Libyan Revolution Week 26 part 2

[joshcryer]

Links to sites with updates: http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/libya">AJE Libya Live Blog http://blogs.aljazeera.net/twitter-dashboard">AJE Twitter Dashboard http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/libya">The Guardian http://uk.reuters.com/places/libya">Reuters http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/">Telegraph http://feb17.info/">feb17.info http://www.livestream.com/libya17feb?utm_source=lsplayer&utm_medium=embed&utm_campaign=footerlinks">Libya Alhurra (live video webcast from Benghazi) http://libya-alhurra.tumblr.com/">Libya Alhurra archives and updates http://www.ustream.tv/channel/benghaziradio">Benghazi Free Radio, in Arabic (may have translators present at times) http://www.tributefm.com/">Tribute FM (English broadcast from Benghazi) http://www.libyafeb17.com/">libyafeb17.com

Twitter links: http://twitter.com/#!/aymanm">Ayman Mohyeldin, with AJE http://twitter.com/#!/bencnn">Ben Wedeman, with CNN http://twitter.com/#!/tripolitanian">tripolitanian, a Libyan from Tripoli http://twitter.com/#!/BaghdadBrian">Brian Conley, reporter in Libya http://twitter.com/#!/freelibyanyouth">FreeLibyanYouth, Libyan advocate http://twitter.com/#!/LibyaFeb17_com">LibyaFeb17.com twitter account http://twitter.com/#!/ChangeInLibya">ChangeInLibya, Libyan advocate https://twitter.com/#!/TheyCallMeSof">Sofyan Amry (arrived in Benghazi recently) http://twitter.com/#!/KiloFoot">KiloFoot (general Arab Spring news aggregation)

Useful links: http://audioboo.fm/feb17voices">feb17voices http://www.google.com/search?q=time+in+libya">Current time in Libya http://www.islamicfinder.org/cityPrayerNew.php?country=libya">Prayer times in Libya

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1730523">Week 26 part 1 here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixwx_B38678">Marching On in Libya, for the revolutionaries!

Libyans mourned the death of the five rebels during their funeral at Freedom Square in Benghazi.

Gianluigi Guercia / AFP


Day 171 August 7

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL6E7J700E20110807">Power, petrol shortages in Tripoli irk Libyans
As rebels continue to fight loyalist forces along several fronts, blackouts have rolled across Tripoli with increasing frequency in recent weeks.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77606U20110807?sp=true">Libya rebels say they hold gains south of capital
Libyan rebels said on Sunday they were firmly in control of the town of Bir al-Ghanam, a staging post about 80 km (50 miles) south of Tripoli, rejecting a government assertion they had been pushed back.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c23c9014-c0f5-11e0-b8c2-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss#axzz1UModDD00">Libya rebels to form oil protection force
Libya’s rebels are close to establishing an oil protection force to ward off forces loyal to Colonel Muammer Gaddafi, as they seek to restart crude production and generate much-needed cash.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8687316/Libyan-rebels-strike-key-oil-pipeline.html">Libyan rebels strike key oil pipeline
Libyan rebels have inflicted a devastating blow on Col Muammar Gaddafi’s Tripoli stronghold with a strike on a key oil pipeline that has triggered widespread electricity blackouts in the capital.

Day 172 August 8

http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/Rebels-post-Gaddafi-Libya-plan-revealed-20110808">Rebels' post-Gaddafi Libya plan revealed
A rebel blueprint for a post-Muammar Gaddafi Libya would retain much of the current regime's infrastructure in the hope of averting an Iraq-style descent into chaos, the London Times reported Monday.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14440843">Rebels 'still holding' captured town
The Libyan town of Bir al-Ghanam, close to Tripoli, appears to be still under rebel control after an assault on Saturday, despite government denials.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE7770JU20110808?sp=true">Rebels push north of Bir Ghanam
By Monday afternoon, rebel fighters had pushed on a few kilometres north of Bir al-Ghanam, coming to a stop at a point they said was about 35 km from Zawiyah.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14447545">Tripoli power cuts anger Libyans in Gaddafi stronghold
After months of war, rolling blackouts and rising prices in the Libyan capital Tripoli are taking their toll on Col Muammar Gaddafi's seat of power.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77717320110808?sp=true">Libya rebels dissolve cabinet after commander's death
Libyan rebels have dissolved their executive committee after "shortcomings" by some members in the handling of the shooting dead 12 days ago of their military chief, a rebel spokesman said on Monday.
http://patrickjohnmillsgallery.blogspot.com/2011/08/new-war_04.html?spref=fb">The New War
This month, the Patrick John Mills Gallery is featuring a group exhibit on the subject of war. For the first time in history, social networks such as Twitter, Facebook and Youtube have given populations the ability to join forces and take on suppressive government regimes with the simple click of a button.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/in-pictures-libyas-boy-scouts-become-grave-diggers/article2122219">In pictures: Libya's Boy Scouts become grave-diggers
Benghazi Boy Scouts construct about 12 graves a day to keep up with casualties in the civil war, down from 60 graves a day when fighting began in February.

