Libya : A no lie zone

[Magda Hassan]

I do believe the Debka article, ahem....., forgot to mention this. And it is old news at that.

Israel provides henchmen for Gaddafi
Wed Mar 2, 2011 11:13AM
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A man believed to be a mercenary from Chad, captured by anti-government demonstrators in Libya
Israeli arms distribution company Global CST has reportedly, under the authorization of Tel Aviv, provided Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi with African mercenaries to clamp down on anti-government protesters.


Egyptian sources have revealed that the Israeli company has so far provided Gaddafi's regime with 50,000 African mercenaries to attack the civilian anti-government protesters in Libya.

The arms company was previously convicted in an African country over illegal deals, News-Israel website reported.

Sources say Global CST had obtained the permission for providing the mercenaries to Gaddafi from the Israeli officials in advance.

Earlier, Global CST general manager had met with the head of the Israeli Intelligence Agencies (Aman) and Defense Minister Ehud Barak and obtained the permission for the measure.

The company representatives also met with Abdullah Sanusi, the head of Libyan Internal Intelligence, in Chad to discuss the details for a final agreement, the report says.

The mercenaries who attack the civilians in Tripoli have mostly come from Chad.

Gaddafi regime pays $2000 per day for each mercenary. The mercenaries receive $100 per day and the remaining goes to Global CST, the report says.

Meanwhile, the United States has demanded the UN Security Council (UNSC) to remove the provisions of charging mercenaries with war crimes in the killing of Libyan civilians.

The request is for the UNSC to word the resolution in a way that no one from an outside country that is not a member of the International Criminal Court could be prosecuted by the Court for their actions in Libya.

The Libyan revolution, inspired by the recent revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia, sparked nearly two weeks ago.

Brutal crackdown by the Libyan regime on anti-government protesters has left thousands of people dead so far.

[Peter Lemkin]

Libya Crisis Creating New British Royal Scandal :nono:
6th March 2011

" … Recently Prince Andrew … was photographed with a teenage prostitute. Equally bad in the modern geopolitical context are accusations that Andrew has ties to Muammar Qaddafi's Libyan regime. …. "
As the William and Kate wedding nears, Prince Harry cancels Dubai trip and Duke of York defends ties to Qaddafi family

March 6, 2011

(CBS/AP) LONDON The British Empire was deeply entrenched in the Middle East for many years, leaving lasting effects on many aspects of life there. Now, the wave of popular uprisings spreading through the region is having a reverse effect of sorts on the British royal family.

With just two months to go until the much-anticipated wedding between Prince William and tabloid darling Kate Middleton, Buckingham palace seems to be spending a lot of its time in damage control.

While Prince Harry was simply forced to cancel a planned trip to Dubai for a polo match in order to not appear "insensitive" to the region's unrest, his uncle, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, is facing much more serious problems stemming from the tide of violent unrest in Libya.

Recently Prince Andrew, the queen's second son, was alleged to not only be friends with an American businessman who is a convicted sex offender, but he was photographed with a teenage prostitute. Equally bad in the modern geopolitical context are accusations that Andrew has ties to Muammar Qaddafi's Libyan regime.

The Duke of York hosted the son of the Tunisian dictator shortly before a popular uprising drove him from power and the buildup of embarrassment has sparked calls that he be stripped of his role as Special Representative for International Trade and Investment, a title he has held since 2001, with the job of promoting Britain's business interests around the world.

British officials have rallied to Andrew's defense. The foreign secretary expressed his "confidence" in Andrew on Sunday, and a U.K. trade official voiced support for the prince to remain in the position, saying he does a "very valuable job." But pressure is mounting and there is growing speculation over how long Andrew can hang on to his post.

Andrew has courted trouble before: His much-publicized divorce from Sarah Ferguson, her subsequent missteps, massive debt, a tell-all interview and a videotaped attempt to sell a U.K. tabloid access to Andrew stand in stark contrast to the glow surrounding William and Kate Middleton's courtship and upcoming nuptials.

Since becoming a special trade representative in 2001, Andrew has also drawn criticism for reportedly taking lavish trips in his role as an unpaid trade ambassador.

The latest revelations in the British media have centered on Andrew's friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and claims that Andrew also had close ties to Seif al-Islam Qaddafi, one of the Libyan leader's sons.

Teenage prostitute Virginia Roberts says Prince Andrew is "a creepy letch"

Photos recently published in the British media show Andrew strolling in a park with Epstein the New York billionaire jailed for soliciting underage prostitutes in Florida. Most recently, a photograph emerged showing Andrew with his arm around the waist of the teenage prostitute at the center of that case. While there has been no suggestion of any wrongdoing on the part of Andrew, the sum of events has prompted some soul-searching over whether the prince is a suitable representative for U.K. interests abroad.

