Due the events in North Africa and I feel compelled to write a post urgently in relation the this unfolding human tragedy especially now the “No Fly Zone” is imposed which is nothing more that a ruse to create the pretext of an invasion of Libya.
Text Update 22 March 2011: I am in the process of writing a follow-up post,so if you re-visit by EST 23 hours it should be posted. Unfortunately as with the distortions made at the start of the Iraq war so the same is going on today. The worst of it is we who support the sovereignty of nations and the right of those nations to self-determination (as does the UN charter) are accused of being inhumane, supporters of genocide or posed in the position of “you are either with us or against us”.
As usual please follow highlighted dark red blue text links for video. I’m colour blind but I think they are dark red blue :-). I have no-one to check with:-)
Though in one case below I have finally worked how to embed a video image…which is makes it easier to identify there is a video link. On all previous post video is found by following highlighted dark blue text links f
If Libya was selling Bananas would the US be interested I doubt it?
US gets it wrong again
But no matter who is in charge they would likely get that all wrong wrong
Oil futures rise as conflict deepens
Those of you who follow me on twitter are aware of the anomalies I have raised about the reporting of the Libyan crisis, the real reasons behind the US and UK Sabre rattling and the continuing distortions in reporting by the media. The ABC is especially guilty of this.
This is illustrated best by the bullet points below.
- Gadaffi when calling and complying with the UN resolution for the ceasefire also called on Turkey China and Malta to send independent observers to monitor. The rebels leader iKhalifa Heftir immediately rejected this proposal. This leaves the rebels free to continue to fight
- The head of the security apparatus of the rebels Hakim Al-Hassadi was expelled from Libya in 1999 and went and joined the Taliban and fought the US in Afghanistan only recently returning to Libya since the rebellion
- 12 March the Obama asked Saudi Arabia to arm the Rebels
- Michael Schurer ex CIA Chief of the Bin Laden Unit warned 10 March that thousands of Jihadists had been freed from Egyptian Jails to go fight for the rebels
- Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) Al Qaeda in North Africa fighters are in Benghazi
- Israel undertook bombing strikes against Gaza 2 weeks ago.
A good starting point is to ask a question why no fly zones imposed over Bahrain, Gaza, and Yemen. The Arab League held its last annual summit meeting last March in Tripoli.
To understand better the crisis today it is important to know some history.I reject the lies that the international community via the UN and the main stream media are now using in an attempt to justify the invasion occupation of Libya and continue the cover up of war crimes.
War what is it good for absolutely nothing
Gaddafi with Nasser After the Revolutions
During World War II, Idris supported the United Kingdom brought the Cyrenaican nationalists (East Libya) Capital Benghazi to fight alongside the Allies against the Germans and Italians.
Libya never was a Democracy and the flag being waved as the pre revolution flag was that of imposed by the British…The so called King Idris
After the war and from Benghazi, Idris negotiated with the British for independence. With British backing, Idris was proclaimed an independent Emirate of Cyrenaica in 1949. He was also invited to become Emir of Tripolitania, another of the three traditional regions that now constitute modern Libya (the third is Fezzan) With the support of Britain he began uniting Libya under a single monarchy. A constitution was enacted in 1949 and adopted in October 1951. By December 1951 the federal United Libyan Kingdom was proclaimed with Idris imposed as king much like the Shah of Iran.
Libya Provinces
In 1963 the constitution was revised and the state became the Kingdom of Libya.
(Not really a) King Idris
To the annoyance of Arab nationalists supporters of Pan-Arabism in neighbouring states, Idris maintained close ties with the United Kingdom and the United States, even after the UK invaded Egypt in 1956 in the Suez crisis.
Oil was discovered in Libya in 1959, and what had been one of the world’s poorest countries became extremely wealthy.
42 years ago, Gaddafi nationalized Libya’s then foreign-controlled oil industry and ordered the closure of the US Wheelus Air Base first used by the USAAF as a bomber base in 1943. It remained in use by the United States until 1970. Gaddafi’s anti-Communism initially pleased the United States but diplomatic relations were cooled and were formally broken in 1981.
Super Sabre
The US Wheelus Air Base base was bombed by the United States in 1986 with F111s during Operation “El Dorado Canyon”. Other targets were bombed but the main aim was assassination of Gaddafi.
A number of bombs missed their targets and hit residential areas, along with a number of Western embassies. in Benghazi 60 civilians were killed including Gaddafi’s “adopted daughter”
In the same series of attacks US warplanes mistook an undersea coral reef Fernandia near Sicily for a Libyan submarine and dropped depth charges on it. One is reminded of the 12 boys collecting wood in Afghanistan killed by the US last week.
At that time a vote of 79 in favor to 28 against with 33 abstentions, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 41/38 which was as follows….
“condemns the military attack perpetrated against the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya on 15 April 1986, which constitutes a violation of the Charter of the United Nations and of international law
Libya made impressive gains in health care, education, housing, the rights of women and basic social services. His brand of Islamic socialism, combined with the country’s relatively small population and large oil reserves, made Libya one of the most prosperous.