Day 173 August 9

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE7780IC20110809?sp=true">Libya rebels clean house after slaying of commander
While the Younes killing brought things to a head, Jalil is also seen as taking the opportunity to get rid of underperforming cabinet members and permit the reappointment of a more effective body.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE7780SY20110809">NATO bombs frigate in Tripoli harbour
NATO warplanes bombed a Libyan warship docked in Tripoli harbour after observing that weapons were being (taken) from it that were expected to be used to conduct attacks, the alliance said on Tuesday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE77810520110809?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true">Libyan rebels recall horror stories from crackdown
Libyan rebels planning an offensive on their hometown Zawiyah are still haunted by memories of what they say was a brutal government crackdown against an uprising in the town earlier this year.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110809-714805.html">Libyan Attempt To Bring Back Oil Cos Fails To Ignite Interest
A new attempt by Libya's government to bring back foreign oil companies to the war-torn country has failed to ignite interest, people familiar with the contacts said in recent days.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/09/world/africa/09berbers.html">Amid a Berber Reawakening in Libya, Fears of Revenge
In the evening, as the searing desert temperatures subside, the residents who have returned to this rebel-held city near the front lines appear on the streets. Some of them carry cans of paint, and begin to decorate murals with the characters of an ancient language that had been forbidden by the government of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.

Day 174 August 10

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFN1E7781IE20110809">Envoys want NATO answers about strike on Libyan TV
Russia, India and other U.N. Security Council delegations voiced concerns on Tuesday about NATO strikes on Libyan state television last month, saying they were awaiting results of a NATO investigation.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77818V20110809">Libyan TV shows footage of Khamis Gaddafi
Libyan state television showed on Tuesday what it said was footage of Muammar Gaddafi's son Khamis, who rebels said last week had been killed, visiting Libyans wounded in an air attack east of Tripoli.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/10/us-violence-idUSTRE7791F620110810">Hospitals, medical staff targeted in wars, ICRC says
Hospitals, health care workers and ambulances are increasingly targeted in conflicts from Libya to Somalia, depriving millions of sick and wounded of treatment, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on Wednesday.
http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/484689">650,000 have fled Libya in last 45 days
The total number of refugees fleeing Libya's turmoil has reached more than 650,000 over the past 45 days, according to an international report released Tuesday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE7790LR20110810?sp=true">Rats, dogs, and sundry insults fly at Libyan front
Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi and Libyan rebels holding the strategic town of Bir al-Ghanam exchanged rocket fire interspersed with verbal abuse on Wednesday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77905920110810?sp=true">Libya crisis takes toll on European oil groups
Civil war shut off Libyan oil supplies to Austrian energy group OMV and Italian refiner Saras in the second quarter, driving down profits and clouding the outlook in the region.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77914D20110810?sp=true">Tunisia says seizes contraband fuel bound for Libya
Tunisia has intercepted five truckloads of fuel set to be smuggled into neighbouring Libya, an official said on Wednesday, in a move to curb an illegal trade which is helping to keep Muammar Gaddafi in power.
http://www.cphpost.dk/news/national/88-national/51975-denmark-throws-out-remaining-libyan-diplomats.html">Denmark throws out remaining Libyan diplomats
The remaining Libyan diplomats in Denmark have been told to leave the country within five days by foreign minister Lene Espersen.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=7356441&c=AME&s=TOP">Demands to Grow for U.N. Peacekeepers, Says Outgoing Chief
"There are other countries where we might be called," the French diplomat added. Planning is already underway for an observer force for Libya, if a ceasefire is ever agreed.
http://news.yahoo.com/nato-libya-airstrike-killed-troops-not-civilians-202858296.html">More significant rebel gains Wednesday put them closer to coastal towns
... rebel fighters moved closer to Libyan coastal towns held by Moammar Gadhafi, scoring another significant gain in an offensive launched over the weekend, a spokesman said.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/libyan-rebels-say-key-oil-town-within-their-grasp">Libyan rebels say key oil town within their grasp
Libya's rebels said on Wednesday they were on the verge of capturing the coastal oil town of Brega, in what could be a decisive step toward unlocking the country's oil wealth and forcing out Muammar Gaddafi.

