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Libya News Update

Posted: March 10, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Foreign Affairs, Hillary Clinton, Libya, Psychopaths in charge, Team Obama, torture, U.S. Military, U.S. Politics | Tags: , , , , , , |28 Comments

Lots of Libya news is breaking today, so I thought I’d post an afternoon update.

First up, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced today that she plans to meet with Libyan rebels.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Thursday that she would meet with Libyan rebel leaders in the United States and during travels next week to France, Tunisia and Egypt.

Mrs. Clinton did not identify the Libyan rebel leaders she intended to meet.

American officials have reached out to members of the rebel’s provisional council in eastern Libya, directly and through intermediaries, but Mrs. Clinton’s meetings will be the administration’s highest-level contacts with those who hope to replace Colonel Qaddafi’s government.

“We are standing with the Libyan people as they brave bombs and bullets to demand that Qaddafi must go — now, ” Mrs. Clinton said in remarks to a House panel.

Earlier, France became the first country to recognize the opposition government in Libya. Unfortunately, I’m afraid this, and Clinton’s efforts could turn out to be too little, too late. From the LA Times:

France became the first nation to recognize the opposition government in eastern Libya on Thursday, even as rebel fighters protecting a key oil complex on the Mediterranean coast were reported to be retreating under a fierce assault by government forces.

In the coastal oil city of Ras Lanuf, captured Friday by rebel fighters, reports from the front said troops loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi had forced rebels to begin a retreat from the city. Rebel positions there were pounded by airstrikes, artillery and rockets, according to news accounts.

If pro-Kadafi forces are able to seize the petrochemical complex, port and airport in Ras Lanuf, it would give the regime in Tripoli control over one of Libya’s largest oil facilities. Ras Lanuf is 225 miles by road southwest of Benghazi, the rebel stronghold.

The apparent rebel setback in eastern Libya came after Kadafi’s government claimed Wednesday it had regained control of the contested city of Zawiya, 30 miles west of the capital, Tripoli. Residents reached by phone said Zawiya was under siege.

A tank shell explodes outside Ras Lanuf

Nicholas Kristof made “the case for a no-fly zone” today:

“This is a pretty easy problem, for crying out loud.”

For all the hand-wringing in Washington about a no-fly zone over Libya, that’s the verdict of Gen. Merrill McPeak, a former Air Force chief of staff. He flew more than 6,000 hours, half in fighter aircraft, and helped oversee no-fly zones in Iraq and the Adriatic, and he’s currently mystified by what he calls the “wailing and gnashing of teeth” about imposing such a zone on Libya.

“I can’t imagine an easier military problem,” he said. “If we can’t impose a no-fly zone over a not even third-rate military power like Libya, then we ought to take a hell of a lot of our military budget and spend it on something usable.”

He continued: “Just flying a few jets across the top of the friendlies would probably be enough to ground the Libyan Air Force, which is the objective.” …. “If we can’t do this, what can we do?” he asked, adding: “I think it would have a real impact. It might change their calculation of who might come out on top. Just the mere announcement of this might have an impact.”

I guess the problem is that we have an inexperienced, indecisive Commander-in-Chief who is waiting for his aides to tell him what to do. As our President dithers and NATO “squabbles” Gaddafi is succeeding in crushing the courageous, ragtag opposition fighters.

Amid squabbling among EU and Nato leaders on the eve of an emergency European summit on Libya in Brussels, Muammar Gaddafi’s son said that a new offensive would be launched within days.

“It’s time for liberation. It’s time for action,” Saif al-Islam told Reuters after the defeat of opposition forces in the town of Zawiya, 30 miles from Tripoli, and the rout of rebels in the town of Ras Lanuf. He added: “We are moving now.”

The tough rhetoric from the Gaddafi regime – and its apparent success on the ground against the rebels – set the scene for a difficult emergency EU summit where leaders are expected to clash on the military and diplomatic response to the gravest crisis on their doorstep since the collapse of Yugoslavia. Fears among Libyan opposition groups that they will be defeated by the time Europe and the US agree on a course of action were heightened when:

• Nato was left paralysed as the US joined Germany in blocking the imposition of a no-fly zone supported by Britain and France. Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, said at a meeting of Nato defence ministers in Brussels that contingency planning for a no-fly zone would continue, before adding “that’s the extent of it”.

Great. The U.S. is actively blocking the no-fly zone–essentially standing with the mad dictator.

From ABC News: Moammar Gadhafi Will Prevail in Libya if Stalemate Drags On, Intel Director Says

Appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss worldwide threats, [intelligence expert James] Clapper said it is the intelligence community’s assessment that “Gadhafi is in this for the long haul.”

“We don’t think he has any intention — despite the press speculation to the contrary — of leaving,” Clapper said. “From all the evidence we have … he appears to be hunkering down for the duration.”

In Clapper’s view, the situation in Libya will come down to who has the greater logistical resources at hand and, Clapper said, “I think that, from a standpoint of attrition, that over time [with] this kind of a stalemate back and forth … I think in the longer term that the regime will prevail.

Wonderful. Thank you, President Weakling.

