The US State Department said that it has “approved the ordered departure of non-emergency personnel from Libya.” It said that the US embassy in Tripoli would continue to remain “open and functioning.”A spokesman for the Foreign Office said that Britain’s embassy is temporarily withdrawing a small number of staff – most of which “work in support of government ministries which have been affected by recent developments.”Those “recent developments” refer to an increase in violence which was sparked after two ex-rebels besieged two ministries last month over a law that would ban officials who served under former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.Since then, gunmen have surrounded the Libyan foreign embassy and Benghazi has been the target of bomb attacks which left a police station damaged. Mark Almond, an international relations professor at Turkey’s Bilkent University, says the violence is largely to do with the country’s chaotic state, as well as a power struggle regarding who should control the country’s oil and gas industry.RT: The UK issued a warning to British nationals back in January, advising them to stay away from Benghazi. It’s now withdrawing its staff. Why are tensions on the rise now, as opposed to what was happening in January? What’s changed?Mark Almond: I think there has just been a constant level of trouble. Partly what we’re seeing are deep divisions between Libyan revolutionaries who Britain and other NATO countries supported. There’s a power struggle over who should control the Libyan state and particularly the country’s oil and gas resources.Effectively, there’s a battle between the roles of the young men who do the fighting and the older people – some of whom emigrated from Libya in the years of Gaddafi’s rule and some who changed sides from Gaddafi quite recently. And there’s a real struggle over who should be running the central government, the regional government, and whose finger should be in the oil and gas pie.RT: There was a recent car bomb attack on the French embassy, one American ambassador was killed. Militias are blocking access to embassies. What’s the international community doing to curb these incidents?MA: Well this is basically a dilemma they can’t really resolve. After all, by bombing Libya, they helped to create a situation where armed groups came to power and certainly have local domination. And there are of course groups that may be welcoming NATO bombers but are in fact quite serious anti-Western Muslim fundamentalist groups. So they don’t regard necessarily the continued presence of western embassies, the British, French, or American ones, as something that they’d like to see in a liberated – as they would see it – Libya.There’s also the problem that perhaps various promises were made to people who NATO needed at the time, who feel they’ve been cheated a bit. This is one of the suspicions about the fate of American Ambassador Chris Stevens – that he had been dealing with the armed groups, that he was probably also helping to facilitate support for Syrian rebels and somehow or another he got mixed up with the wrong crew.RT: It appears a lot of the violence has been focused on police stations and foreigners. Why is that?MA: Well of course insofar as any kind of law and order can be restored, you’d have to have some form of police. So those people who don’t like being put under control are very angry about that. And foreigners, too, are seen as being the people who are pushing particular Libyans into positions of power and influence, including in the oil and gas industry. Remember we’re talking about a country whose economy is overwhelmingly dependent upon export products so there’s an enormous amount of corruption and competition regarding who should get hold of those assets inside Libya and, I’m afraid, outside Libya.RT: Just two years ago, the UK lobbied for military intervention in Libya. Was that a good decision?MA: I think it was a terrible decision. I’m afraid if Colonel Gaddafi had suppressed the opposition in March 2011, possibly hundreds of people would have died. Perhaps as many as 30,000 have died since, and the country is in a deep state of disorder and uncertainty. Life for most Libyans is worse than it was under Colonel Gaddafi. And of course Gaddafi’s regime was supposed by the Western countries to be the bad regime. Anything must be better, we were told. But now we see that it’s not so clear. … Read More
Armed protest at foreign ministry targets new Libya administration
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Gunmen attack US consulate in Benghazi over… 12/09/2012 04:14 CET
Gunmen surrounded Libya’s foreign ministry in a protest against officials who worked for former leader Muammar Gaddafi’s.
The protesters were demanding a law to stop these officials getting jobs in the new administration.
At least 20 pick-up trucks with anti-aircraft guns blocked roads to the ministry.
