The rise and fall of Colonel Muamar Gadaffi

More on the Nicaraguan - Libyan diplomatic twists. First it was announced that Miguel D'Escoto, a former Nicaraguan foreign minister, would be the Gaddafi administration's new representative to the UN - after beteran Libyan diplomat Ali Treki was reportedly denied a visa.

Then US officials poured cold water on the idea, saying D'Escoto, a 78-year-old former Catholic priest and ex-Sandinista revolutionary, was only in the United States on a tourist visa - which didn't allow him to work, let alone work as a national envoy to the United Nations.

Now president Daniel Ortega has appointed D'Escoto as Nicaragua's deputy UN ambassador, which could pave the way for D'Escoto to legitimately speak at the international body, potentially using his position to speak up for Gaddafi's regime. UN officials have said they have yet to recieve official communication from Tripoli naming Libya's new representative.

aljezeera
 
Former Libyan Interior Minister Abdel Fattah Younes al Abidi, who was appointed head of the rebel forces after defecting, arrives at a checkpoint near the frontline, outside Brega in eastern Libya.

 
The full quote from Musa Ibrahim, the government spokesman, when rejecting the opposition's conditions for a ceasefire:

The rebels never offered any peace.....we are the ones who offered peace weeks ago, and we said we are going to talk, and let's sit down and everything. The rebels are not offering peace. If you are making impossible demands, it's a trick, it's a trick. So, okay, I could come to the rebels and say: 'rebels, I offer you peace, get out of Benghazi on a ship, this is my condition.' You can't do that. These are our cities, these are the cities of the Libyan government. You hate this government? You can hate it. Many people hate their governments. That's not the question. If you want peace, you keep things as they are, you sit down and you negotiate. But to make impossible demands is a trick. So what they are doing is not a genuine wish for peace."
 
Libya: Government Use of Landmines Confirmed

Human Rights Watch says that the use of landmines by the Libyan government has been "confirmed". According to the group, troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi have used both antipersonnel and antivehicle mines during the current conflict with the opposition. Pictures have been taken of mines laid by pro-Gaddafi forces (about two dozen antivehicle and three dozen antipersonnel mines) on the outskirts of Ajdabiya.


Metal cased antitank mines found in Ajdabiya on March 28, 2011.


A man holds a disarmed metal-cased antitank mine found in Ajdabiya on March 28, 2011. A civil defense team found and disarmed 24 antivehicle mines and an estimated 30 to 40 antipersonnel mines.


Prior to the March 28 discovery of the mines near Ajdabiya, Human Rights Watch had confirmed that government forces left behind plastic antivehicle mines in the area around Ghar Yunis University in Benghazi during their retreat from the city on March 19. Those mines, which had not been armed and planted, were founded by local residents and brought to an arms collection point in downtown Benghazi.

Libya: Government Use of Landmines Confirmed | Human Rights Watch
 
Landmines in eastern Libya

 
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Gaddafi regime starts talks with the west to end conflict

The regime of Muammar Gaddafi has initiated a concerted effort to open lines of communication with western governments in an attempt to bring the conflict in the country to an end. Libya's former prime minister, Abdul Ati al-Obeidi, told Channel 4: "We are trying to talk to the British, the French and the Americans to stop the killing of people. We are trying to find a mutual solution."

Although the regime last night rejected a rebel offer of a ceasefire if Gaddafi withdraws his military from Libya's cities and permits peaceful protests, senior British sources said the Gaddafi government was open to dialogue. "If people on the Gaddafi side want to have a conversation, we are happy to talk," one said. "But we will deliver a clear and consistent message: Gaddafi has to go, and there has to be a better future for Libya."

The regime rejected the rebels' ceasefire conditions, saying government troops would not leave cities as demanded. However, signs that the regime was looking to reach out to the west came after the Guardian reported that a meeting had taken place between Mohammed Ismail, a senior aide to Gaddafi's influential son Saif al-Islam, and British officials on Wednesday in London. Ismail is a fixer who has been used by the Gaddafi family to negotiate arms deals and has considerable contacts in the west.