"The duke recognizes that his association with Jeffrey Epstein was, in retrospect, unwise," a person familiar with the matter said, noting that it can be understood Andrew will not be photographed with Epstein again anytime soon.

But that's not placating some who say enough is enough. Last week, British lawmaker Chris Bryant claimed that Andrew had close links to Seif Qaddafi. Bryant called for Andrew to be fired, telling the House of Commons, "Isn't it time we dispensed with the services of the Duke of York?"

Buckingham Palace on Sunday rejected Bryant's claims, saying Andrew's interactions with the Qaddafi regime and Tunisia's ousted dictatorship, too- fell within the mandate of his job as special trade representative.

"It was part of the British government's engagement with Libya at the time," a palace spokesman said on customary condition of anonymity.

The spokesman confirmed Andrew met Muammar Qaddafi twice. Both meetings were of public record and should not come as news, the spokesman said, adding that Andrew is "fully committed to his role as special representative. It is understood that he has the support of the government behind him," the spokesman said.

Government officials backed up that claim Sunday, citing Andrew's role in nurturing business interests.

"The Duke of York has made a valuable contribution to British business," a spokesman for government trade body UKTI said. "We continue to support him," he added, on customary condition of anonymity.

Foreign Secretary William Hague also expressing his full confidence in Andrew's work.

"I'm not an expert in … the embarrassments," Hague told the BBC. "But certainly I've seen around the world a lot of good that he has done for this country."

Meanwhile, Prince Harry has postponed a planned polo visit to Dubai on March 19 amid escalating unrest in the Arab world. Harry's office at St. James's Palace in London said Friday the prince felt it would be "insensitive for him to participate in a sporting event at a time when there are matters of greater priority to focus on in the region."

St. James's Palace said the Sentebale Polo Cup that has been scheduled to coincide with the royal's visit has been canceled.

The wave of protests sweeping the Arab world has already led to the ouster of longtime leaders in Tunisia and Egypt, and an uprising in Libya. The March 13 Bahrain Grand Prix was also canceled.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/03/0...9886.shtml

[Magda Hassan]

Looks like Handy Andy is not the only one doing big business with Qaddafi.

A very senior diplomatic source told me yesterday that Berlusconi is frantic lest Gadaffi falls and the channels are revealed by which Berlusconi gets a cut on the huge amounts of Libyan oil and gas lifted to Italy. Just at the moment that would be too much even for Berlusconi to survive.
This morning I see the Italian foreign minister is warning 300.000 Libyan refugees will fly to Europe if Gadaffi falls as though there will be none if he stays. I have checked with other diplomatic sources, and they confirm that Italy is using the refugee warning to argue that Europe should back Gadaffi, and not impose sanctions. That point is not coming over in the mainstream media.

http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2...conis_cut/

[Malcolm Pryce]

Craig Murray also has some interesting speculation on his blog about what the SAS were REALLY doing in Libya. The suggestion is they were there to blow up the big ammo dump:

Very interesting comment here by Ruth which I am elevating to the main body of the post. I recall well the reports of the arms dump explosion 27 killed was the last total I saw. Assuming Ruth is right (and her source on timing is the Guardian) it appears that this team were in that area, and had been there at the relevant time.

'The Guardian quite clearly states that the SAS men had been in the country for two days. Most reports say that they landed in the dark in the early hours of Friday morning. First reports stated they were picked up on Saturday by the rebels. All the reports I have read state that they were found a few kilometres from Benina, Benghazi's airport. Ramjah, the big arms depot supplying the rebels, is a few kilometres from Benina in the very same direction. The depot exploded at 7pm on Friday. There had been no planes in the vicinity.

I am pretty secure in my contention that this was a raid, not a search for a meeting. It appears it may be physically possible that the mission was succesful and the target the arms dump. No more than a possibility, but a great deal more plausible than the Hague explanation.

Now Blair's grest rapprochement with his "Friend" Gadaffi led to all sorts of grubby deals, One distinct possibility is that weapons were sold to Libya which the government doea not want people to know about. The US did not join in Bliar's Libya love-fest. A very large percentage of British manufactured arms include components made under license from the US, with strict controls on to whom they can be sold on. We wouldn't want that kind of stuff turning up in any arms dumps.

Just a hypothesis which fits the limited facts we appear to know so far. But I repeat, a great deal more plausible than Hague's explanation.'


http://craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2011/...-explained

[Christer Forslund]

FWIW

Last week a Swedish newspaper (Göteborgs-Posten, March 4 2011) had an article / interview with one of the many oil workers, Hootan Ariaman, evacuated from Libya. This man, who came back to his family in Gothenburg on Wednesday evening, claims that he, among other oil workers, were rescued by SAS last weekend (that would be February 26-27). "... the British Special Air Service (SAS) - a special unit within the British army," the newspaper explains. The Hercules landed on a small airfield 20 kilometers from Zillah. The plane circled before landing, and at the ground 5 or 6 armed soldiers jumped out, starting to ask for names and nationalities. SAS had two Hercules planes in this mission to rescue foreigners, mainly europeans it seems. The plane was flying low over the desert and made another landing, later ending its trip in Malta.
Ariman stayed for three days in Malta before arriving in Sweden. He had been working for five weeks in a place situated 200 kilometres from Zillah. The workers were employed by KCA Deutag, with head office in Scotland.