Copyright © 2013 euronews
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Car bomb hits French Embassy in Tripoli, 2 guards injured (PHOTOS)
“There was an attack on the embassy. We think it was a booby trapped car,” an official told Reuters, adding that the blast caused a lot of damage.One of the guards was only lightly wounded, while the other sustained more serious injuries.Black smoke billowed from the wreckage of the vehicle that exploded close to the Embassy’s entrance as fire crews arrived to put out the flames. Part of the Embassy complex’s outer wall was partly destroyed in the explosion as well as two nearby cars.The US diplomatic mission in Benghazi was struck by an attack last September that killed the American ambassador and three other staffers.Libya remains troubled by regular outbreaks of violence, with the country’s new rulers trying to curb the power of armed militia groups that have remained active following the ouster of former President Muammar Gaddafi.France was the first country to deploy armed forces in Libya in March 2011 after then-President Nicolas Sarkozy stated that “Gaddafi must go.” … Read More
Tiny emirate, huge political ambitions: Qatari investment booms
The emirate recently bought $3 billion in government bonds from cash-stripped Egypt in the latest example of the country channeling its wealth beyond its borders. This badly needed sum of money comes two years after Qatar hailed the overthrow of former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak with $5 billion in financial aid to Cairo.Home to 900 million tons of oil and 25.5 trillion cubic meters of natural gas, Qatar can easily afford to relieve its ally, and is also planning to help solve Egypt’s gas crisis. “Egypt is suffering from a natural gas shortage, causing blackouts across the capital,” RT’s Bel Trew reported from Cairo, adding that “the Qatari Foreign Minister said last week they would also consider becoming one of the major suppliers to Egypt, particularly as they have the third-largest natural gas reserves.”Analysts believe the generosity is due to Qatar’s desire to support Cairo’s new Islamist leaders.“What Qatar is doing is it’s using its vast wealth actually to pursue a political agenda. And this is the worrying aspect of it, because in the Middle East Qatar has played a leading role in trying to undermine and bring down the regimes in the region. It’s claiming to be a great support of the Arab Spring and of democracy,” international affairs journalist Neil Clark explained.He believes Qatar, which has been ruled by the same monarchy for the past 150 years, is actually trying to deflect criticism over the lack of democracy within its own borders by claiming to support democracy abroad.Qatar supported the overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt, as well as the ouster of longtime Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. The emirate is also supporting anti-government rebels in Syria. The energy-rich emirate has given some $100 million to the Syrian National Coalition in a bid to arm the rebel forces.“What Qatar is trying to pursue is a political agenda, pushing a sort of Islam around the region… And this is the worrying thing because there’s no democratic mandate for this. And I think we’ve seen this quite clearly in Syria, where Qatar has been one of the most prominent countries in offering support to the rebels and the Islamist groups there,” Clark told RT.Qatar’s participation in earlier conflicts has recently been confirmed by a UN Security Council report that stated that the emirate violated the arms embargo on Libya during the 2011 conflict, by supplying weapons and ammunition to anti-Gaddafi forces. Doha denied the accusations.Influence spreading beyond the Arab worldQatar earns enough oil and gas revenue to invest outside the Arab world, in a cornucopia of industries such as media, fashion, petrochemicals and financial institutions.The emirate owns stakes in companies like Volkswagen AG, London’s Harrods and France’s LVMH Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, to name only a few of the big brands.It is likewise aggressive in its investments. In addition to its Qatar Investment Authority fund – worth upwards of $100 billion – it has recently set up a smaller one, the Doha Global Investment, worth $12 billion. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was even offered the chance to run the newly created fund.France appears to be a favorite location of the super-wealthy emirate: Qataris now own expensive real estate in the French Riviera, as well as in Paris, including several casinos.The emirate is investing in more than just luxury property. It has apparently gifted a €300 million fund to underdeveloped regions of France, including the suburbs of Paris, which house large French Muslim communities.Qatari officials have denied that the emirate is pursuing political goals. “Our investment policy in France and elsewhere is part and parcel of our global strategy to have investment revenues exceed that of gas and oil by 2030, as we might run out of oil soon and of gas in 100 to 150 years,” Qatari ambassador Mohamed Al Kuwari said in Paris in an interview with Al-Monitor last October.However many fear Qatar’s aggressive expansion of its economic presence abroad is in fact a deliberate move to increase its global political influence, and to possibly export Qatar’s especially conservative brand of Islam. … Read More
Libyan arms fueling warfare in Syria, Mali, Gaza Strip – UN report
Eighteen months after the civilian conflict and NATO bombing campaign ousted longtime Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, most of the weapons in the country remain in control of civilians and militias, according to a UN Security Council report. The trafficking of those arms is both a lucrative business and a major security threat to the entire region, the report revealed.”In the past 12 months, the proliferation of weapons from Libya has continued at a worrying rate and has spread into new territory: West Africa, the Levant and, potentially, even the Horn of Africa,” the panel said. “Illicit flows from the country are fueling existing conflicts in Africa and the Levant and enriching the arsenals of a range of non-state actors, including terrorist groups.”The recipients are empowered not only by the sheer number of new arms in their possession, but also by new kinds of weapons.”Cases, both proven and under investigation, of illicit transfers from Libya in violation of the embargo cover more than 12 countries and include heavy and light weapons, including man-portable air defense systems, small arms and related ammunition and explosives and mines,” experts wrote in the 94-page report.Proliferation of portable surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) has