Ismail and Moussa Koussa, the Libyan foreign minister who defected to Britain on Wednesday night, are not the only current and former supporters of the regime to have been in contact with Britain. British officials have been in contact with a number of Libyan officials in recent weeks in behind-the-scenes diplomacy, according to a spokesman for David Cameron. He stressed that Britain had not been negotiating any possible trade-offs aimed at sealing Gaddafi's exit from power. "There are no deals."

The disclosure of the dialogue came as the revolutionary leadership in the east laid down conditions for a ceasefire, after a visit by the UN's special envoy Abdelilah al-Khatib to the rebel capital, Benghazi. "We agree on a ceasefire on the condition that our brothers in the western cities have freedom of expression and also that the forces that are besieging the cities withdraw," said one of the leadership, Mustafa Abdul Jalil. "Our aim is to liberate and have sovereignty over all of Libya."

The rebels' initiatives were announced as the first credible report of civilian casualties from the western air campaign emerged. Suleiman Refadi, a doctor who has worked with the rebels, told reporters that seven civilians, including three girls from the same family aged 12 to 16, were killed on Wednesday in an air strike. Refadi said three youths and a fourth girl were also killed when missiles hit a government ammunition lorry and destroyed two houses about nine miles from Brega and what is now the frontline. About 25 people were injured. The report was not independently confirmed.

In Tripoli, gunfire was heard near Gaddafi's compound. Reuters reported that residents said they saw snipers on rooftops and pools of blood on the streets. The rebels made it clear their offer of a ceasefire should not be seen as a sign of weakness. In an attempt to finally bring order to its chaotic military campaign, the leadership deployed the first of its newly trained troops in the move on Brega, which was seized by the government earlier this week, and hauled up rocket launchers.

They were also seen to have communications equipment, which the rebels have asked foreign governments to provide. The newly uniformed soldiers included officers who, the rebels said, would establish lines of command to end shambolic confrontations in which revolutionaries have only been able to move forward under the cover of western air strikes and have been unable to hold ground because they lack plans for defence.

While the rebels prepared for a new offensive in the east, GadaffiGaddafi's forces meanwhile launched a fresh assault on Misrata, the last enclave in the west still under the revolutionaries' control. Libya's third largest city was hit with tank and artillery fire. "It was random and very intense bombardment," a spokesman, called Sami, told Reuters by telephone. "We no longer recognise the place. They are targeting everyone, including civilians' homes."

Guardian
 
EMT;

Kumbuka kuna CIA na special forces za France na UK ambao pia wanaweza kupandikiza ushahidi....these guys stop to nothing to achieve their objectives.

Mimi nimeanza kuwa very skeptical na West na US.

In fact hata mabomu ya Balozi za East Africa baada ya kuridhika kuwa 911 ni wao wenyewe na Uripuaji wa ile meli ya kivita kule Yemen na matukio mengi mengine.
 
Coalition air strike near Brega kills rebels

At least 12 people are reported to have been killed when a coalition plane enforcing the no-fly zone fired on a rebel convoy between Brega and Ajdabiya late on Friday night. Doctors at a hospital in Ajdabiya told the BBC that three medical students were among the dead.

Nato said it was looking into the incident, adding that it takes reports of civilian casualties very seriously. The attack came after rebels reportedly fired an anti-aircraft gun. Meanwhile, Libya's government rejected a rebel ceasefire offer. Spokesman Moussa Ibrahim dismissed the idea as "mad".

Troops loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi would never withdraw from the rebel-held cities they were besieging, he said. He also condemned recent coalition air strikes as "a crime against humanity" and said there had been civilian casualties in one attack on Thursday.

Vehicles destroyed

The rebels were on their way to Brega when they fired into the air with an anti-aircraft gun, the BBC's Nick Springate reported from the scene of the attack. The road to the front line is riddled with holes caused by what looks like a Nato A10 aircraft, our correspondent says. On either side of the road are the remains of four pick-up trucks and one ambulance as well as the graves of those killed in the attack, he adds. The attack is thought to have happened between 2300 and midnight local time. There is very little clarity surrounding the incident, but an anti-aircraft gun may have been fired in celebration, our correspondent says.

