Category Archives: Libya

Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Revolutions, Libya, Religion, Salafi, Saudi Arabia

Alarabiya: Libya Denies Reopening the Tripoli Synagogue, about the Shari’a and Monarchy…………

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“The current differences among the Libyans would not stand in the way of forming the forthcoming government after fully liberating the country, the head of the National Transitional Council (NTC) told Al Arabiya. Mustapha Abdul Jalil said that Libya is currently passing through a critical phase on all sides, but once a full control on Sirte is achieved, a series of “drastic changes” will follow. In his special interview with Al Arabiya, Jalil said that sharia (Islamic law) will be the main base of legislation in the new Libya. A balanced Islamic religion, away from extremism, will be applied in the country, he added……….” Alarabiya (Saudi)

Alarabiya headlined this in its Arabic edition as “Abdul Jalil denies he permitted reopening the Jewish Synagogue in Tripoli”. And “Abdul Jalil says Libya will not be radical in the future”. It did not say that “Libya will reinstate the monarchy with an imported Saudi prince, possibly Bandar”.
Now why is this semi-official Saudi network stressing the “synagogue” issue in the Arabic version? Could it be because there are no synagogues nor any churches nor any temples in Saudi Arabia and they and their Salafi agents want this to be the form? You betcha.
He also said that they will have the “Shari’a” as the main source of law. This means, if they follow the Saudi model, that certain social mores will apply and that they will disregard Islamic rules about corruption and repression. Sort of like Saudi Arabia (and almost all other Islamic countries but to a lesser extent, with or without the Shari’a).
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Revolutions, Lebanon, Libya, Terrorism, US Foreign Policy

Oh Oh Lockerbie, and STL of Lebanon, and Tony Blair, and the Fab Four………

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“Four U.S. senators visiting Libya say they talked to the country’s new rulers about the need for justice in the 1988 Lockerbie airliner bombing. The four are part of the highest-ranking American delegation to travel to Tripoli since Moammar Gadhafi was ousted last month. Libya was implicated in the bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland that killed 270 people, many of them Americans. Scotland has asked the new transitional leaders of Libya for help tracking down those responsible now that Gadhafi is no longer in power. Sen. John McCain of Arizona said Thursday he is confident the new Libyan government will help. “We’d like to know who else was connected with this”…….….”

These four senators are ‘an item’ now. Let’s call them the unfabulous Fab Four.
I can tell him who was involved. At least two Western governments, only one of them British. Several Western corporations and major banks. Many two or three faced politicians who feigned concern for the victims of Lockerbie and their families while winking and nodding at the deal the British government made with Libya. Then there is Tony: just follow your nose. Tony the Poodle Blair, the one man “have bank account, will travel; no deal is beneath me” show.
Not that I am convinced anymore that Mr. al-Megrahi was the perpetrator. These “international” investigations and courts sometimes have methods and ways that are not kosher (in almost any religion). Not always, but sometimes. Look how they truly fucked up the STL Hariri investigation of Lebanon: most Lebanese don’t believe that they did an honest non-political investigation, nor do I, nor does any other half-wit who has followed the case. Most also think they and their “findings” are irrelevant now: most except for the March 14 in Lebanon and a gaggle of Saudi Gulf journalists.
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Revolutions, Libya, NATO, U.S. Congress, US Foreign Policy

McCain and Graham Lose Lieberman, Abandon Iraq, Seek to Settle in Libya, about Grits…………

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“The four lawmakers — John McCain of Arizona, Mark Kirk of Illinois, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Marco Rubio of Florida — planned to meet with members of the National Transitional Council, which is now governing Libya after the rebels forced Qaddafi from power. Qaddafi’s whereabouts remain unknown, but the new leaders suspect he is hiding in the southern desert of the North African nation. The senators, whose brief visit was largely shrouded in secrecy, also planned to tour Martyrs’ Square and hold a news conference with reporters. They traveled from Malta, where they met with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi on Wednesday……….”

I hope the senators had a good chat with Mr. Gonzi in Malta (I wonder wtf happened to old Mr. Mintoff?). Glad to see them lose Lieberman and pick up a couple of new sidekicks. I never cared for that weasel Joe, but that’s okay, he did enough damage. Now it is McCain and Graham who seek bases in the Arab world, almost insist on it. McCain probably travels to the Middle East more than he travel to Arizona except at election time and the same applies to Graham. Which tells you something about the quality of the Arizona Tex-Mex cuisine and the grits in these two states. South Carolina did have good grits when I was a freshman there, at least the university dorm did, but that was probably not in Senator Graham’s hometown.
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Politics, Iran, Libya

Iran and Sudan, Libya and Zimbabwe: should NATO be Worried?………….