Though a strongman Gaddafi also established a less centralised political system which allowed for direct democracy and popular participation. A very different concept of democracy than we are used to but yes repressive to outright opposition. However it was never a democracy as we understand it. The sitting in tents the standing and jumping up and down on car roofs while firing off AK47s seems its their way. Who are we to argue? Apparently not if they are on the side of the US or UK. One of the most idiotic things is firing off and shooting weapons into the air…can you imagine where all that lead is going to land and the damage it will do to any soft meaty substance it must inevitably come into contact with. You get casualties.
The US has long supported similarly repressive regimes in the Middle East, any repression was never a major concern of the eight US administrations that have governed since 1959 when Gaddafi then a young Colonel seized power.
More problematic for the United States has always been Gaddafi’s outspoken advocacy of radical Arab and other “third world” causes and his support for extremist and revolutionary movements abroad
During the early 80’s, there were military clashes between the United States( President Reagan) and Libya. US Naval forces destroyed Libyan military ships and aircraft and bombed coastal military installations.
The US supported a wide range of covert activities targeting Libya, including disinformation campaigns, propaganda, sabotage and support for opposition groups. This included then as it does today demonising their opponent. The US also provided logistical support for the French military (including mostly our old buddies the Foreign Legion) against Libyan forces a disputed area known as Ouzou Strip region of northern Chad. At the same time the US Egypt to poke and prod Libya in a series of clashes along the Egyptian-Libyan border.
Chad Libya
In 1982, the US applied an embargo on Libyan oil. For the next period Americans, including journalists academics, were banned from traveling to Libya without permission from the US government. Likewise Libya imposed restrictions on anybody from the wets or NATO Countries from entering. In 1986 full sanctions including a freeze of monetary assets and a ban of all trade and financial dealings were imposed
All sounds familiar?
Throughout the 80’s and 90’s, the US government issued a series of reports in the media, designed to discredit and demonize the Libyan government. These reports included charges of a Libyan hit squad targeting American officials, and of the presence of a large underground chemical weapons factory. Subsequent investigations found all of these reports were false. Actions by the US against the regime of several coup attempts against Gaddafi.
Oh my …..this is all very familiar?
In 2003, following prolonged negotiations with the United States and Great Britain, Libya announced that it had given up biological, chemical and nuclear weapons research programs Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs). All independently audited. As a result in 2004 the United States ended its sanctions and restored diplomatic relations….opening the way for US arms sales and the training of the Toureg tribes by US special forces.
The successful elimination of a threat of Libyan WMDs could have been seen as a triumph of diplomacy but in June 2004, the US House of Representatives passed a resolution claiming that the elimination of Libya’s nuclear program “would not have been possible if not for … the liberation of Iraq by United States and Coalition Forces.”
Libya had approached the United States about eliminating its WMD programs well prior to the invasion of Iraq and the negotiations were successful because as Flynt Leverett, chief US negotiator wrote in the New York Times
“Incentives, rather than just threats, were used, in this successful non proliferation effort. Indeed, given that Iraq had disarmed and was invaded anyway, the Iraq war could hardly be seen as an incentive for Libya to give up a potential deterrent”.
Early on April 15, 2006 to mark the 20th anniversary of the US bombing raid a concert with Lionel Richie and tenor José Carreras was held in front of Gaddafi’s bombed house in Tripoli. It was called for the “concert for peace” That was just 4 years ago. So why this attack now on Libya?
The Crisis Today
Today we see double standards used by Obama to justify his North Africa foreign policy. In many way his policy is worse than that of George dubya. This is disappointing to come from a man we all believed would bring something new to the US and World Scene “Yes we can” but certainly not unusual in the history of US foreign relations.
For decades, the United States has ignored killings of many thousands of unarmed people women and children by US allies. Guatemala, El Salvador, Colombia, Indonesia Iraq. There are just so many many others
Libya’s most serious offenses to date in the eyes of the US have not been so much about human rights, nuclear ambitions, subversion or conquest, but had been (past tense) in daring to challenge American interests in the Middle East and its puppet states. Today the US fears that if an opposition does take hold in Libya unless they are involved it will be a regime also antagonistic to their oil and political interests in the region.
In the mid 2000s Qaddafi would receive praise from Jose Aznar; Prime Minister of Spain ; and Subsequently Zapatero the current Spanish PM. There was Tony Blair (signing an oil deal 07), Berlusconi, who addressed the last Arab League summit held in Tripoli in 2010 and Sarkozy one of the largest importers of Libyan Oil. Sarkozey is turing into the most active critic of Gaddafi. Why? Why do you think it is?
Happy times with Condaleza Rice 05
As shown in my recent post 27 February 2010 Spain France Italy and Germany are all the main importers of Libyan oil. In that post you will find additional background to the events of today. However clearly the Germans wont be involved directly; perhaps it may have something to do with a previous unfortunate historical connection with the area [Libya]. “Been there done that”
Rommel The Desert Fox 1942
Fidel Castro writing recently: “Although it may appear that I am being facetious, that’s not the case; I wonder why they now want to invade Libya and haul Qaddafi up in front of the International Criminal Court in The Hague”
They are accusing him, 24 hours a day, of shooting against unarmed demonstrating citizens. Why don’t they explain to the world that the weapons, and especially all the sophisticated repressive equipment Libya possesses, were provided by the United States, Great Britain and the other illustrious hosts of Gaddafi?
