Let's remember, too, the multiple assurances from world powers that - with NATO intervention - Qaddafi's regime would be crushed within 10 days and once the West got involved that there was no possibility of prolonged fighting.Who said this, specifically?
I think it's also important, since we're on the topic, that I have consistently emphasized that because we are working with international partners, after the initial thrust that has disabled Gaddafi's air defenses, limits his ability to threaten large population centers like Benghazi, that there's going to be a transition taking place in which we have a range of coalition partners -- the Europeans, members of the Arab League -- who will then be participating in establishing a no fly zone there.posted by Flunkie at 8:55 PM on August 20, 2011
So there's going to be a transition taking place in which we are one of the partners, among many, who are going to ensure that that no fly zone is enforced, and that the humanitarian protection that needs to be provided continues to be in place.
(...)
As I've said, there are different phases to the campaign. The initial campaign, we took a larger role because we've got some unique capabilities. Our ability to take out, for example, Gaddafi's air defense systems are much more significant than some of our other partners. What that does then is it creates the space, it shapes the environment, in which a no fly zone can actually be effective. It was also important to make sure that we got in there quickly so that whatever advances were being made on Benghazi could be halted, and so we send a clear message to Gaddafi that he needed to start pulling his troops back.
But it is unlikely that the poorly armed rebels, who are prone to strategic mistakes, can win the capital without a protracted and bloody siege. Although they have been helped by defections of top Libyan officials and by NATO airstrikes that have battered Kadafi's army, the man who has ruled Libya for four decades appears to be defiantly concentrating his firepower in Tripoli.posted by scalefree at 4:20 AM on August 21, 2011
Unconfirmed rumor that rebels have captured Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam.The UK representative for the rebels has confirmed.
News anchor vows on air that she won't be taken alive.
posted by CunningLinguist at 10:29 AM
posted by blueberry at 2:27 PM on August 21, 2011#Hamza, Libyan State TV anchor who was threatening opposition supporters with his gun in studio, has been caught! #Tripoli #Libya
—@EndTyranny101
where could he be?The rebels have been saying for quite a while that they suspect he's in Algeria. Algerian Foreign Ministry denies that Gaddafi is in its grounds.
His 'leading from behind' has also worked out quite well.As opposed to Republicans running randomly in all directions, hooting and hollering while firing their guns wildly in the air? The GOP accused Obama of being a coward for not getting involved in Libya from day one, then screamed treason and quagmire just days after he order ordered air strikes in support of the rebels, following it up with a GOP led vote in the House to try and kill funding for US involvement in Libya.
..a small group of families began holding weekly demonstrations in Benghazi, the city that has become the epicenter of the uprising now sweeping the nation...
The families' protests were part of an unprecedented campaign to seek the truth about a 1996 massacre of more than 1,200 prisoners at the Abu Salim prison in Tripoli, the Libyan capital. Notorious for torture, Abu Salim is run by the Internal Security Agency and houses many of Libya's political prisoners. The massacre followed a prison riot over poor conditions.
The day after the riot, security guards forced hundreds of prisoners into courtyards and opened fire.
"The security officers asked for a list of sick people to take to the hospital. Then they blindfolded them and took them to the corner of the prison. They started with them. They were the first ones killed," a former prisoner who was in Abu Salim at the time said. His brother was killed in the massacre.
Former prisoners said the heavy shooting continued for more than two hours.
For years the government refused to acknowledge the episode. Families tried to make inquires about their loved ones, but were turned away by Libyan authorities or told that their family members were fine.
In March 2007, about 30 families lodged a civil claim before the North Benghazi Court, demanding information about the fate of their family members at Abu Salim. The court, after stalling and an appeals ruling, found in their favor, but the government refused to implement the ruling...
So the families began holding public demonstrations in Benghazi - virtually the first independent demonstrations in Libya in 40 years. Every Saturday, family members gathered, holding posters with photos of their loved ones and statements such as: "Where is my father? Where is his grave? Where is his corpse?"
The Libyan government tolerated the families' actions since it was trying to rehabilitate its international image and end its longstanding diplomatic isolation. The families persisted, filing complaints with the United Nations, posting videos of their demonstrations on Libyan websites abroad, and issuing their demands. They won remarkable concessions: Libya's top leadership acknowledged the massacre, and officials notified over 900 families that their loved ones had died, issuing death certificates and offering about $100,000 in compensation for each prisoner killed. But many of the families refused the money, believing that they had a right to know the full details of the prisoners' deaths and that those responsible should be held accountable.posted by Catfry at 3:12 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
Christ can you imagine how mccain palin would have handled it?McCain would have bombed Benghazi to rubble.
Did the rebels lie and think it wouldn't come back to haunt them? Is there a Saif look-alike in custody? Is the guy who showed up at the Rixos a look-alike? Did Saif escape and the rebels didn't bother saying so? All possibilities seem... odd.Or, conspiracy theory time: These journalists could have guns to their heads and be being instructed on what to tweet.
The petrol tanker driver watched horrified as his fellow captives were called out in ones and twos by Gaddafi's soldiers. He listened to their screams and pleas, and saw them return with broken hands and feet, and faces disfigured.I do hope the Gaddafis and their henchmen will receive justice swiftly. Get these dogs out of here.
"They removed each person from the room in turn and they beat him and kicked him. They broke fingers and toes. They destroyed the faces. They came back completely covered in blood," he said.
"They took us inside with the wounded rebels. One was shot in his penis. There was a lot of blood on his trousers. Gaddafi's soldiers recorded it on their phones and were saying dirty words to him. They kept kicking him in the place where he was shot and he died," said Mufta. "After that they tied a rope around his neck and dragged him out saying: get this dog out of here."