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“Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday lauded the close ties between Tehran and Khartoum, and underlined that the two countries are resolved to boost mutual cooperation without any limit or boundary. Addressing a meeting between high-ranking delegations from Iran and Sudan, Ahmadinejad described the two countries’ ties as “brotherly, deep and stable”, and noted, “Having a deep and shared understanding of the current historical juncture and developments, the two countries are seeking to increase their cooperation at all levels and without any restrictions.”……….”

The Iranians sure know how to pick them. So they lose friends and allies all around the world but gain Sudan.Big deal: Qaddafi also had great relations with Bob Mugabe; what good did it do him, unless he gets Ian Smith’s old ranch for his retirement? Somehow I don’t think that NATO will be too worried about this alliance. I suspect the Saudis will be more worried about this than the West, and not for any strategic power reasons. Their main worry is that the mullahs will start converting Sudanese to the Shi’a sect. These guys are as focused as the Iranians are, but for different reasons. Who said simplicity was bad?
Cheers
mhg


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Corruption, Culture, Finance, France, Libya, U.S. Politics

Corruption in the French Political Class, or ‘what bears do in the forest’……

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“President Nicolas Sarkozy has distanced himself from a suspected corruption scandal that has roiled the French political class after an investigating magistrate began legal action against two of his close allies. Investigators are probing whether a French defense deal in the 1990s with Pakistan involving suspected kickbacks set the stage for a Karachi car bombing in 2003 that killed 15 people – mostly French defense contractors . In a statement Thursday, Sarkozy’s office said his name is not mentioned in any documents ……….”

What else is new? Several French presidents have been implicated and investigated for corruption, the last one being Chirac and now Sarkozy. None has been punished. There have been cases of cash paid, other financial benefits, and there have been cases of diamonds and precious stones gifted by African dictators. There are occasionally French politicians who truly feel angry at being accused, perhaps because they are innocent. There was one former French Prime Minister (I met him a couple of times when he was Finance Minister) who felt upset enough about accusations against him to commit suicide about ten years ago. He was unusual in that case and I suspect he may have been innocent.
Now in American politics they have more clever ways of getting the money to the politicians. There are millions of campaign fund donations, and there are more direct benefits through highly-paid speeches to special interest groups, as well as junkets and there are probably other ways as well. Then, for those who behave themselves and mind the interests of the lobbies, there are lucrative jobs waiting after they lose elections.
Now about Sarkozy, the Hero of Libya and aspiring hero of My Gulf. Oh well, you know the common American saying about ‘what bears do in the fores’……..
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Revolutions, Libya, NATO

Is the Libyan Insurgency becoming the Libyan War?…………..

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“With armed loyalists of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, the fallen Libyan leader, still ensconced in his hometown and a few other redoubts as the seven-month-old Libyan conflict winds down, NATO announced a three-month extension of its bombing campaign on Wednesday. “We are determined to continue our mission for as long as necessary, but ready to terminate the operation as soon as possible,” the NATO secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, said in a statement from the alliance’s Brussels headquarters. It is the second 90-day extension, and it was approved less than a week before the campaign was set to end…… As if to answer him, Britain’s Defense Ministry announced Wednesday that its warplane contingent in the NATO Libya operation had attacked loyalists’ military deployments in three areas. Tornado GR4’s hit targets in Colonel Qaddafi’s hometown, Surt; in the loyalist desert enclave of Bani Walid; and in the north-central town of Hun………..”

Now, is the formerly “Libyan insurgency” becoming the “Libyan War”, with NATO and a faction of the NATO-baked former rebels facing a new insurgency by Qaddafi loyalists? If Colonel Qaddafi and his Qaddafistas linger and regroup and the new Tripoli regime proves incapable of handling them, rooting them out. If, as the verse says. Libya covers a lot of ground, borders six countries and the sea. Yes it can, yes it can, but let’s hope not.
(I also wonder how they pronounce the middle name of Anders Fogh Rasmussen in Libya)
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Politics, Arab Revolutions, France, Iraq, Libya, NATO, US Foreign Policy

A Tale of Two Arab Despots, a Tale of Two Invasions, a Tale of Two NATO Elections………

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“Obama Praises Libya’s Post-Qaddafi Leaders at U.N. President Obama on Tuesday extended to Libya’s transitional leader a diplomatic honor never offered his predecessor, meeting formally with Mustafa Abdel-Jalil at the United Nations and heralding the victory of Libyan rebels who brought an end to the 42-year reign of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi……..”