[Christer Forslund]

Talking about Libya...

Benghazi captured, the rebels have lowered the green flag of the Republic of Libya, hoisting in its place the red, black and green banner with crescent and star: the flag of the monarchy of King Idris. The same flag was hoisted by protesters (including those of the Partito democratico and the Rifondazione comunista) on the gate of the Libyan embassy in Rome, raising the cry: "Here's the flag of democratic Libya, that of King Idris". It was a symbolic act, rich in history and burning current events.

Already the emir of Cyrenaica and Tripoli, Sidi Muhammad Idris al-Mahdi al-Senussi was put on the throne of Libya by the British when the country gained independence in 1951. It had been an Italian colony since 1911. Libya became a federal monarchy, in which King Idris was head of state, with the right to pass it on to his heirs. It was always the king who would appoint the prime minister, the Council of Ministers and half the members of the Senate, which had the right to dissolve the House of Representatives.

Read more / from: Libya: When historical memory is erased by Manlio Dinucci, Rome, 2 March 2011. http://www.voltairenet.org/article168695.html

[Magda Hassan]

Squatters move into Saif Gaddafi's London house



Squatters have taken over a house thought to belong to Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the second son of the Libyan dictator.
A group calling themselves "Topple the Tyrants" have occupied the £10 million house in Hampstead Garden Suburb in north London.
Members of the group have vowed to remain in place until the property's assets are returned to the Libyan people, according to the BBC.
Spokesman Montgomery Jones said: "We will stay here until we can be sure the property will be returned to its rightful owners.
"The police came to look around, then went away. The house isn't occupied at the moment but there are things to sit on."
The group said the property was managed by the Gaddafi family through a holding company registered in the British Virgin Islands.
In a statement, it said: "We didn't trust the British government to properly seize the Gaddafi regime's corrupt assets, so we took matters into our own hands.
"In the meantime, we want to welcome refugees from the conflict in Libya and those fleeing tyranny and oppression across the world.
"We stand in solidarity with the Libyan people."
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "Police were called to an address in Hampstead Garden Suburb at approximately 12.50 on Wednesday to reports of unknown people entering the premises. At this time it is being treated as a civil matter."
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/vie...ndon-house

[Magda Hassan]

Sarkozy to propose air strikes in Libya: source
(AFP) 11 hours ago
PARIS French President Nicolas Sarkozy will propose air strikes on Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's command headquarters to EU leaders, a source close to discussions told AFP on Thursday.
At an EU summit on the Libyan crisis, he will propose "striking an extremely limited number of points which are the source of the most deadly operations" by forces loyal to Kadhafi, said the source, who asked not to be named.
The three sites being considered are Kadhafi's Bab al-Azizia command headquarters in Tripoli, a military air base in Syrte, east of Tripoli and another in Sebha in the south, the source added.
Sarkozy's office declined to confirm the claim when contacted by AFP.
"We are not there yet. We are first going to ask for legal authorisation to prevent the use of force by Kadhafi," said an official.
The source said Sarkozy is also in favour of jamming communications systems of forces loyal to Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, which are battling rebels after an uprising against the long-term ruler.
France has seized the initiative in European pressure against Kadhafi. Earlier Thursday it formally recognised the Libyan rebels' opposition national council as the country's legitimate representative.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/art...bRSn8udn8w

[Magda Hassan]

Mercenary company CST Global and war criminal Israel Ziv write to Voltaire Network
by Thierry Meyssan*
One of the most important mercenary companies in the world, which according to the circumstances works purely for the lure of money or undertakes unofficial missions on behalf of the Israeli state, reacted vehemently to one of our articles. This controversy provides an opportunity for further clarification.