long been deemed one of the most alarming consequences of the turmoil in Libya, as such weapons may be used by terrorists to shoot down civilian aircraft. Experts claim they have confidential information that 30 SAMs have been trafficked from Libya to Chad’s capital Ndjamena.Egypt is facing the worst influx of Libyan arms, the report says, with a large portion being directed to armed groups in the Sinai; this poses a serious internal security threat for Cairo amid its unending political turbulence.Libyan arms in Egypt are then smuggled into the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip; militants there purchased modern assault rifles and anti-tank weapons from Libya, the document warns.Other trafficking destinations for these weapons include Syria and Mali, both of which have witnessed violent conflict and seen radical Islamist groups gain significant influence. Some Libyan ammunition has been found in Somalia, where Islamist group Al Shabab is rebelling against the weakened central government.UN experts said that the arms trafficking had been organized from various locations in Libya, including Misrata and Benghazi, through Turkey or northern Lebanon: “The significant size of some shipments and the logistics involved suggest that representatives of the Libyan local authorities might have at least been aware of the transfers, if not actually directly involved.”The experts also said they found that Qatar and the United Arab Emirates had violated the arms embargo on Libya during the 2011 conflict, supplying weapons and ammunition to anti-Gaddafi forces. Qatar denied the accusation, while the UAE had not responded, the report says. The transfers also involved Armenia, Albania and Ukraine, according to the panel.A separate embargo violation mentioned in the document was the reported transfer of a drone to the rebels by a Canadian company. The case is under investigation, Canadian authorities said.Last month, the UN Security Council eased sanctions against Libya to allow the supply of non-lethal military equipment, including ballistic armor and armored vehicles to its government. Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zidan’s cabinet is struggling to bring the country under control, disarm local militias and provide some degree of security to the population.But large parts of the country remain unruly and refuse to take orders from Tripoli. Tensions are high between coastal regions over how profits from the country’s oil trade should be distributed, while many areas inside the country are largely left to govern themselves independently. … Read More
‘US wants to take S. Korea into new Korean war’
The Oxford-based expert believes that only stopping US military provocations will bring stability to the region.RT: What do you think about the warning of North Korea telling international embassies to evacuate their staff? It sounds pretty dire, doesn’t it?Dan Glazebrook: Their intention has been clear from the start of this crisis. North Korea’s whole intention is to show its willingness and preparedness to defend itself should war be launched upon it. Every year we have these massive provocations of joint US and South Korean war games exercises right at the borders of North Korea. This year the provocations were stepped up to actually simulate a nuclear missile attack on North Korea. B2 bombers were used for the first time along with B52s and F22 bombers. So there is a military provocation from the US. North Korea feels rightly threatened – they’ve seen what’s happened to Iraq, to Libya and so on. It feels threatened because it knows it was in the explicit hit-list of the American government some years ago. It needs to make very clear that it will not tolerate any kind of infringement of its sovereignty, any kind of attack, and this is all about to show that it’s willing to defend itself.RT: We’re receiving reports of an earthquake near North Korea – do you believe there could be any links with the country’s nuclear intentions?DG: Well, I think we should wait and see what happens, but of course constantly North Korea has this policy called the Army First policy, where it’s constantly trying to develop its nuclear and military resources to defend itself. Again, the lessons of Iraq and Libya are very clear – Saddam Hussein gave up his weapons program and we saw what happened to Iraq as a result, kind of [Muammar] Gaddafi gave up his weapons program and we saw what happened to Libya as a result. So they are constantly trying to upgrade their weapons in order to defend themselves. Of course, one of the reasons for this constant annual provocation, these war games exercises, is to keep tensions of the peninsular high to justify the massive US military presence – it’s one of the most militarized regions on the entire planet.RT: Is there anything Washington can do to prevent a full scale confrontation in case North Korea is determined to take it to the extreme?DG: Of course, they can stop launching these provocations, stop simulating nuclear strikes against North Korea on its border. The thing is that they would love to occupy North Korea, they would love to have troops right upon the border of China. What stops them every time is that they calculate their losses would be in the magnitude of tens and tens of thousands of soldiers. What they would dearly love then, the US and its allies, would be actually to get South Korea into a new Korean War in which South Korea took all the casualties. This is why the North is so determined to make it clear that if the US and its allies attempt to provoke some kind of inter-Korean conflict they will have to pay a heavy price for that. … Read More
What really goes on in the CIA’s “black-site” prisons?
Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn unsealed an indictment Wednesday charging Ibrahim Suleiman Adnan Adam Harun with six terrorism-related counts. The announcement that Harun is in U.S. custody in New York may also shed light on a small part of one of the most secretive aspects of U.S. counterterrorism operations during the Bush administration: What became of terror suspects held by the CIA in its network of “black-site” prisons around the world? Or disappeared into foreign cells in extraordinary renditions? With their indictment of Harun, prosecutors offered a basic account of how the 43-year-old Nigerian – described as “a prototype al-Qaida Operative” – spent the last decade. He fought U.S. forces in Afghanistan, prosecutors said, before leaving for Africa, where he allegedly conspired to bomb U.S. diplomatic facilities. Harun, also known by his alias Spin Ghul, eventually wound up in Libyan prison for six years before he was released amid the turmoil of the uprising against Muammar Qaddafi.Continue Reading… … Read More