Day 175 August 11

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5huc4sNLpqDdFX2Nlvc3r-NvEunEQ?docId=CNG.8c552b16960439c4d35947018cdb7b48.701">US, EU up pressure on Libya as new fighting hits Brega
The United States and European Union turned up the heat on Libya, as fresh fighting erupted Wednesday along rebel lines at the oil town of Brega and state television showed footage of a son of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, days after rebels reported him dead.
http://213.158.162.45/~egyptian/index.php?action=news&id=20310&title=Libya%20rebels%20hit%20trying%20to%20take%20heat%20off%20Misrata">Libya rebels hit trying to take heat off Misrata
Libyan loyalists killed one rebel and wounded 10 others as the insurgents moved on the town of Taurga in a bid to snuff out rocket fire on the besieged city of Misrata, medics said on Thursday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77A09720110811?sp=true">Western Libya rebels strike north towards coast
Rebel forces in western Libya drove their offensive north toward the town of Zawiyah near the Mediterranean coast on Thursday, trying to get within striking distance of the capital, Tripoli.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/11/us-libya-fuel-tunisia-idUSTRE77A3MU20110811">Tunisia says army to curb fuel smuggling to Libya
Tunisia said Thursday its troops were patrolling fuel stations to curb the flow of smuggled gasoline into neighboring Libya, a trade which is helping Muammar Gaddafi hold on to power.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL6E7JB1Z020110811?sp=true">More Libyan rebel assets to be unfrozen-UK
More countries are likely to announce next week that they will free up frozen assets for the use of rebels in Libya, a British official said on Thursday, adding that economic and military pressure had left Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi "desperate".
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77A14I20110811?sp=true">Libyan rebels capture eastern part of Brega - spokesman
Libyan rebels have captured the residential districts of Brega but soldiers loyal to Muammar Gaddafi still hold western parts of the town where the oil facilities are located, a rebel spokesman said on Thursday.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8695558/Libya-Gaddafis-diplomats-in-London-tried-to-sell-assets-before-they-were-expelled.html">Gaddafi's diplomats in London 'tried to sell assets before they were expelled'
Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi's diplomats in London tried to sell off embassy assets including cars before they were expelled by the British Government, sources have claimed.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11223/1166660-455-0.stm">Libyan expat, son from Scott die fighting in homeland
A father and son from suburban Pittsburgh who returned to Libya to join the rebels fighting the Gadhafi regime died together on Saturday when a mortar struck their vehicle.
http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2011/08/injured-libyan-rebels-find-ways-to-connect-to-the-front-lines-digitally222.html">Injured Libyan Rebels Find Ways to Connect to the Front Lines, Digitally
Hassan Sadek, a 29-year-old Libyan engineer turned rebel group leader, lies in his Tunis, Tunisia, hospital bed, straining his eyes and neck to view the laptop resting on his chest. Occasionally he stops, clenching his teeth, contorting his face in pain, as he lifts one of his two casted legs for relief. He muffles his cries of discomfort and sometimes refuses to take pain medication.

Day 177 August 12

http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139535992/in-libya-a-father-and-sons-brief-war">In Libya, A Father And Son's Brief War
Mabruk Eshnuk and his son Malik left their home in Pittsburgh to volunteer and fight with rebels in western Libya's Nafusa Mountains.
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/libya-aug-11-2011-2102">UAE hands seized Libyan regime cargo plane over to rebels
A Libyan cargo plane seized by authorities in the United Arab Emirates was handed over to rebel forces in their eastern bastion of Benghazi, a rebel official told AFP on Thursday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77B0MM20110812?sp=true">Captured intel officer says Gaddafi still strong
About 70 percent of Libyans in Muammar Gaddafi's main stronghold Tripoli still support him and he is in no danger of falling anytime soon, a captured Libyan intelligence officer said on Friday.
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/libya-aug-12-2011-1606">Russia imposes sanctions on Libya, freezes assets of Gaddafi
Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian president, has signed a decree toughening sanctions on Libya five months after the measure was passed by the UN Security Council in March, the Kremlin said on Friday.
http://cnn.com/video/?/video/world/2011/08/11/natpkg.liohn.ambulance.cnn">Photographer André Liohn describes the time he spent with an amubulance driver in Misrata - video
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903918104576502543278194586.html?mod=googlenews_wsj">Libyan Rebels, in Show of Unity, Plan for Transition
Rebel officials here, amid signs of disarray in their leadership, have ramped up preparations for governing Libya after the fall of Col. Moammar Gadhafi, drafting a timeline for elections and a plan for establishing a security force.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/africa-mideast/diy-weapons-armoured-vehicles-prove-effective-for-libyan-rebels/article2127238/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2127238">DIY weapons, armoured vehicles prove effective for Libyan rebels
If any future museum showcases the way rebels beat the regime in Libya, the exhibits will likely include homemade weapons that look like props from a Mad Max movie: a shotgun fashioned from a steel pipe; a troop carrier built from scratch; a pickup truck groaning under the weight of an antique anti-aircraft gun.

Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Libyan_civil_war">here for updated map. The size of the circles show population, the color represents control, red for FFs, green for tyrants.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x594751">A topic on the women of the revolution, dispels myths about the treatment of women in Benghazi.

Videos to bring the Libyan Revolution into context
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0vChMDuNd0">The Battle of Benghazi. BBC Panorama on Libya http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyaPnMnpCAA">Part 1, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMzwQvcx62s">Part 2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwWwOeZqz6M">Video of the convoy sent to take Benghazi, taken from a dead soliders cell phone (shows how massive the operation was). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAclhhHv43s&feature=player_embedded">Arab Awakening: Libya: Through the Fire. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD5tu5bJWKc">Tea of Freedom Song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z41kQvx4uKw">Libya: Part 2 - The Uprising http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vNWCGDkdWY">Benghazi - Backbone of the Libyan revolution

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-10-0">March 10 7:28pm Saif al Islam Gaddafi says "the time has come for full-scale military action" against Libyan rebels. He goes on to say that Libyan forces loyal to his family "will never surrender, even if western powers intervene".

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x677397">Text of UN resolution 1973. How will a no fly zone work? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWEwehTtK2k">AJE reports.

Belgium: http://www.lesoir.be/actualite/monde/2011-03-21/les-f-16-belges-dans-le-feu-de-l-action-829588.php">Six F-16 Falcon fighter jets of the Belgian Air Component. Bulgaria: The Bulgarian Navy Wielingen class frigate Drazki http://paper.standartnews.com/en/article.php?d=2011-03-23&article=35828">will participate in the naval blockade. Canada: Canadian Forces Air Command has deployed http://www.cefcom-comfec.forces.gc.ca/pa-ap/ops/mobile/index-eng.asp">a total 440 military personnel as well as the Halifax-class frigate HMCS Charlottetown are participating in operations. Denmark: The Royal Danish Air Force http://politiken.dk/newsinenglish/ECE1227910/denmark-to-send-squadron-on-libya-op/">is participating with six F-16AM fighters. France: French Air Force which realizes 25% of NATO's strikes http://www.defense.gouv.fr/operations/autres-operations/harmattan/libye-debut-des-operations-aeriennes-francaises">is participating in the mission with 51 Mirage and Rafale Aircraft. Greece: The Elli-class frigate Limnos of the Hellenic Navy http://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2011/03/20/greek-defence-ministry-no-participation-in-operations-outside-the-nato/">is currently in the waters off Libya as part of the naval blockade. Italy: Four Tornado ECRs of the Italian Air Force http://www.corriere.it/esteri/11_marzo_20/tripoli-bombardamento-chiesta-riunione-onu_2e95d102-52c0-11e0-a725-dbe20f0ba2b5.shtml">participated in SEAD operations. Jordan: Six Royal Jordanian Air Force fighter jets http://www.allheadlinenews.com/briefs/articles/90043651?After%20hesitation%2C%20Jordan%20joins%20in%20Libya%20no-fly%20campaign">landed at a coalition airbase in Europe on 4 April to provide "logistical support." NATO: E-3 airborne early warning and control (AWACS) http://www.adressa.no/nyheter/nordtrondelag/article1606878.ece">aircraft operated by NATO. Netherlands: The Royal Netherlands Air Force http://www.rnw.nl/english/bulletin/dutch-f-16s-operational-over-libya">provides six F-16AM fighters and a KDC-10 refuelling plane. Norway: The Royal Norwegian Air Force has http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/libya/artikkel.php?artid=10091294">deployed six F-16AM fighters to Souda Bay Air Base. Qatar: The Qatar Armed Forces are http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123248695">contributing six Mirage 2000-5EDA fighter jets and two C-17 strategic transport aircraft. Romania: The Romanian Naval Forces http://www.hotnews.ro/stiri-politic-8423876-traian-basescu-sustine-declaratie-presa-ora-21-00-dupa-sedinta-csat.htm">will participate in the naval blockade with the frigate Regele Ferdinand. Spain: The Spanish Armed Forces are http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Espana/intervendra/cazas/F-18/fragata/F-100/submarino/avion/vigilancia/maritima/elpepuint/20110319elpepuint_14/Tes">participating with four F-18 fighters. Sweden: The Royal Swedish Air Force will http://www.swedishwire.com/politics/9050-sweden-offers-eight-fighter-jets-for-libya-mission">commit eight JAS 39 Gripen jets for the international air campaign. Turkey: The Turkish Navy http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/03/24/general-libya-diplomacy_8373237.html">will participate with five ships and one submarine in the NATO-led naval blockade to enforce the arms embargo. United Arab Emirates: The United Arab Emirates Air Force http://www.wam.org.ae/servlet/Satellite?c=WamLocEnews&cid=1300255413630&p=1135099400124&pagename=WAM%2FWamLocEnews%2FW-T-LEN-FullNews">sent six F-16 Falcon and six Mirage 2000 fighter jets to join the mission. United Kingdom: The Royal Air Force has http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/MilitaryOperations/TyphoonJoinsTornadoInLibyaGroundAttackOperations.htm">deployed 12 Tornado and 10 Typhoon fighters, surveillance aircraft, and air refuelling tankers. United States: The United States has http://www.webcitation.org/5xJ8qNGGe">deployed a naval force of 11 ships and are using MQ-1 Predator UAVs to strike targets in Libya on 23 April.