The Ghost of Bin Laden
Zbigniew Brzezinski supplying Arms to BinLaden
Australian and Western media have largely dismissed Qaddafi’s claim that he is fighting against bin Laden as the ravings of a madman. This shows the complicit nature of early US involvement with Bin Laden
However, the combat between Qaddafi and bin Laden is very real and predates the September 11, 2001 attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Indeed, Qaddafi was the first to alert Interpol to bin Laden, but got no cooperation from the United States.
In November 2007, the French news agency AFP reported that the leaders of the “Fighting Islamic Group” in Libya announced they were joining Al Qaeda. Like the Mujaheddin who fought in Bosnia, this Libyan Islamist Group was formed in 1995 by veterans of the U.S.-sponsored fight against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Al Quaeda fighters are drawn from many the nations and it may surprise you to learn that the largest national group that make up Al Quaeda are Libyan
The declared aim was to overthrow Gaddafi in order to establish a radical Islamist state. The base of radical Islam has always been in the Eastern part of Libya where the current revolt broke out. That revolt did not at all resemble the peaceful mass demonstrations that overthrew dictators in Tunisia and Egypt, but immediately took shape in that of an armed rising. It has a visible component of armed militants, it can reasonably be assumed since a current Libyan member of the Taliban is the head of security in Benghazi that the Islamists are taking a greater part in the rebellion.
These pictures of Libyan resistance fighters could just have easily been in Afghanistan but they weren’t.
Taliban look alike Fighter
We have been here before! In another case of blow-back. In1999 another moment in history when completely unacceptable terms for an agreement were presented to another pariah this time called Milosevic.
1999 The Rambouillet agreement: A ceasefire, NATO, and Kosovo
Below is a condition as part of an imposed settlement in the Kosovo conflict giving NATO forces complete access to Serbian positions. It was of course rejected.
“NATO personnel shall enjoy, together with their vehicles, vessels, aircraft, and equipment, free and unrestricted passage and unimpeded access throughout the [country]including associated airspace and territorial waters. This shall include, but not be limited to, the right of bivouac, manoeuvre, billet, and utilization of any areas or facilities as required for support, training, and operation”.
In response Milosevic requested NATO troops be replaced with UN troops Yesterday Gaddafi asked for China Malta and Turkey to provide observer troops for the ceasefire. The rebels rejected this With the threat now of full NATO and US invasion it is not in the interests of the Libya rebels like the KLA to respect any ceasefire. They want invasion to win their position
Today Gaddafi has nowhere else to go but straight to Benghazi and it seems with the majority of Libyans behind him. But it seems his civilian supporters probably the majority count for nothing in the eyes of the UN Security Council. Perhaps the result would be different as it was in 1986 when the matter of the bombing of Libya was brought before the General Assembly
The Rambouillet Agreement accepted by Belgrade was fully rejected by the Kosovo Albanian side.Belgrade had agreed to all of the political and non-military points. Note The Libyan rebels at the time of writing have rejected the UN requests for a ceasefire.
For the next few passages you could substitute; Gaddafi for Milosevic, Kosovo for Libya, Rebels for KLA.
Lord Gilbert, Minister for Defence Procurement in Tony Blair’s first government. said in an inquiry by a House committee into Kosovo
“I think the terms put to Milosevic at Rambouillet were absolutely intolerable; how could he possibly accept them? It was quite deliberate
A republican foreign-policy aide reporting a US official said of the same agreement:-
“We intentionally set the bar too high for the Serbs to comply. They need some bombing, and that’s what they are going to get.”
John Pilger in the New Statesman at the time
Anyone scrutinising the Rambouillet document is left with little doubt that the excuses given for the subsequent bombing were fabricated. The peace negotiations were stage managed and the Serbs were told: surrender and be occupied, or don’t surrender and be destroyed
What do we hear the Libyans being told?
The charade of peace talks at Rambouillet was finally scuttled by US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who sidelined more moderate Kosovo Albanian leaders in favour of Hashim Thaci, the leader of the “Kosovo Liberation Army” (KLA). The same The KLA later found linked to be little more than a criminal gang. The Albanian rebels in Kosovo were a mixed bag like those in Benghazi, but typically the US reaches in and draw the worst out of the bag.
About Madeline Albright:
Madeleine Albright is infamous for her reply to the question posed by 60 Minutes’ Lesley Stahl about the sanctions against Iraq in May 1996. “We have heard that a half million children have died,” stated Stahl. “I mean, that’s more children than died in Hiroshima. And, you know, is the price worth it?”
“I think this is a very hard choice,” replied Albright, “but the price–we think the price is worth it.”
They will do it again! In Libya, the situation could be even worse.