New Libya, Welcomed in Mideast, Rejects NATO Bases"Rejects", to me, connotes that NATO asked. The article itself, however, doesn't seem to say any such thing; rather, it seems (from the article) just like a sort of preemptive assertion. Did NATO ask?
Fox says he has heard the Scud missile fired from Sirte may have been carrying mustard gas. "There are mustard gas stocks. There are real concerns that he [Muammar Gaddafi] and the boys, the sons, could be planning some weird diabolical nasty at the end."Unfounded speculation much? I mean, it's not out of the question, but it makes me question his other assertions.
Masked gunmen severely beat Syria’s best-known political cartoonist on Thursday, breaking his hand and leaving him to bleed on the side of a road in Damascus, activists said.posted by metaplectic at 8:10 AM on August 26, 2011
The attack came days after the artist, Ali Farzat, published a cartoon showing President Bashar al-Assad hitching a ride out of town with Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi of Libya, who was toppled from power this week.
Good Morning Gentlemen.The congressman is non-denial denialling this, and did not specifically deny meeting with Saif's aide. Wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't more. This meeting was apparently ahead of a Libya vote in the House.
This is the Congressman you both spoke with. He is going to fight for us but he has
asked us for evidence.
I can bring need whatever we can gather. If it is sensitive I
will carry it, otherwise we can email it.
House to vote next week on ending US involvement in Libya
l.Any corrupt (verifiable) acts by the Opposition leaders. Include any personal motives for instance
to make money or gain certain types of power.
2.Any known Al-Qaeda operating in the Opposition.
3 .Any evidence ofatrocities committed by the Rebel soldiers.
4-.Any evidence ofCivilian deaths by NATO.
5 .Any evidence of arms sales to the Opposition in Benghazi or Misrata, including dates, who sold
the weapons, what type and the cost ofthe deals.
6.Any evidence of weapons being smuggled on boats to Misrata, with dates. and type of weapons.
7.Any evidence that the uprising was a planned event prior to February 1'/th. lnclude intercepted
communications, names, dates.
S.Evidence supporting that the Regime has a regular practice of hiring African military in its Pan-
African units and this was not a new (mercenaries) thingjust for the uprising.
9.Communications with the UK and USA prior to the UN bombings to show Regime was
trying to negotiate peacefully.
0.Evidence of cease fires by the Regime or withdrawals of troops. Dates, location, description
(including why cease fire broke down).
l.Evidence that before the uprising started, there were democratic projects under way, for
instance a plan for elections and so forth. This shows that they were already going this way and
aren't just saying that now.
l2.Evidence that The Leader had already planned to step down before the uprisings. This shows
there was already a transition going on. It also helps him save face for when he does step down
because it will look like that was the plan all along.
l3.A list of tribes and location known to be loyal to Regime, those pledging loyalty to Opposition,
and the remaining ones that have not pledged either way. The population of each group as well,
This shows that the Rebels don't have the full support of the country.
l4.A list and description (including date and location) of humanitarian efforts by Regime since this
started, or their attempts to aid the civilian population, and any efforts blocked by NATO or the
Rebels.
It will be used for:
A) A lawsuit against
B) Defending Saif in the ICC
C) Publicity to reform the image of Regime.
D) To help negotiation positions
Why is the United States interfering in the internal affairs of Libya?railed a third, who, as a Malian who fought in Libya, failed to see any irony in his question.
When the protests began in Tripoli, his unit was attached to the infamous 32nd brigade, led by Qaddafi's son Khamis, and was sent to disperse the unarmed marchers. "That was easy," he said with startling nonchalance. "We would kill three or four in the front of the crowd and they all ran away. It was very easy."posted by metaplectic at 2:34 PM on September 6, 2011
...
I asked about Qaddafi's February speech, in which he pledged to hunt down protesters house by house and what his men were ordered to do if they encountered civilians. He paused before answering, "To be honest, it is true. We believed what Qaddafi told us. We believed we would go there and kill everyone."
I asked if he had seen any civilians killed. In Misrata, he says, "We tried to find everyone there. One half of the city was cleaned."
"What do you mean 'cleaned?'" I asked.
"The people were killed. Women, children, everyone there."
Who did the killing?
"Mostly it was Arabs but also some Tuareg."
Did you kill any civilians?
"No." He refused to elaborate.
Fighters belonging to the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) say they have entered the loyalist stronghold of Bani Walid, with street fighting reported to be taking place in the town, 150km southeast of the capital Tripoli.posted by metaplectic at 5:30 PM on September 9, 2011
The news came just hours after Muammar Gaddafi's loyalists fired Grad rocket barrages at the fighters besieging Bani Walid and Sirte, a coastal city also under the deposed leader's control.
Abdullah Kenshil, the former rebels' chief negotiator, said the former rebels were fighting gunmen positioned in houses in the town of Bani Walid and the hills that overlooked it. "They are inside the city. They are fighting with snipers....They forced this on us and it was in self-defence."
Libyan rebels began what they called full-scale attacks to subdue the loyalist holdouts of Bani Walid and Surt on Friday night, breaking their own deadline for surrender after taking enemy fire.posted by metaplectic at 5:32 PM on September 9, 2011
“It’s full steam ahead right now,” said Abdulrahman Busin, a spokesman for the rebel military.
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Let's all also hope Kadaffi is eventually frog marched in front of the Hague.
posted by zardoz at 5:56 PM on August 20, 2011 [4 favorites]