As of this week the National Trasitional Council has been formally recognized by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_relations_of_the_Libyan_Republic#Recognition">33 countries. France (March 10), Qatar (March 28), Maldives (April 3), Italy (April 4), Kuwait (April 13), The Gambia (April 22), Jordan (April 24), Sengal (April 28), The United Kingdom (June 4), Spain (June 8), Australia (June 9), UAE (June 12), Germany (June 13), Canada (June 14), Panama (June 14), Austria (June 18), Latvia (June 20), Denmark (June 22), Bulgaria (June 28), Croatia (June 28), Turkey (July 3), Poland (July 9), Netherlands (July 13), Belgium (July 13), Luxembourg (July 13), United States (July 15), Japan (July 15), Albania (July 18), Slovenia (July 20), Montenegro (July 21), Portugal (July 28), Botswana (August 11), Gabon (August 14).

"One month ago (Western countries) were sooo nice, so nice like pussycats," Saif says in a contemptuous sing-song tone."Now they want to be really aggressive like tigers. (But) soon they will come back, and cut oil deals, contracts. We know this game." - http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2058389,00.html">Saif Gaddafi

(Yeah, Saif, as if you weren't "cutting oil deals, contracts" with western states. Who are the 'tigers' now? Bombing your own people.)

http://english.libya.tv/2011/04/25/eastern-libyans-believe-in-national-unity-distrust-au-and-turkish-mediation-survey-reveals/">The first free public opinion poll ever conducted in Libya reveals clues to Eastern Libyan sentiments
* 98 percent of the respondents do not support the division of Libya as a part of the political solution for the current conflict with the Gaddafi regime. Around 95 percent also don’t see any role for Gaddafi or his sons in a transitional period, and think it is impossible to implement any political reform in Libya if Gaddafi or one of his sons stays in power

* Around 96 percent of those polled, believe that the 17th of February revolution can consolidate the national unity of Libya and support the model of a democratic Libya based on a constitution which respects human rights

* Al-Qaeda has not played any role in the 17th of February revolution, say 94 percent of the Eastern Libyans, and 91 percent thinks it’s impossible for Al-Qaeda to play any political role in the new Libya

* The National Transitional Council is seen by 92 percent of those surveyed as “expressing the views and wishes of Libyans for change”

This is equivalent to 17% the entire population of Libya, doing the numbers very conservatively.

http://jenkinsear.com/2011/03/19/a-legal-war-the-united-nations-participation-act-and-libya/">A Legal War: The United Nations Participation Act and Libya
The above link is to an overview of why Obama's implementation of the NFZ and R2P is perfectly legal under the law. I will not post it entirely here, however, all objections come down to the misinformed position that Obama, by using forces in Libya, was invoking Article 43 of the United Nations. This is wrong. Obama invoked Article 42, which does not require congressional approval to implement. Proof of this is that Article 43 has http://www.un.org/en/sc/repertoire/actions.shtml#rel5">never been used.

It goes like this: The US law (Title 22, Chap. 7, Subchap. XIV § 287d) grants the President the right to invoke UN Article 42 http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode22/usc_sec_22_00000287---d000-.html">without authorization, the War Powers Act (Title 50, Chap. 33 § 1541) grants the President permission to act without authorization under http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/50/1541–1548.html">"specific statutory authorization" which, by definition, is what 287d does. § 1543 of the War Powers Act requires the President to report to Congress, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/obama_explains_libya_mission_to_congress/2011/03/03/ABU9377_blog.html">which he did. One can argue all day and night about the legality of the War Powers Act, doesn't change the fact that under the law as it is written, the President acted within the law.