The current rebellion is a much more mixed bag, with serious potential internal contradictions. Unlike Egypt, Libya is not a populous historic state with thousands of years of history, a strong sense of national identity and a long political culture.
Russia to build Super Fast Rail
Half a century ago, it was one of the poorest countries in the world, and still has not fully emerged from its clan structure. Qaddafi, in his own eccentric way, has been a modernizing factor, using oil revenues to raise the standard of living to one of the highest on the African continent.
The opposition to him is a paradox. On the one hand it comes from Islamists who see him as a heretic for his relatively progressive views, and on the other hand beneficiaries of modernization who are embarrassed by the Qaddafi eccentricity.
Tripoli
Tripoli at night
Is it Legal?
Though this threatened invasion has the sanction of the UN it is still legal The action is in clear breach of the article that states no other member shall invade another member unless attacked. This is for good or bad a Civil War and in war there are casualties like the truth we are being told.
The dogs of war are sniffing around for more bloodshed than has actually occurred. The US escalated the Kosovo conflict in order to “have to intervene”, and the same is happening now with regard to Libya except the foot soldiers look like being the French the British and troops from some of despotic members of the Arab League. This is where Western ignorance of what they are doing is going to blow-back, split of the country and create another Somalia.
In 1999, the United States was eager to use the Kosovo crisis to give NATO’s new “out of area” mission its baptism of fire. In 2003 we were given Iraq and Afghanistan. Since then Pakistan. These humanitarian failures are obviously not going to stop.
The Chavez proposal for neutral mediation to avert catastrophe is the way of wisdom. But in NATOland, the very notion of solving problems by peaceful mediation rather than by force seems to have evaporated.
Twelve years later, it is Kosovo 2 over again.
The World and the US Marshall
Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis dead, a war to protect the Kurds. NATO stranded in an impossible position in Afghanistan also a war to protect women and the success is….? The Kosovo war was made to stop a nonexistent genocide.
All wars claim to have humanitarian justifications? Hitler was “protecting minorities” in Czechoslovakia and Poland.
Robert Gates ex Director of the CIA warns that any future secretary of state who advises a US president to send troops into Asia or Africa “must have his head examined”.
March 2011 Gates and Karzi Afgan President
Admiral Mullen 17th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff the principal military advisor to the president, the Secretary of Defence, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council, also advised caution 2 weeks ago though today he has done a back flip
Admiral Mullen Charman Joint Chiefs
Is this the great paradox of our time is that the headquarters of the peace movement are in the Pentagon and the State Department?
After the Coup
The South Americans watch anxiously especially the demonisaion of their leaders. They want peace and they want to avoid US intervention. in their theater. They know that they too are in the sights of the US and that their process of social transformation requires above all peace and national sovereignty. Hugo Chavez knows this from his experience of the US popular” 2 day coup against him.
Where to next?
Chavez suggests sending an international delegation, possibly led by Jimmy Carter in order to start a negotiation process between the government and the rebels.
The Israelis are unsure about Libya: they hate Gaddafi, and would like to see him gone like Saddam but they probably will not like his opposition and from what is now emerging they won’t.
The main pro-war argument is that if things go quickly and easily, it will rehabilitate NATO and humanitarian intervention, whose image has been tarnished by Iraq and Afghanistan. A new Grenada is exactly what is needed. Another motivation for intervention is to better control the rebels, by coming to “save” them on their march to victory. But that is unlikely to work: Karzai in Afghanistan, the KLA nationalists, the Shiites in Iraq and of course Israel, are perfectly happy to get American help, when needed, but after that; Its Blowback. They all pretty much pursue their own agenda. And a full-fledged military occupation of Libya after its “liberation” is not sustainable.
It is almost impossible to know exactly what is going on in Libya, because the media continue to discredit themselves with commentary and speculation made on baseless information as it was and still is in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Palestine. Sadly for the victims of war this does not prevent the left from being absolutely convinced of the truth of the worst reports about Gaddafi, just as they were twelve years ago about Milosevic.
26th Feb Israel bombed Gaza no call for a no fly zone
The negative role of the International Criminal Court is again apparent, here, as was that of the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia in the case of Kosovo. One of the reasons why there was relatively little bloodshed in Tunisia and Egypt is that there was a possible exit for Ben Ali and Mubarak. But “international justice” wants to make sure that no such exit is possible for Gaddafi, and probably for people close to him, hence inciting them to fight to the bitter end.
This was a hard and long post to write and without doubt I will re-read and change a few things. You know how it is I may add a few more pictures…make sure the spelling is okay.
This post is a result of my own research and also contains written material from [other] independent journalists etc
I have already researched my next post on the Arab League which will now be part 3 of this. You will find some eye openers there.
See you soon and I promise the feel good stuff previously mentioned is in the wings…but this debacle takes precedent.
Davie
escalator over the hill 
Right now the US has got it wrong – again. We talk about exchange rates the one you should all watch for is the exchange of blood for oil.