“Qaddafi Calls New Libya Government a Propped-Up ‘Charade’. As world leaders at the United Nations were embracing the rebels who overthrew him, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi broke nearly two weeks of silence on Tuesday, denouncing Libya’s new interim government and predicting its quick demise once NATO warplanes end their attacks on his forces…….”

Qaddafi is just being Qaddafi: he couldn’t resist crashing the Obama party in New York. He still thinks he can prevail as soon as NATO gets tired and leaves. It is an interesting contrast between two Arab despots that were overthrown by Western forces. Saddam Hussein’s old Iraqi army deserted en masse in 2003, with hardly a bullet being fired against the “Coalition” forces. Saddam himself was found only months later in a hole. On the other hand the Iraqi people did not raise a hand either against or for the invasion.
In contrast the Libyans have had a short civil war which hopefully will not stretch and expand into a West African-style mess. The Qaddafi forces could not actually shoot at NATO forces, since the attacks came from the air, but they did shoot at somebody.
The Iraq invasion probably helped get Bush reelected one year later in 2004. He was reelected because one year was not enough for the American people to realize the costs of that war and the body bags had not started arriving in large numbers. Can the Libyan invasion help reelect Nicolas (Le Weasel) Sarkozy? Yes it can, unfortunately. In recent decades, the French voters have become notorious for talking a good talk and then turning around and electing the worst candidate available. They did that the last time. I suspect they will do so again in 2012.
Cheers
mhg


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Arab Counterrevoltion, Arab Revolutions, Jihadis, Libya, NATO

Of Libyan Islamist Factions and the American Tea Party………….

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“Those who keep denouncing the Libyan Revolution as somehow not indigenous (?) because it got Western help should remember that behind the scenes the revolutionary governments of Egypt and Tunisia were very much working against Qaddafi, who, if he had remained in power, would have attempted to undermine their experiments in democratic governance. That is, regional and Muslim forces also supported the Libyan revolution. Meanwhile, military commander of Tripoli Abdul Hakim Belhadj gave an interview in al-Sharq al-Awsat that has been translated by the USG Open Source Center. He denied that faction-fighting is going on in Tripoli, said security is fairly good there, and played down alleged conflicts between Muslim fundamentalist and more secular forces…………..”

As I opined earlier here, Libya is going Islamist, much more Islamist. I don’t know yet how much more. The same will go for Egypt, and for Syria when (or if) Assad’s Baath regime falls.
Yes, Abdul Hakim Belhadj denied that there is factional infighting in Tripoli. At the same time, the American (beer drinking) Tea Party denied it was trying to derail the Obama policies. Rep John Boehner, Head, or rather captive, of the Tea Party categorically denied that any rift exists in Washington. One of the Koch brother, allegedly the billionaire masterminds of the Tea Party, responded to a query: ”We ain’t no fucking Libyans….”
Cheers
mhg


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Ali Khamenei, Arab Politics, Arab Revolutions, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Libya, Salafi, Syria, Yemen

Khamenei on “Islamic” Arab Uprisings…………..

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“Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has said the great Islamic movements that have recently arisen in the Muslim world are a prelude to a greater development and the rule of Islam. The Leader made the remarks on Tuesday during a meeting with scholars and intellectuals who attended the fifth meeting of the Ahl al-Bayt World Assembly, which was held in Tehran on Sunday. He also said, “Our stance is to support and strengthen these movements, and we hope that these Islamic movements will bring an end to the hegemony of the main enemies, namely the Zionists and the United States.” In addition, the Leader advised Muslims to be vigilant about the enemies’ threats, especially their plots to create division between Shias and Sunnis. These plots are politically motivated, he said, adding, “The global arrogance (the forces of imperialism) are especially pursuing a policy of Shiaophobia in addition to the policy of Islamophobia………….” Mehr News Agency