Israel Ziv Following the publication of our piece "Israel flies to the rescue of ally Khadafi, reaping millions", Israeli mercenary and arms distribution company Global CST and its owner, retired Israeli major general Israel Ziv (photo), have arranged for their law firm Mackrell International to send us a warning notice (see below).
Global CST does not contest having perpetrated crimes in Latin America and South Ossetia, but it denies having any current relations with Colonel Gaddafi.
Our information was derived from two different sources : on the one hand, a journalist working for the Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot and, on the other hand, the Hebrew-language news site Inyan Merkazi. It has been widely disseminated and expanded on by television media, such as Al Jazeera or the Iranian English language global news network Press TV.
Such information bears out that Israel exploits its privileged ties with Colonel Gaddafi to fuel civil war and pave the way for NATO interference in North Africa.
During an interview he gave to France24, Colonel Khadafi made no secret of the fact that the military operations currently under his command are patterned after Israel's Operation Cast Lead against Gaza.
Global CST's denial comes on the heels of an in-depth investigation into its involvement in Guinea, entailing heavy sanctions which the company avoided by the skin of its teeth. It was accused of violating rules on arms trading and training by supplying a regime which was under sanctions. In the end, the company got off with a simple reminder that its mercenaries should respect their "ethical obligations".
At this point, a brief flashback is called for: General Moussa Dadis Camara seized power in Guinea at the end of 2008. In May 2009, he entrusted Global CST with the creation, oversight, training and equipment of his presidential guard for 10 million dollars per year. On 28 September 2009, Guinean soldiers, supervised by Global CST, sprayed live bullets on a group of opponents assembled in Conakry's stadium, killing at least 157 people. While the regime of Moussa Dadis Camara was ostracized by the international community, an enquiry into the role of Global CST was opened in Israel. The mercenary company managed by retired Major general Israel Ziv and David Tzur, former commander of the Tel Aviv police, received an unexpected boost from former Labor Party Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami, deputy Minister of Defense Efraim Sneh, and from former Israeli Ambassador to France Nissim Zvili. On the strength of the secret information provided by these characters, Global CST escaped penalties. According to Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz Global CST's functions in Guinea were to bolster the business interests of diamond dealer Benny Steinmetz, who has employed former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert [1]. For its part, Global CST and its able attorneys launched a propaganda campaign pretending that the mercenary company was in Guinea to do ... well drilling development to supply villages with drinking water.
The Israeli Government cannot issue Global CST with an official authorization to intervene in Libya, knowing that the Security Council has banned all foreign military aid to Colonel Gaddafi. Global CST has therefore been entrusted with an unofficial mission in breach of Israeli law, which would explain the virulence of its denial. At the same time, the U.S. Ambassador to the Security Council has requested that the mercenaries intervening in Libya be exempt from prosecution under international law. One can never be too careful.
Major General Israel Ziv, who is portrayed by his lawyers as a well-reputed person inside Israel, is the former Tsahal chief of operations. In this capacity, he played a key role in the war crimes committed in Lebanon in 2006, supervising the bombardments that killed 1 187 civilians, caused the displacement of more than one million people, and destroyed over 15 000 buildings.

[Magda Hassan]

Perhaps a bit premature. :plane:

France recognises council
Earlier, France recognised the opposition National Council as the legitimate representatives of the Libyan people.

The move, which will see an ambassador sent to the rebel-held town of Benghazi in Libya's east, was announced during a meeting between envoys from the council and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, in Paris on Thursday.

"France has recognised the national transition council as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people," Ali al-Issawi, an envoy from the council said after the talks. The French presidency also issued a similar statement.

Al-Issawi added that the council would "open a diplomatic mission, that is our own embassy in Paris, and an ambassador from France will be sent to Benghazi".

"This ambassador will be in Benghazi for a transition period before returning to Tripoli."

Libyan state media said the country plans to cut ties with France in response to the announcement, adding a "grave secret" would prompt the fall of Sarkozy's government.
Khalid Kaim, Libya's deputy foreign minister, said on Thursday that his government may cut diplomatic ties with other countries that backed the rebels against the Gaddafi government.
Ahmed Shabani, a spokesman for the opposition council, told Al Jazeera the move was a "major step forward", but that more countries needed to follow suit.

'Gaddafi must go'

Tim Friend, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Paris, said the French announcement was a "very significant statement of intent which reinforces France's recognition that the Libyan transitional National Council is the legitimate body now representing Libya".

"I think France has gone further than anyone else so far in doing that," he said.
Opposition forces set up the National Council in Benghazi on February 27, weeks after a popular revolt against the 40-year rule of Muammar Gaddafi began in the country.

Alain Juppe, the French foreign minister, has also urged partners in the European Union to follow suit and engage with Libyan opposition leaders.

Speaking after talks with Guido Westerwelle, his German counterpart, Juppe said: "We are on the same track to say Colonel Gaddafi is discredited, he must go, we must engage dialogue with the new Libyan representatives."
Following the French announcement, Luis Amado, the Portuguese foreign minister, said he had sent a message to Gaddafi saying his regime "is over".

"The message I sent was that the Gaddafi regime in our view is over, it's legitimacy is over," he said on Thursday.

Germany also announced that it has frozen Libyan government bank accounts held in the country, in line with UN sanctions agreed. Assets belonging to Gaddafi's government have already been frozen in Britain, Canada, the US and Switzerland.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe...05407.html