A coalition plane then opened fire on the convoy, destroying the five vehicles, the rebels said. In a statement, Nato said it would look into the incident but added it takes every care to protect civilians. However, it said, that "if someone fires at one of our aircraft, they have the right to defend themselves". The statement said that the exact details are very hard to verify because they had no reliable source on the ground.

BBC News - Libya: Coalition air strike near Brega kills rebels
 

Inaonekana Rebels walikosea katika kuwasiliana na NATO forces au vipi?
Au vifaa vipya vya mawasiliano walivyopewa viliishiwa na charge?

Walikuwa wanauliza vipi mbona NATO air support inachelewa sasa wamepewa imekuwa shida!!!

That is another twist of NO-fly zone...collateral damage they call it!!!
 

Nonda, it is difficult to know who put them there. However, Libya is one of 37 nations that has not joined the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. A total of 156 nations are parties to the treaty, and another two have signed but not yet ratified. I am sure the the US, UK, France, etc have signed and agreed to this Treaty. So if they went on and deployed the mine, then they have breached the Treaty.

The treaty comprehensively bans the use, production, and transfer of all antipersonnel mines, requires destruction of stockpiles within four years and clearance of mined areas within ten years, and calls for assistance to landmine victims. In recent years, the only government forces that have continued to lay antipersonnel mines are Burma's.

The rebel have conformed that they will not use any type of mines. The pledge was made by Gen. Khalifa Hufter, commander of the rebel forces in Eastern Libya, during a meeting in Benghazi on March 25. Although the Libyan government has said nothing about this, no one can independently confirm media reports that government forces have deployed mines.

However, Libya has said in the past that it insists on the right to defend its extensive borders with mines. It has also said that it would cost too much to clear mines, as required by the treaty, and criticized the treaty for not requiring those who laid mines in the past to pay for clearance.

Prior to this conflict, Libya is not known to have used antipersonnel mines since its war with Chad ended in 1987. Libya has said that it has never produced or exported mines. However, according to standard reference works, Libya imported antipersonnel mines in the past from the former Soviet Union and the former Yugoslavia. It is also worth knowing that Libya still has large numbers of uncleared land mines and explosive remnants of war as a result of World War II, as well as conflicts with Egypt (1977) and Chad (1980-1987).

So Nonda unless you can independently verify that the mines were deployed by the coalition forces, the jury is out. But using land mines by either party is dangerous because even after the end of the conflict people will be killed as the result of the mines. Remember Angola and Mozambique?
 
"Some of Gaddafi's forces sneaked in among the rebels and fired anti-aircraft guns in the air," Mustafa Ali Omar, a pro-democracy fighter said. "After that the NATO forces came and bombed them."
 
Edward Teller said:
"Some of Gaddafi's forces sneaked in among the rebels and fired anti-aircraft guns in the air," Mustafa Ali Omar, a pro-democracy fighter said. "After that the NATO forces came and bombed them."
Click to expand...

So, did they capture the anti-gaddafi forces who sneaked in then? Or he is just saying for the sake of of it. We also have note that the rebels are not that organised. Could also be that they fired in the air themselves, as they always do especially when they are celebrating. Neither most of them are professional soldiers.
 
Robbinhood said:
kwahiyo mlitaka nisema ninyi ndio mnaakili sana humu JF hapo mngefurahi sio.........acheni porojo hata video sijui kama mmeangalia.....siku nyingine msikurupeke tu.....Mnamjua Farrakhan nyie?!!!!!!!!:disapointed::Cry::help:
Click to expand...
Wewe unamjua? Unaelewa maana ja "kumjua" mtu?
 
And here come the scammers!

Matapeli yameshaanza kuifanyizia kazi. Kuna hii barua imeshachongwa na kusambazwa mtandaoni. Jamaa hawalali!

Sir,

I’m Hassan.Kebe 27yrs old Muslim boy from Libya(son of Musa Kebe official ADC to Gaddafi son) residence in Accra Ghana since Muammar Gaddafi started mass killing in my City Tobruk Libya we managed to escaped to Ghana with my mother since my father was killed by the Muammar Gaddafi loyalist, because my father failed and refused to face arms to his fellow people he was finally assassinated .