Editorials and stories worth reading.
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/2011/03/2011328194855872276.html">Libyan Karzai? Chalabi? Forget it, http://www.newyorker.com/talk/comment/2011/04/04/110404taco_talk_anderson#ixzz1HvS7iW22">Who Are the Rebels?, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/29/vision-democratic-libya-interim-national-council">A vision of a democratic Libya, http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/is-qaddafi-an-anti-racist/">Is Qaddafi an anti-racist?, http://www.workersliberty.org/story/2011/04/20/left-slipping-towards-qaddafi">The left: slipping towards Gaddafi?, http://www.workersliberty.org/story/2011/04/27/once-again-“stop-bombing”">Once again on "stop the bombing", http://www.juancole.com/2011/03/an-open-letter-to-the-left-on-libya.html">An Open Letter to the Left on Libya, http://www.juancole.com/2011/03/top-ten-ways-that-libya-2011-is-not-iraq-2003.html">Top Ten Ways that Libya 2011 is Not Iraq 2003, http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/05/09/110509fa_fact_anderson">Sons of the Revolution http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/news/voices/?ref=main-menu">Voices from the Field

Mohammed Nabbous, killed by Gaddafi's forces while trying to report on the massacre in Benghazi

"I'm not afraid to die, I'm afraid to lose the battle" -Mohammed Nabbous, a month ago when all this began

I'm struggling to come up with something to say about this man. I was not aware of the Libyan uprising until I saw Mo's first report, begging for help, posted here on DU. I was stricken. Here was a man giving everything he had to explain a situation that clearly terrified him, I would not call him a coward in that moment, but you could see the fear in his eyes, and desperation in his voice. For 30 days Nabbous would spend many hours covering the uprising in Benghazi. For many nights I would go to sleep with the webcast of Benghazi live on my computer screen, looking to it occasionally to be sure it was still 'there.' Mo treated the chat room as if we were his friends, and in some way, we were. I never signed up to LiveStream to thank him for all his work and it seems somewhat shallow to do so now, given that I was a lurker for so long. Ever since I took over posting these threads "Libya Alhurra" has been linked as a source of information. It wasn't until last night, when I posted, and twitter posted on Mo's adventures out into Benghazi to try to determine the truth of the situation, that Mo's webchannel became a hit, over 2000 people were watching him stream live. This was curious to him because he'd done many reports like this in the past but he appeared somewhat bemused that the view count exploded as it did. Last night Mo became a star. This is a man who first started out with a webcast replete with fear and desperation finally overcoming that aspect of himself and losing that fear, to become someone who was a fighter for the resistance just as much as those who held the guns. Reporting on the front lines of Benghazi became his final act, and for that he should never, ever be forgotten. I'm so sorry Mo that I never got to know you better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAclhhHv43s&feature=player_ded">Arab Awakening: Libya: Through the Fire is a documentary about Mo's last days, please watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38EXALI60hg">Mo's first report, which many of you may remember, begging for help.

Mo leaves behind a wife and a newborn child she had http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/03/23/a_bright_voice_from_libyas_darkness">this to say about the No Fly Zone and R2P UN resolution:

We started this in a pure way, but he turned it bloody. Thousands of our men, women, and children have died. We just wanted our freedom, that's all we wanted, we didn't want power. Before, we could not do a single thing if it was not the way he wanted it. All we wanted was freedom. All we wanted was to be free. We have paid with our blood, with our families, with our men, and we're not going to give up. We are still going to do that no matter what it takes, but we need help. We want to do this ourselves, but we don't have the weapons, the technology, the things we need. I don't want anyone to say that Libya got liberated by anybody else. If NATO didn't start moving when they did, I assure you, I assure you, half of Benghazi if not more would have been killed. If they stop helping us, we are going to be all killed because he has no mercy anymore.

[joshcryer]

1. Libyan Revolution Day 180 updates below, current time in Libya, 3:36am Tuesday, August 16

6 months and Gaddafi is nearing his end. Sooner than I expected.

[tabatha]

7. I think there is still time to fix the backwrd link to Part 1.

[joshcryer]

8. Thanks.

edit: also fixed the recognition page, got two more recognitions in the past few days: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_relations_of_the_Libyan_Republic#Recognition

[joshcryer]

2. US officials: Gadhafi fires first scud missile

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/us-officials-gadhafi-fires-1111776.html">US officials: Gadhafi fires first scud missile
WASHINGTON — A U.S. military official says Libyan government forces fired a scud missile for the first time in this year's conflict with rebels, but it landed east of Brega and hurt no one.