Ayatollah Khamenei is wrong, of course, in labeling the Arab uprisings generally as Islamist, calling them “Islamic movements”. They started as quite secular movements in Tunisia and Egypt, and most Islamists like Salafis and many others either opposed or at least hesitated about them. The Islamists, ever opportunistic, especially the Salafis, have jumped on the bandwagon. Yet he has a point in that the Arab states undergoing uprisings are becoming more Islamist. Egypt will almost certainly become more “Islamist”, as will Libya although I suspect Libya is more susceptible to the threat of the Salafi movement. Syria will certainly become much more Islamist and much less secular than under the Baath, if Assad is overthrown, unless the military takes over again. Syria has had a long history of religious tolerance, even more so than Egypt in recent decades. Islamists have a leading role in both the Libyan and Syrian uprisings. Bahrain is already co-governed by the Salafis and Wahhabis who also fear a Shi’a resurgence if the Apartheid system is dismantled. As for Yemen? Who knows. Only Tunisia has some hope of blocking the ambitions of the Islamist parties.
Khamenei is quite right about the dangers of Shiaphobia and Islamophobia.
Cheers
mhg

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Anti-Semitism, Arab Politics, Arab Revolutions, Cairo, Egypt, Iran, Libya, Middle East, Muslims, NATO, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, US Foreign Policy

The Turks are Coming: Erdogan as a Softer Gentler Ahmadinejad?…………..

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“Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday fired his visit to post-revolution Tunisia with the kind of trademark warning to Israel that has earned him hero status on his “Arab Spring tour.” After a rapturous welcome in Cairo confirmed the Turkish strongman’s soaring regional popularity, Erdogan came to Tunisia where the wave of pro-democracy revolts sweeping the Arab world all began. He said that Israel could not do whatever it wanted in the eastern Mediterranean and that Turkish warships could be there at any moment. “Israel cannot do whatever it wants in the eastern Mediterranean. They will see what our decisions will be on this subject. Our navy attack ships can be there at any moment,” Erdogan told a news conference shortly after arriving in Tunis………“Relations with Israel cannot normalize if Israel does not apologize over the flotilla raid, compensate the martyrs’ families and lift the blockade of Gaza,” Erdogan said. Ankara said it was prepared to escort any future Gaza-bound ship with naval ships……..”

Interesting how the popularity of the non-Arab neighbor leaders soars with the tempo of their anti-Israeli rhetoric. Long ago, there were the Soviets, (although it is hard imagining anyone, even Arabs, getting excited about an old fart like Brezhnev or the dour Kosygin). Then along came Ahmadinejad who went beyond his Iranian predecessors and adopted the old Arab and anti-Semitic theme of Holocaust-baiting. He became wildly popular on the Arab street until the vast semi-official Saudi media, which dominates Arab airwaves and owns most Arab TV screens, started working on him and on their favorite theme of sectarian divisiveness. Ahmadinejad’s other problem is that he represents a theocratic system of governance that most Arabs, be they Sunni or Shi’a or Episcopalian, reject (just as most Arabs reject a system of absolute tribal repressive monarchy). Few Arabs, and probably few Iranians, like the idea of supreme clerical rule.
So now there is a persistent vacuum of leadership in the Arab world, the type of vacuum Ahmadinejad himself had talked about in the past. The Al Saud have tried to fill that vacuum of leadership, to inherit the old regional mantle of Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt that nobody could claim. The Saudis have failed even more than the Iranian mullahs, and for the same reason: they both represent regressive regimes, anomalies in this day and age. Iran is a repressive theocracy with quasi-democratic elements; Saudi Arabia is an even more repressive absolute one family dynasty where they pretend that the Quran is their ‘constitution’ while in fact it is the whims and greed of the ruling family that is the ‘constitution’.
Into the vacuum steps Turkey, newly reinvigorated both politically and economically. The Turks have long thought that they belonged in Europe; that their prosperity depended on being part of Europe. Events since the establishment of the Euro Zone indicate that the Turks can do fine without Europe, tyvm. Besides, the agnostic Europeans have a hard time shedding their ethnocentric ‘religious’ and racist prejudices and all the fears of the Siege of Vienna.
Having been rejected by Europe, the Turks have rediscovered their old domain, the Arab World, now the “sick man of the world”. They have also discovered that certain tweaks of their relationship with Israel can be wildly popular on the Arab street, if not in Arab palaces. The Turks are mindful of the growing new rivalry with their old Iranian rivals for places like Iraq and Syria (and possibly the Gulf). The Turks have an even better card: they have a democratic system of government that only two Arab states come even near to matching. And they know when to raise the rhetoric against Israel and when to tone it down, with the help of the Israeli right wing.
Then there is NATO………..
Cheers
mhg
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