Blood spilt for Oil
Our Media
*I haven’t completed this post yet so please come back for more information; I am currently working on the distortions of the mainstream and social media and what we are being told
With UN Resolution 1973, the western media were already distorting the truth and speaking about air strikes, ground attack and how to help the rebels. The social media has been flooded with masses of mis-information often telephoned in from a wide range of areas London Oman Egypt…you can take your pick. There have been so many examples where the “breaking” news from a person ringing is a distortion at best or simply made up. The ABC appears the worst and even BK of crikey.com has got hooked. I confess I don’t watch free to air news on the commercial channels so my view is only that of SBS and ABC.
A week ago the ABC took a call from an Indian woman purporting to be attending a university in a town somewhere between Tripoli and Benghazi. The report was absurd as it is the 2 Libyan Universities are located in either Benghazi or Tripoli. Another regular feed we are getting is from a Doctor from within Misrata. No name; The detail of what he says can easily be debunked.
Our Australian media is either being incredibly naive or is actively complicit in false reporting. One of the worst examples is with Cabe of the ABC stuck in Benghazi then Tobruk for the duration constantly speculates on events in Tripoli or further west in Towns like Misrata. We get live mobile snippets from either a Mohamed or an Ahmed always miraculously found on the streets somewhere ready to provide eye-witness reports.
Don’t rely on Twitter
Here are 2 examples of the danger of relying on Social media
1) Last week Turkey announce that it was full in support of the No Fly Zone Yes? A SBS reporter twittered this as breaking this as breaking news some 24 hours later and only just a few hours after the bombing had started. I happen to know this wasn’t deliberate but that they were relying on some news out of the US again on twitter and relied on that as being correct. In fact by the time of the breaking news story Turkey was full on condemning the bombing. We have to be careful with the bias of news contra to what a certain Mr Kean may say.
2) This is a brilliant example of utter nonsense in reporting and involves a twitter called the Arab Revolution and 2 tweets that show clearly the danger of relying on social media as being true in what the are reporting
Tweet A 5 March Tweeter; Arab Revolution ” Libyans storm Gaddafi’s consulate in Rabat” see Video It’s not exciting but take note of the guy with glasses tearing up the Green book. Rabat is in Morocco.
Tweet (B) also 5 March Tweeter; Mossaberizing re-tweeted by Arab Revolution “Situation right now in front of October SS HQ” (SS HQ were the Head Quarters of the Egyptian Secret Service)
SS Police HQ in Cario
Take a look at the Guy addressing the crowd…looks familiar? Yes it the man in the Video. How can that be the distance between Rabat and Cario is 3593 kms. So this is Superman. Hardly What about the building ? Notice the flagpoles see the colour of the plaster? You got it……. It is the same building . This is the fraud in reporting on Libya. This is what we are all being subjected too. As for Mr Mossaberizing he is a Libyan who has been living in Egypt in exile. He busied himself taking photographs of demonstrators in Tahrir Square displaying pre 1951 Libyan flags. It is no co-incidence that you will see many of these flags on display through the Egyptian demonstration as part of a carefully orchestrated plan for the day of anger Feb 17th. Bottom line is this is all nonsense so beware of Twitter
Several weeks ago ABC Radio National interviewed a character allegedly representing the Libya Youth movement. This organisation based in Manchester UK didn’t exist in reality before Feb 20. Go ahead and challenge their validity and you will get no response. This organisation gets its funding from the National Conference of the Libyan Opposition (NCLO) formed in London in 2005. The NCLO in turn is funded and a front for the National Front for the salvation of Libya (NFSL) headed by Ibrahim Sahad and Gen. Youssef Magarieff. The NFSL in turn has been funded by the CIA since 1984 when it attempted an assassination of Gaddafi. After Libyan Chad war it formed the Libyan National Army (LNA)
The Saudis have provided $millions to the NFSL so it is by no coincidence that Obama asked the Saudis to provide more arms to the rebels. The military might of the NFSL was at its height in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1987 several hundred Libyan soldiers and a large quantity of Libyan military equipment were captured by the Chadian Army. Libya and Chad were involved in a long-standing dispute over the Azou Strip a territory believed to hold large uranium reserves. The Libyan prisoners were formed into a “Contra” style force led by Col. Abdoulgassim Khalifa Haftar.
Well armed Rebels in Benghazi
A week ago the ABC took a call from an Indian woman purporting to be attending a university in a town somewhere between Tripoli and Benghazi. The report was absurd as it is the 2 Libyan Universities are located in either Benghazi or Tripoli. Another regular feed we are getting is from a Doctor from within Mustratau No name; The detail of what he says can easily be debunked.
In reporting the fighting for the town of RasLanouf of just 10,00 inhabitants, was often referred to a city. It is a town built expressly for the purpose to serve the oil refinery, which the rebels attempted to destroy before they left. Imagine the challenge of a fire fight in and around the confines of an oil refinery.
In the first week of the campaign Israel launched air strikes in Gaza but did you hear nothing about that…yet
Gaddafi. had not sworn to show no mercy to the people of Benghazi – he had given the “rebels” a window in which to lay down their arms and he had said that he would show mercy to those launching this armed uprising. He said he would offer an amnesty and to that end Chavez the President of Venezuela suggested an international observer force to supervise any ceasefire. This was rejected by the US and the Rebels. We may choose not to believe him but the fact is …….that is what he said. We may not like him but it is a matter for the Libyans who thy choose to govern and what the system is.