The official says the early Sunday missile launch was detected by U.S. forces shortly after midnight and it landed in the desert about 50 miles outside Brega. Rebel and regime forces have battled over the strategic port city, and control has gone back and forth between the two sides.

[pinboy3niner]

3. K&R

Nice work, Josh! :toast:

[joshcryer]

4. Libyan rebels try to isolate Tripoli, Gadhafi

http://news.yahoo.com/libyan-rebels-try-isolate-tripoli-gadhafi-200029145.html">Libyan rebels try to isolate Tripoli, Gadhafi
ZAWIYA, Libya (AP) — Libya's rebels threatened to isolate Tripoli by blocking key supply routes and cutting oil pipelines on Monday after a dramatic weekend advance put them in the strongest position since the 6-month-old civil war began to attack Moammar Gadhafi's stronghold.

In Washington, the Obama administration said the U.S. was encouraged by the rebel advances and hoped they had broken a monthslong stalemate with Gadhafi's forces.

...

The rebels' push into the strategic city of Zawiya on Saturday brought them within 30 miles of Tripoli, the closest they have ever gotten. After three days of fierce battles for the city of 200,000 on the Mediterranean coast, rebel commanders said they controlled the south and west of the city and were fighting for the refineries. Oil-rich Libya's only functioning refineries are in Zawiya.

...

Gadhafi's troops fired dozens of artillery shells and Grad rockets, and the loud booms sounded across the city. Six shells hit in quick succession in Bir Ghanam Street, which leads from the city center to the south. One shell struck a highway overpass and another hit near a small mosque along the street.

Bringing in pinboy3niner's last few updates. :hi:

[joshcryer]

5. U.S. encouraged by Libya rebel push, embassy open..., The Berbers join the Arab revolt

WASHINGTON, Aug 15 (Reuters) - The United States believes Libyan rebel advances are choking off Muammar Gaddafi's forces in the capital Tripoli and significantly increasing pressure on the Libyan leader, the U.S. State Department said on Monday.

...

"What we are seeing is an effort by the rebels to choke off the access routes into Tripoli and to up the pressure on Gaddafi," Nuland told a news briefing.

...


"It appears that the military advances and fractures within Gadaffi's regime have reached a possible turning point," said Brian Katulis, a security expert at the Center for American Progress think tank.

...

Nuland said Aujali would resume control over the embassy's immediate assets, but that the United States was not yet in a position to follow through on vows to unlock more than $34 billion in Libyan assets.

http://www.economist.com/node/21525925">The Berbers join the Arab revolt
IN MOROCCO their language has been made official. In Algeria they lead protests against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s regime. In Tunisia they are rediscovering a long-suppressed identity. In Libya they man the rebels’ western front in the mountains south of the capital still held by Muammar Qaddafi. Even in Egypt’s oasis of Siwa, near Libya’s border, Berbers are finding that the revolution has given them a chance to revive their cultural rights.

“There is a Berber renaissance taking place across north Africa,” enthuses Mounir Kejji, a Moroccan Berber campaigner. ....

...

Libya’s rebellion is fiercest in the Nafusa Mountains, a Berber heartland long neglected by the government. Colonel Qaddafi has refused to acknowledge Berber culture for most of his reign, describing it as “colonialism’s poison” intended to divide the country. Only in 2006, apparently after his son Seif al-Islam intervened, did he lift a ban on the use of Berber names.

Berbers make up about 5% of Libya’s 6m-7m people, though some activists put the figure higher. In recent weeks they have set up a radio station. The rebel-controlled Libya TV, based in Qatar, now broadcasts in Tamazight, the Berber tongue, for two hours a day. In June, says Mr Kejji, a delegation of Libyan Berbers affiliated to the rebels’ Transitional National Council put a linguistic query to their Moroccan counterparts: how should they write “army”and “national security” in Tamazight, so that Libyan uniforms could have a badge in their own language alongside Arabic?

[joshcryer]

6. Libya shows signs of slipping from Muammar Gaddafi's grasp

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/15/muammar-gaddafi-losing-grasp-libya">Libya shows signs of slipping from Muammar Gaddafi's grasp
Muammar Gaddafi's regime has shown fresh signs of buckling as rebels have come close to cutting off supply routes and the Libyan interior minister arrived in Egypt in what appeared to be the highest-ranking defection for many months.

The Libyan leader broadcast a defiant appeal to his supporters to rid the country of "traitors", telling them: "The blood of martyrs is fuel for the battle." But the call was issued over a poor telephone line to state television, and most was inaudible – the result of what officials said was a technical breakdown.