Journalist who are trying to cover the situation in Libya have been badly treated by Gaddafi’s security forces. Two journalists, including one from the Guardian, have been missing since Sunday. Just recently, Libya said they have the men in custody.

A correspondent for The Guardian is believed to be being held in custody by Libyan authorities after going missing while reporting in the country.

Iraqi national Ghaith Abdul-Ahad was last heard from four days ago on Sunday when he contacted the paper through a third party from the outskirts of the town of Zawiya, which has been the scene of fierce fighting in recent days.

The paper has quoted the foreign ministry in the capital Tripoli as saying Libyan authorities were holding Mr Abdul-Ahad along with Brazilian journalist Andrei Netto. The two are understood to have been detained close to the coastal town of Sabratha on Monday.

International press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders has called for their immediate release. The body said in a statement: “Journalists should not under any circumstances be made to pay for the fighting between government forces and rebels.”

Three other journalists, from the BBC, were also captured and subjected to torture.

Three BBC journalists have described how they were subjected to a terrifying ordeal – including mock executions, being held in a cage and, for one of them, repeated beatings – after being arrested by Libyan security forces near the flashpoint town of Zawiyah .

The three BBC employees – a Palestinian refugee using a Syrian passport, a Turk, and a Briton – flew out of Libya last night after being detained for almost 24 hours since their arrest on Monday afternoon at a checkpoint six miles south of Zawiyah while travelling without an official “minder”.

The Briton, Chris Cobb-Smith, said yesterday that they and their local driver had at one point a sub-machine gun fitted pointed at each of them in turn to the back of their necks before the gun was fired twice. “The shots went past my ear.”

Earlier, the Palestinian Feras Killani, who the men say was subjected to the worst physical attacks, was accused of being a British spy and suffered multiple beatings.

What are you hearing? I will continue to add updates in the comments thread as I get them.

28 Comments on “Libya News Update”

  1. bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:
    March 10, 2011 at 4:32 pm

    More on the BBC journalists:

    The United Nations condemned the Libya’s detention of the BBC journalists, with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay saying it amounted to torture. “If an international television crew can be subjected to this type of treatment, it makes me extremely concerned about the treatment that is most likely being meted out to Libyan opponents of the regime who have fallen into the hands of the security services,” she said today.

    Indeed, this is unlikely to be an isolated incident. The UN’s special rapporteur for torture, Juan Mendez, told the Associated Press yesterday that he has already begun an investigation into reports of torture in Libya. Mr. Mendez said that he has been receiving complaints from opposition groups since mid-February, when Qaddafi began cracking down on protesters.

    One of the allegations Mendez is investigating is the alleged use of ambulances by security forces to gain admittance to hospitals. Aid officials, migrant workers, and refugees have all said that, once inside the hospitals, Qaddafi’s forces would kidnap patients who opposed Qaddafi and execute them.

  2. Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
    March 10, 2011 at 6:00 pm

    “We are standing with the Libyan people as they brave bombs and bullets to demand that Qaddafi must go — now, ” Mrs. Clinton said in remarks to a House panel.

    The Libyan people have put up an amazing effort in fending off this genocidal dictator. They are acting together as a whole community with what little they have, using the most of simplest resources and innovating, while they self train to defend themselves as best they can.

  3. Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
    March 10, 2011 at 6:04 pm

    Clinton: US to Push for Women’s Rights in New Mideast Democracies

  4. janicen's avatar janicen says:
    March 10, 2011 at 6:48 pm

    I saw a snippet of Gates speaking on TV earlier today, and he was saying that you can’t just declare a no fly zone, you have to attack and take out all of the air bases in the country, basically start another war, and then you can enforce a no fly zone. I don’t know enough about no fly zones to know if what he was saying is the case, but it might explain the delay/hesitation.

  5. bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:
    March 10, 2011 at 7:05 pm

    This is so depressing:

    Obama’s Libya policy is a desert mirage

    How cheered Libya’s reeling opposition must feel now that they know that the White House is dispatching Secretary of State Clinton to meet with them during her trip to Tunisia and Egypt to have a post-revolutionary exchange of views.

    As they lose ground and are surely being overrun, the freedom-fighters must also be overwhelmed with gratitude that NATO’s Action Committee is meeting to exhaust as much time as may be needed to render a “no-fly zone” an exercise in futility.

    And as Colonel Gaddafi’s forces continue to hammer them, his opponents must be toasting to the generous statements of concern emanating from the White House asserting that all options are on the table to come to their rescue.

    After all, we really do care that Gaddafi is killing his people with the aid of other megalomaniac dictatorships… don’t we?

    Let me venture a prediction. The tide of battle is bloodily turning against those who dared rebel against one of the most repressive regimes on earth.

    The protesters who took on Gaddafi now likely face a very painful choice: can they afford to keep fighting and get gunned down by superior forces, or do they retreat and flee over the border into either Tunisia or Egypt, along with potentially other hundreds of thousands of Libyans who have every fear of being caught up in Gaddafi’s dragnet of persecution against those who dared challenge his rule.

    • bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:
      March 10, 2011 at 7:10 pm

      The looming humanitarian crisis and the unforgiving tales of horror and tragedy that will emerge should the tide of battle become irreversible will be the coup de grace to the Obama administration’s singular diplomatic inability to figure out a Libya strategy before any strategy was out of date — a phase that does not do justice to the consequences that will surely follow.

      While I have argued that America has no core strategic interest in the fate of Libya’s internal revolution and that we must not make the mistake of thinking we did, the White House surely could have avoided the public spectacle of dithering and debating over what to do about Gaddafi.

  6. bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:
    March 10, 2011 at 7:13 pm

    WH defends its indefensible Libya response:

    http://www.voanews.com/english/news/White-House-Defends-Libya-Response—-117765583.html

  7. Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
    March 10, 2011 at 7:30 pm

    AlJazeeraEnglish on Mar 9, 2011
    As battles rage across Libya, dozens of people have been killed after Colonel Gaddafi’s forces launched a fresh wave of air strikes on rebel groups.

    The repeated strikes came as Gaddafi began a major diplomatic effort which was seen by some as a sign that he may be prepared to end the war, sending diplomats to the Arab League, NATO and the European Union.

    Al Jazeera’s Jacky Rowland was there as the bombs fell on Ras Lanuf in the east.

    Bombs fall on Libya’s Ras Lanuf

  8. minkoffminx's avatar Minkoff Minx says:
    March 10, 2011 at 7:58 pm

    Okay, So The One is starting a big Anti-Bully campaign. He even held some sort of press conference today. Of course he made it about him:

    “With big ears and the name that I have, I wasn’t immune,” he added. “I didn’t emerge unscathed.”

    So he is going on about bullies….Am I the only one who sees the irony in this?

    Obama and White House Host Antibullying Conference – NYTimes.com

    Obama: Bullying ‘is not something we have to accept’ – The Oval: Tracking the Obama presidency

    Obama speaks out at White House bullying conference – latimes.com

    Obama: Bullying ‘is not something we have to accept’

    Really? Yes, I agree…so what are you going to do with the following list of bullies:

    Gaddafi = bully
    Gov Walker = bully
    Sen King = bully

    All those damn PLUBs (pro-life-until-birth) who are waging a war against women = bullies

    Get off your ass man, and do something!

  9. paper doll's avatar paper doll says:
    March 10, 2011 at 8:31 pm

    I think the hold up is the oil spoils are being negotiated…this reminds me of the DAYS waiting for someone to help the people of NO. What was happening was Bush didn’t let anyone in until LA Governor turned over the national guard and gave up LA sovereignty to okay Bush’s great white shark no bid contract feeding frenzy….that’s not done over night you know /snark

  10. minkoffminx's avatar Minkoff Minx says:
    March 10, 2011 at 8:48 pm

    Sherrod Brown on Cenk: President Obama Has a Big Microphone | MyFDL

    I love this:

    So is Senator Brown honestly expecting this President to lead us? Not a chance. Only Pod People still think America’s working class has a President on their side.

    So far, no Democrat in Congress has the courage to say this. Are they all Pod People, or are they just dazed and terrified? We are still waiting for the first courageous Congress Person to clear her head, to stand up and say, “this President is destroying the Party and through design or incompetence, he’ll let the crazies destroy the country. We have to let go, and start fighting back.”

  11. Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
    March 10, 2011 at 8:51 pm

    DAK,

    Dalai Lama Announces Retirement, Will Continue Spiritual…
    http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhik2i_dalai-lama-announces-retirement-will-continue-spiritual-role_news

  12. jillforhill's avatar jillforhill says:
    March 10, 2011 at 8:57 pm

    This is so crazy,Gates the republican does not want to go into a third war but all the so-called liberals want a third war like Kerry.

    The man who ran Clinton’s no-fly zone in Bosina said as soon as we drop a bomb or shoot down a plane we are now in a third war. He said we can bomb the takeoff areas and then they will go to the ground and then if Ghaddifi starts gaining there we will then have to put in ground troops. We cannot just go in and drop bombs because if it was that simple NATO would have done it. NATO doesn’t want to get invovled in an another war and do the simplest thing to end the genocide of the Libyan people.

    Britain and France talk a great game,but when they were asked about the money it would take and lives it could cost of their people they backed off a little. If Kerry,Marc,and Mcain want a no-fly zone so bad let them go up and do it.

    Gates knows this will fall on the US Military shoulders and the US taxpayers. I am sure if Gates had confirmation that Britain and France would put up what we put up he will be more for it,but he knows they will not.

  13. Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
    March 10, 2011 at 9:21 pm

    _x4o Janet Stewart
    by StatsKing
    Is #Obama on crack? Look at the massive #devastation & #massacre #WARCRIMES in #Zawiya & #Gaddafi threats 2 eradicate the Opposition! #AC360

    Oh, oh, there goes that YOUTH VOTE!

    • Woman Voter's avatar Woman Voter says:
      March 10, 2011 at 9:38 pm

      I won’t post, but suffice it to say the American Youth are upset, that an unseen truck leads us to a war in Iraq, but full on massacres are in need of more evidence or a moving goal.

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