He was not speaking about massacring civilians in Benghazi. It might be important to know that the head of the main hospital was hung by the Rebels publicly as were 2 policemen likewise lynched Little wonder anybody that might express the slightest resistance to the rebels might remain silent. Can anyone say the takeover of Benghazi is democratic?
Something else puzzles me is this. Is it legal or acceptable in Australia France, Britain or the United States to take up arms, torch buildings, kill unarmed civilians and commit acts of terrorism? No, neither is it in Libya.
This issue isn’t about Gaddafi. This isn’t about democracy. This is about control and about oil.
Oil paths
From the Guardian 22.03 2011
The day’s events around Ajdabiya provided further evidence that the rebels stand little hope of defeating Gaddafi’s forces militarily on their own and are relying on coalition air strikes to destroy, or at least greatly weaken, the ability of the government’s army to fight. Some of the rebels mistake the air strikes for their own victories. They dance on the burned out tanks, wave V for victory signs and declare that they are beating Gaddafi.
But the revolutionaries outside Ajdabiya only advanced because they expected to move into the town with little resistance. The rebel leadership Adil Hasi, the man in charge of what the revolutionary leadership regards as the regular rebel forces frankly admits that it cannot defeat the government militarily on its own and acknowledges that if it cannot take a relatively small town unaided, its forces are unlikely to be able to seize the better defended cities further west – leaving France, Britain and the US to decide if they are going to fight the insurgents’ war for them by clearing the way for the revolutionaries to advance.
So Who is breaking the Ceasefire? more from the Guardian
Alongside the military campaign, the rebels’ political leadership says it intends to encourage fresh popular uprisings in cities still under Gaddafi’s control. But it may find it hard to persuade Libyans to take the risk unless they have the assurance that rebel forces are close enough to come to their rescue. Members of the revolutionary council have already said they fear that the result of a limited air campaign will be military stalemate and a divided Libya. For that reason, they have called for an escalation of the air strikes to wipe out Gaddafi’s army as a fighting force.
Anarchy not a democracy in Benghazi
There is growing alarm in Benghazi in particular at growing disorder by young men with guns who have claimed the authority for themselves to set up arbitrary road blocks, order people around and fire their weapons for the fun of it.
When the National Front for the Salvation of Libya called for a day of anger Feb 17th how is it that the protesters were spontaneously armed, had flags that the British created Idris monarchy, and knew precisely how to take over the key buildings in the City of Benghazi? They even had heavy weapons
rebels fire “light weapons at gove troops March 9
President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron kept deliberately twisting and misquoting the words of Gaddafi and taking them entirely out of context so that anything they now say or do should not give you confidence that they are either reasonable or competent to perform their roles. What they have done is to join President Sarkozy in committing an act of WAR against Libya as NATO strikes against Nth Africa and turns its might against the Arab world.
The Crusade has begun, Libya is but the first stage but the consequences for safety from terrorism in the world are diminished. They have no idea who they are arming. They made the same error in Afghanistan against the Soviets. They have done so in Egypt that game is a long way from being played out. The US created the conditions for what they face today in Iran and Pakistan
The adage in Iraq was today a child, tomorrow a terrorist so blast his face off him, blast his limbs off him and destroy his family. That is why cluster bombs were dropped in civilian areas in Iraq and they will be dropped again in Libya..
Then the oil companies will move back in.
The adage in Libya seems to be protecting the Libyan people by allying with Al-Qaeda, and instigating a revolt in the oil-rich separatist area of Cyrenaica, with Benghazi being its capital, installing a Washington-friendly regime…then the oil companies move in. Fanciful as it may seem the Norwegians should not be so cocky either. They had their quisling in World War 2 and while the government there owns the oil it doesn’t have to remain like that as the known reserves of oil run out.
Looking for a Victim
The people of Libya, have enjoyed free housing, free education including university free health care, free social benefits Libya will become a puppet of the West, its resources plundered as the new Libyan oligarchs (like in Russia) are rewarded with positions of power and industrial control.
When I set out on the journey of this blog I wrote (see posts “about” and “welcome”) to an “escalator of the hill” I stated I wanted it to be a place for an exchange of ideas and to be democratic. To that end I now include a Saudi funded CIA organised propaganda video released just 4 days ago……just in time for the bombing.
It is an amazing piece of work extremely well produced with simply perfect backing music. It shows some footage from 1911, 1922 with the Italian occupation and later refers to General (at that time) Montgomery as being a world leader 🙂 It has a moment of pure symbolism with the meeting of 3 Berber tribesmen and 3 armored cars I guess this is to depict modern Libya under the monarchy. It portrays the establishment of the Libyan Monarchy that was imposed by the British ( a coup of sorts)…and at this point in the film would be laughable were it not for the seriousness of the situation today. We are treated to a young Queen Elizabeth Prince Philip and the independence celebrations.