I inherited $5.5 million dollars with 8 kilos of gold from my assassinated father,Mr Mussa Muhamed Kebe,i will like to invest in your company for security and lucrative purposes.

Indicate your interest on this investment purposes by forwarding the following requirements bellow.

Your Phone and Fax Number.
Your full address.
Your company profile.
Your Name/ Sex.
Thanks,
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Email:hassan.kebe@gmail.com
 
20:40 Al Jazeera English Rebel forces tell Al Jazeera’s Laurence Lee that American and Egyptian special forces are training them in Eastern Libya.

“A rebel fighter said that he underwent training in a secret facility in Eastern Libya where he received training by American and Egyptian secret forces.”

20:17 Al Jazeera Arabic New developments on the eastern military front. Today witnessed for the first time a greater percentage of Army officers and soldiers than volunteers and armed civilians. A constant weapons and ammunition supply was also witnessed today making its way to the front lines.

The new military organisation formed and headed by Major General AbdulFattah Younes is ensuring that only army officers and trained soldiers are fighting on the front lines from now onwards. Volunteers and armed civilians will have a restricted role and will serve as backup support only.

20:12 Al Manara Media 1300 of Gaddafi mercenaries are heading towards Zintan to attack its people right now

19:43 DIRECT from Misratah Clashes between revolutionaries and Gaddafi forces are still ongoing around the Medical Technology College and Tripoli Street. Gaddafi’s troops have blocked the sewage system but Misratah’s residents are currently working on a solution for this.

19:32 DIRECT from Misratah a number of wounded and injured people from Misratah have left Libya aboard a Turkish aid ship today. They are on their way to Turkey where they will be treated further. The ship spent 6 hours in the port before departing.

13:39 The UK Department for International Development says that Britain will provide emergency shelter for more than 10,000 people, particularly in the Ajdabiya area. As a matter of urgency, 2,100 tents will be shipped over from stocks in Dubai to provide potentially life saving shelter. Read more here.
 
Libya's opposition calls for a ceasefire Despite potential draw-backs, the rebel call for a ceasefire is the best way to diffuse violence, writer says.

The Gaddafi regime's initial military attack on the democratic protesters followed by the decision of the opposition to take up arms itself, has largely transformed the Libyan conflict from a civilian uprising that was part of the Arab Spring, into a civil war.

So far, even the combination of massive US-NATO air strikes, CIA agents on the ground coordinating with the opposition, Obama's authorisation to arm the rebels, and the defection of Moussa Koussa and other key Qaddafi aides, has not been sufficient to defeat the regime's military.

Deal with the devil?
How would a ceasefire come about? Clearly urgent negotiations are needed. There are outraged gasps of "Negotiate?! With Gaddafi?!" – mostly coming from US and European officials. They need to be answered with the quick reminder that until about six weeks ago, that same Muammar Gaddafi was their guy.

They need to be reminded that in 2003, US and European diplomats negotiated quite nicely with their Libyan counterparts, and, in just about a year reached an agreement in which Gaddafi surrendered his nascent nuclear weapons program and paid huge compensation claims to victims of Libyan terrorist attacks.

The US meanwhile removed Libya from its "anti-terror" blacklist and ended sanctions, while European governments rushed to embrace the Libyan dictator and European oil companies flooded Libya with new oil contracts. And they need to be reminded that Gaddafi's repression was well known back then too. So yes, negotiations are possible – and urgent.

So yes, a ceasefire in place raises all kinds of new complications. But it allows the possibility of negotiating those complicated issues without more people dying. The US and some of the Europeans claim they are bombing Libya at the request of the Libyan opposition.

Now that that same Libyan opposition is requesting a ceasefire, the western coalition needs to fulfil their request immediately and unilaterally. And negotiations towards a full immediate ceasefire in Libya should now be at the top of every agenda.

Phyllis Bennis is a Fellow of the Institute for Policy Studies and the Transnational Institute in Amsterdam. Her books include Calling the Shots: How Washington Dominates Today's UN.

Libya's opposition calls for a ceasefire - Opinion - Al Jazeera English#
 
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