back to me.

http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?66870-VBULLETIN-Upgrade-Fix-Suggestions&p=1767661&viewfull=1#post1767661 (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?66870-VBULLETIN-Upgrade-Fix-Suggestions&p=1767661&viewfull=1#post1767661)


I created a real nasty photochop of Osama getting eaten by theShAAAAARK!!! remember that meme that was going around and inside the mouth of the shark I wrote in sanskrit..( I think I wrote itright)

"Mohammed likes his little boys dead"

I was going to post it here in retaliation of the Musllim attack we had going on here...but thought it would only bring more trouble.

I still think it was all done by Blaze/Julia/Oolith/etc..., posting from a remote IP, but that is just, slander.


I have not been on this site for months, can't anything be done about this harassment of me?


In addition, it is very suspect that he would say that in the thread most likely to be checked after a token error.

I would not doubt that there maybe a trigger that cause the token error associated with my IDs here.

I am very unsettled that after so very long, he is still harassing me.

In addition, I am also very upset that my details were not removed without my noticing them. Oh my goodness, what else has he written on here that is my personal information?

Please address this swiftly and strongly.

I should not have to keep a monitor on this site for my own protection.
Please,my goodness this is ok. The small harassments will turn into very bad ones.

I am going to go search and make sure he has not been flaunting about my information.

Please Advise.

J




05-27-2013, 02:15 PM

Greetings Gentlemen,



Let me catch pojo up to speed.
Pojo- I logged on earlier today and found a token error & other errors. I made notified admin as the error notice requested, then went on to the forum section and checked the site issues thread.There I noticed that Thome AKA Clarathecarrot has posted my details.I reported it. I also decided to run a check on the site concerning my information. That catches you up.


Well that was an eye opener. I am so accustomed to seeing my name I had not realized to the extent that my information was being flaunted about.

Moreover,until I read the data as a whole, I did not realize the extent thatmy information was being battered amongst very few people.

Imust say in respect to max, at least he removed my information beforequoting the person.

Inaddition,I had not realized the extent of the character ID Julia from2004. I am more appalled at that deliberate and fraudulent connectionby certain persons, than my name being used, though that does appallme too.

Whilereading the data, I realized to the extent that I was not extendedone of the most basic protections given to members of the RothArmy.

Quote:
Don'teven fucking think about it. Have some fucking respect. Do NOT postANY personal information. This includes name, address, phone numbersand email addresses, as well as pictures of family/friends. This listis not all-inclusive; Use this rule of thumb, if YOU wouldn't wantthe same information posted about YOU, don't post it for anyone else.This will get you banned, and quickly.

Flauntingmy name about had become so common place that banning would beexcessive.
Hereis the list of them:


AceDiamond, Gar, Twonabomber, LittleTexan, ZahZoo, Thome, Diamond Jimi,Cato, Panamark, Guitar Shark,Blaze (myself) , Standin(myself)




Theone's that knew I was not Julia from 2004:
Gar,Thome, Diamond Jimi, Panamark


Readingthose threads was very difficult. Let me share with you what I wroteafter listing the names:
[12:56]<@Raven> Damn,people are really... sigh... what ever one callsthe bad guys that do bad things to folks that expose the truth..... Idon't cry often but damn.
[12:57]<@Raven> I now know why farmer boy said or thought I was apsycho.
[12:59]<@Raven> I kept wondering why I was having such a difficulttime making friends. Or whatever.
[13:00]<@Raven> damn if I had any human left, I would besobbing.


Thatis how it made me feel, like I was not human.
Noone should be made to feel that way.


Iam going to list the thread I found. These are just the one's that Ilocated with the Julia tag, not Julieor any other variation.
Thereare way too many to attempt adeletion.


http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57824-Social-Security-Disability-Fraud/page7 (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57824-Social-Security-Disability-Fraud/page7)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?43872-Van-Halen-Will-they-play-or-not (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?43872-Van-Halen-Will-they-play-or-not)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?56646-WTF-happened-to-Lounge-Machine (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?56646-WTF-happened-to-Lounge-Machine)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/archive/index.php?t-57549.html (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/archive/index.php?t-57549.html)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?58745-Judy-Garland-PARTY-ANIMAL (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?58745-Judy-Garland-PARTY-ANIMAL)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?55527-Michael-Jackson-had-a-heart-attack/page10 (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?55527-Michael-Jackson-had-a-heart-attack/page10)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?56373-Mom-finds-long-lost-son-online-then-rapes-him (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?56373-Mom-finds-long-lost-son-online-then-rapes-him)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57133-Roth-Army-Hacked/page2 (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57133-Roth-Army-Hacked/page2)
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57542-What-does-axl-die-to (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/showthread.php?57542-What-does-axl-die-to)




Itis terribly sad how hard I tried to make friends be a part of thegroup with that in the background.


Fortitudesometimes cannot account for the human desire to make friends and bea part of the group, to be liked, t be respected, to be honored. Iwish I would have realized the extent of this in humanenesssooner.


Iwant to appeal to you gentlemen, I would like the Julia ID. It is asmall console,


TheJulia says it has no posts &only onefriend
http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/member.php?2441-julia (http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/member.php?2441-julia)


Iwould like the keys to it, please.


Whoever had it knew it was not me and never spoke up. That iswrong.


ImmapusSylicker pointed out that the posts still exist when he said,“Someone dumped it, but Flappobrought it back. Thank you,Flappo”


Ican't believe I want to stay hereafter this, but I like David, Nowonder he treated me like a leper with that playing in thebackground.


Gentlemen,I am a good and solid citizen and person. That has achieved amazingresults & over come death defying odds. My website & othersocial media, though very modest shares speak clearly of me and areeasily vetted.


Thatis all, I suppose. I am still in a bit ofshock.


Regards,
[redacted]

[ELVIS]

This thread should be called the unread thread...