You will also see black Libyan soldiers that put lie to the allegations of black mercenaries in Libya today. Libya has always had a black population.
The film leaves NOTHING out. There is nothing to report on free housing, advances in health free education or the emancipation of women simply because there was none to include. These advances did not come until after the coup and when Idris was deposed. A few film images of Idris are shown with Nasser just to complete the scene and fool those who might not otherwise believe this is utter nonsense. It a beautiful bit of marketing though.
In 1951, Libya if not the most was almost the poorest nation in the world? Did you know that today it has the highest Human Development Index (HDI) in Africa and the Arab world?
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary composite index that measures a country’s average achievements in three basic aspects of human development: health, knowledge, and income. It was first developed by the late Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq with the collaboration of the Nobel laureate Amartya Sen and other leading development thinkers for the first Human Development Report in 1990. It was introduced as an alternative to conventional measures of national development, such as level of income and the rate of economic growth.
The Human Development concept
Human Development is a development paradigm that is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. It is about creating an environment in which people can develop their full potential and lead productive, creative lives in accord with their needs and interests.
People are the real wealth of nations. Development is thus about expanding the choices people have. It is much more than economic growth
Fundamental to enlarging these choices is building human capabilities; the range of things that people can do or be in life. The most basic needs for human development is to lead long and healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, to have access to the resources needed for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in the life of the community. I think you might call that democracy.
Without these, many choices are simply not available, and many opportunities in life remain inaccessible.
Here’s Johnny
Democracy isn’t being able to vote yourself poor, or out of a job and into unemployment or into debt to get educated or be free to be bankrupted with huge medical bills or to be homeless
Have the US implemented free health care schemes, are not the British cutting back on theirs. They see health care as a profit centre, they maintain health care as a business. Does the US or UK or Australia distribute land for free and donate agricultural equipment for free?.
What we do is impose tariffs on imports of raw materials and food stuffs from poor countries. It is then sold back to them at inflated prices tying them to loans they can’t afford back. The US and UK pay and give subsidies to their own farmers. This is all done while pretending to follow the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Here is some of the data as at 2010 from the Human Development Index .Obviously should the bombing continue we will see a destruction of the gains Libya has made since 1951.
Under each of the headings below you will find some fascinating data; drawing comparison between the world’s richest bankrupt, the US and Libya.
You will find the data most revealing. I have highlighted the “top scores”
Education
Expenditure on education (% of GDP) US 5.5 UK 3.4 Libya 3.4
Average years of adult education in years US 12.4 UK9.5 Libya 7.3
Expected Years of schooling of childrenUS 15.7 UK15.9 Libya 16.5
Population least secondary education, female/male ratio US1.009 UK 1.015 Libya 1.264
Adult literacy rate aged 15+ US n.a. UK n.a Libya 88.3 9 It is interesting this data isn’t available from either the US or UK
Combined gross enrollment ratio of both sexes in education US 92.4 UK 89.2 Libya 95.8 show equality of gender access to education
Internet Users per 100 people
US 75.9 UK 76.0 Libya 5.1
Green House Gas emissions
Carbon dioxide emissions by tonnes per capitaUS 19.0 UK 9.4 Libya 9.2
Unemployment US 9.8 UK 10.6 Libya less than 1%
Security
Homicide rate per 100,000 US 5.2 UK4.8 Libya 2.2
Robbery rate per 100,000 US 142 UK 282 Libya *18
Health
Maternal mortality ratio deaths of women per, 000 births US 24 UK 12 Libya 11
Life expectancy US 74.5 UK 79.8 Libya.74.5
Expenditure on health, public % of GDP US 7.1 UK 6.9 Libya 1.9
Under-five mortality per 1,000 births US 8 UK 6 Libya 17
Overall Averages of Human Development index in 2010
Libya 0.755 Arab States average 0.590 World average 0.624 US 0.902 UK 0. 849
What all the data above shows us that Libya was enjoying great advances in the living conditions of it entire population…..is this what we want to destroy just as was done in Iraq with 1 million deaths and an unstable regime where we know the Islamists are waiting in the wings
How does the US and UK justify the attacks on civilian targets in the last 3 night’s raids?
These are war crimes.
3 medical facilities were hit?
What kind of “dictator” distributes arms to a million citizens? Where are the no-fly zone over Bahrain Gaza and Yemen, where unarmed civilians are being bombed rocketed or shot daily by their friends?
Why don’t you explain to your people, as they are faced with public spending cuts, how much it costs to take part in this act of war?
Do the British people know that the cost per aircraft per day is in the region of 200.000 GBP of UK taxpayers’ money.
How can they justify spending that amount of money on bombing hospitals, they spending for the UK National Health Service?
The truth is:
The “rebellion” in Libya is based around Islamic fundamentalists in the historically separatist hot spot of Benghazi. The “rebellion” has been instigated by the West. It failed, and when the military forces of Libya after the initial surprise of the uprising won back the initiative. The US saw the chance slipping away to control the main centers of oil production. They refused the Russian-sponsored resolution for a ceasefire and they tried to push through a Resolution allowing a full-scale military invasion.
