Libyan rebels become more aggressive with no-fly zone intact

Thankfully we are now the victorious ones. The strangulation of the Gaddafi regime means we will soon see the fruits of the revolution. The time is coming soon when the regime will end.
Abed al-Hafeez Ghoga, official for Libyan rebel’s “National Council” • On the international intervention in Libya, and the weakening of the Gaddafi military. The international coalition that has imposed a no-fly zone over Libya has done so in a relatively quick and successful manner (the range is expected to reach 1000 kilometers soon). Rebel forces pushed out of their Benghazi stronghold in the wake of the strikes, which have neutralized Gaddafi’s air capabilities. The question is, will the pro-Gaddafi combat forces begin to give up the fight in the face of an international military front? If the keystone cracks, so to speak, Gaddafi’s house could come down. source

Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

Crucial hours for Libya: A video from euronews that is, how shall we say, rather grim in its assessment of Libya’s rebellion. Reports have been coming out the last couple days that Muammar Gaddafi’s loyalists in the military can, and it seems increasingly likely will, be victorious over the uprising, absent international support. As we mentioned earlier, though, with France on board for a no-fly zone, and the Arab League endorsing the idea to the U.N. Security Council, it seems more and more likely that the international community will converge on Gaddafi- the question is, when? source

Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

The country will be divided like North and South Korea, we will see each other through a fence. You will wait in line for months for a visa.
Saif Al Islam Gaddafi • Offering a pretty dark assessment of what will happen in his country if revolution continues. Again, WTF? source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

A tragically messed-up moment: Gaddafi’s kid, Saif El Islam Gaddafi, is making some pretty wild claims about what’s going to happen in the country: “Libya is not like Egypt, it is tribes and clans, it is not a society with parties. Everyone knows their duties and this may cause civil wars. Libya is not Tunisia and Egypt. Libya has oil – that has united the whole of Libya.” Saif also says that the death toll is 14! Just 14! Are you kidding? Not even the most conservative estimate is ten times that. Unfortunately, few journalists are on the ground to refute these claims. (above tweet from Al Jazeera English’s Ayman Mohyeldin) source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

There’s a lot going on here, and there is much to parse. There isn’t a clear picture of the death toll in the country, with Human Rights Watch saying that at least 173 people have died in the violence, while other tallies have been much higher. Word is even spreading that some of the protests have shown up outside of Gaddafi’s stronghold of Tripoli. But none of it is as bad as it’s been in Benghazi. “It’s like a guerrilla war,” one female resident of Benghazi said of the violence. “There is a battle going on, and sometimes one part is controlled by the protesters, and sometimes other parts are. There are corpses in the street.” More items of interest:

one Reuters is reporting – but cannot independently confirm due to the limits on free speech in the country – that Libya’s hold on Benghazi has weakened to the point where protesters mostly control the streets.
two The Arab League’s permanent Libyan representative, Abdel Moneim al-Honi, has resigned in protest of the actions taking place in his home country. “I am joining the ranks of the revolution,” Honi said.
three The BBC’s Jon Williams talks about the hard road for journalists covering Libya this weekend: “When we’re not on the ground, we have to work twice as hard to make sure that we’re telling all sides of the story.” source

» And in case it wasn’t clear already: No, the State Department, which has been very slow to respond to the Libya crisis, doesn’t think you should be doing any non-essential travel there. And in case that isn’t enough for you, we’d like to also suggest you stay home.

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

Many of the dead and the injured are relatives of doctors here. They are crying, and I keep telling them to please stand up and help us.
A Libyan medical official • Describing the scene at a poorly-equipped hospital in the country. The official reported fifteen dead. As painful as this quote is, this one is nearly as gut-wrenching: “The blood of our martyrs is still leaking from coffins over the shoulders of the mourners,” said a protester in Benghazi, the epicenter of the current crisis, in the wake of an attack on protesters who were mourning during a funeral. Libya is a hard country to get accurate information from, because journalists are not allowed to freely work in the country. In other words, much of this information is coming from phone calls and informants and can’t be independently confirmed. Libyan protesters are facing a very tough road; stand with them. source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

Last night was a bad night. … There were about 500 or 600 people involved. They went to the revolutionary committee (local government headquarters) in Sabri district, and they tried to go to the central revolutionary committee … They threw stones.
An anonymous Benghazi, Libya resident • Describing the scene during the riots that took place in the city the night before. Leader Muammar Gaddafi has been in power for over 40 years, and his country neighbors Egypt and Tunisia, so he’s obviously a key target for protests in the current spate of them. However, Libya is different from those countries in that their oil revenues are so significant that they could just throw money at the problem to placate unhappy citizens. Still though, this is obviously a huge issue for Gaddafi’s government. source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Mar 2011 15:51