This was quashed by Russia, China, India, Brazil and Germany in the drafting process, All they got was a no-fly zone and permission to use military force to protect civilians [both sides]. But the Libyan authorities are not fighting “civilians”. They are fighting Islamic terrorists.
Al Qaeda and Libya
Daily Telegraph ( The unofficial Conservative paper not recognised for independent views) had this headline and article 20 March2011
“Libya: the West and al-Qaeda on the same side”
“Statements of support for Libya’s revolution by al-Qaeda and leading Islamists have led to fears that military action by the West might be playing into the hands of its ideological enemies. WikiLeaks cables, independent analysts and reporters have all identified supporters of Islamist causes among the opposition to Col Gaddafi’s regime, particularly in the towns of Benghazi and Dernah. An al-Qaeda leader of Libyan origin, Abu Yahya al-Libi, released a statement backing the [Libyan] insurrection a week ago, while Yusuf Qaradawi, the Qatar-based, Muslim Brotherhood-linked theologian issued a fatwa authorising Col Gaddafi’s military entourage to assassinate him. But they also agree that the leading roles in the revolution are played by a similar cross-section of society as that in Egypt next door – liberals, nationalists, those with personal experience of regime brutality and Islamists who subscribe to democratic principles.
The Wiki Leaks cables, initially revealed by The Daily Telegraph and dating from 2008, identified Dernah in particular as a breeding ground for fighters in a number of causes, including Afghanistan and Iraq.
So Who is Abu Yahya al-Libi
Al-Libi is a Libyan who was captured by allied forces in the invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11 . The Americans who kept him in Bagram Air Base prison. American counter-terrorism analysts confirmed that al-Libi was a member of Al Quada. In July 10, 2005 al-Libi was one of several high-profile Bagram captives who managed [allowed] to escape . On November 4, 2005, he appeared in a video on the United Arab emirates ( of the Arab League) television station al-Arabiya, boasting that he had escaped from Bagram. He was again listed as an escapee by the US Department of Defense as “Most Wanted”
On March 12, 2011 al-Libi urged his Libyan countrymen on video to overthrow Gaddafi’s regime and establish Islamic rule, expanding the terror network’s attempts to capitalize on the wave of unrest sweeping the region
In response to this Al Qaeda threat Presidents Obama and Sarkozy and Prime Minister Cameron now have the murders of innocent people on their hands. These men are responsible for the indiscriminate use of military resources against all military targets airborne, static or now against all mobile ground forces and civilian targets that get in the way All this is way outside of the outside the scope of the UN Resolution.
Why do I write about this Because I am angry that our ABC SBS Kelly Cabe Knight all fail to see need for truth in reporting. How is it a right-wing paper like the Telegraph get it right? I care about the children of the world who are always the ones to suffer the most their mothers who lose their sons daughter and husbands.
War is a bad business anytime. When it is illegal and includes War Crimes it makes it worse…When we find our selves on the side of Al Qaeda something is going terribly wrong. I’ll reveal all I know about the Arab League ASAP
I still intend to do my feel good posts but this North African war had to take priority I am but a tiny voice but I am glad to say that since the start of this blog 5 weeks ago allowing and removing the numbers of 2 odd days of rogue views causing spikes in visitor numbers. The number of unique visitors has just passed
Future Posts on a lighter note
I have my Bolognese recipe to post all complete with pictures.Done
Yes my Cats and my new dog Bruin 2.Pictures ready
My workshop and my modeling,My motorcycles. Done
The renovations to my little house ( perhaps that is a bit naff)
Oh the DVD of Cross Roads 2010 3/4 done Music of the North African Resistance(pre the Libyan crisis) Notes done Video captured
And now my re-connection with CLAN (Care Leavers Australia) an organisation for all who have been “in care” a new work in progress.
Must do another post on in Search of Stupidity. If you are new here check back on my stuff on Glen Beck
I will add footnotes regarding my “family federal magistrates property matter” and to get my solicitor to get hold of the other side again. Have to follow up on the defamation. Which reminds me I must now write to the Human rights lawyer in Geneva with a please F @#&*!^g explain.
Update April 8
Have written twice with no response. No surprises there guess you would reply if it wasn’t you or even if it was you might refute that what you had written wasn’t defamatory…on the other hand you might believe that to ignore it is the appropriate way to handle it which indeed it might be but for the fact the person writing to you is obviously aggrieved about it and from a simple “humanitarian” stand point and given that the person works as a Human Rights Lawyer it would not be unreasonable for them to reply with a “it’s really not me”.
Their arrogance of neither type of response is tantamount to an admission of wrong doing. We will see if they choose to remain silent
Overall for me life is very good but every day I am deeply saddened over Libya…
Cheers Now Davie
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Posted in Books and Reading, Clinton, Gadaffi, In search of stupidity, Libya, NATO, No Fly Zone, Politics, Social comment, War Child | Tags: al Qaeda, Gadaffi, Human Rights, King Idris, Libya, Libya Feb17 Gadaffi, NATO, North Africa, Oil