Gaddafi's rallying call came as rebel fighters moved into Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, straddling a critical road supply route from the Tunisian border. Rebel forces claimed to have near total control of the town, but government troops still held its oil refinery, the regime's last homegrown supply of fuel. Reuters reported that pro-government snipers in Zawiyah were firing on any civilians who ventured out of doors.

The anti-Gaddafi National Transitional Council (NTC) also claimed to have taken the city of Surman and said it was close to gaining control of Sabratha, along the same coastal road. A rebel spokesman said that talks were under way with government forces over their surrender.

New poster Lunabelle posted this in LBN: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1746472

Thanks again to pinboy3niner for compiling these links. :)

[pinboy3niner]

9. Rebels encroach, but Libya capital seems unruffled

Tue Aug 16, 2011 1:44am GMT


• Tripoli residents remain defiant

• Say distrust report from satellite television

• Cigarettes, popcorn on the seaside promenade


By Missy Ryan


TRIPOLI, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Rebels may have fought their way into Zawiyah, a strategic city a half hour's drive from the Libyan capital, but for many supporters of Muammar Gaddafi here the battle that may be a turning point may as well be a million miles away.


Months of military stalemate appeared to come to an abrupt end in recent days, as rebels seeking to end Gaddafi's 41-year-rule said they reached the center of Zawiyah, 50 km (30 miles) west of Tripoli, and captured a town to Tripoli's south.


While government officials downplayed the developments, and promised to reverse any gains rebels may have made, Gaddafi's power base in Tripoli is now encircled. Yet few signs were visible in central Tripoli on Monday of apprehension.


There was no mass exit from the city or rush to stockpile goods in case of a long siege, a sign perhaps of the fact that many residents here have been bracing for the worst since the conflict erupted in February -- or that residents of a surrounded city have few places to go.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL5E7JG00920110816?sp=true

[tabatha]

10. Flying hither and yon but not to Tripoli, according to dovenews:

The head of Gaddafi's Revolutionary Committee Guards #Waneeis #AlShawish has escaped to #Egypt

Ali #AlShebani head of the Libyan investment in Gaddafi's Revolutionary Committee Guards has escaped to #Egypt

#Mahamed #Zaydan has escaped to #Tunisia. This guy was responsible for bringing foreign mercenaries to Gaddafi's regime.

[inna]

11. Nato airstrikes kill 85 villagers in Libya

***
http://gulfnews.com/news/region/libya/nato-airstrikes-kill-85-villagers-in-libya-1.849313

(AFP)


***
Warning: Graphic Images!

"Graphic images depict the reality and horror of NATO's attack on Libya":
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article28809.htm

[pinboy3niner]

12. Reporters taken to the scene by regime minders questioned those claims

Many reported seeing 30 dead at the hospital--all men of "military age" with the exception of one woman and two children.

One reported finding in the wreckage a piece of military uniform (which was quickly taken away by a regime official).

It was also reported that the site was located on high ground that commanded the approach to the area--an obvious point at which to place a regime defense force.

I can't rule out the possibility that SOME civilians were present at a location that appears to have been used by Gaddafi forces.

But I am certainly not so gullible as to swallow propaganda claims from a regime that has repeatedly made false claims of civilian casualties throughout the conflict.

If you have any regard for the truth, you cannot seriously promote the regime's claim without any question or the least bit of skepticism.

[joshcryer]

13. Minders? What's minders?

:rofl:

[pinboy3niner]

15. ROFL!

It's too bad that many won't be able to appreciate the inside joke. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Nice one, Josh! :toast:

[inna]

17. lol, what's so damn hilarious? please share

[pinboy3niner]

20. If you insist...

In an old Libya thread, you responded to a poster's reference to 'minders' with a question about the term, because you were unfamiliar with it.

It was funny, even way back then, because anyone who actually was following events in Libya would be very familiar with the term 'minders' from the hundreds of news stories that included it.

I replied to your original question with a helpful explanation.

It's ironic that these threads, which you so disparage, seem to have a lot of information that you are lacking.

It's certainly fair for you to perceive them as threads that are pretty much run by anti-Gaddafi rebel sympathizers. But, regardless of the leanings of those involved, these threads provide the best, and most current, information on developments in Libya--the good, the bad and the ugly.

If you're not reading them, you're missing a lot...

[joshcryer]

14. Note: this is August 9th, and debunked.

Meanwhile NATO intervention will be out of Libya soon enough. ;)

[pinboy3niner]

16. Peace

It looks like the end now, but Gaddafi has strong defenses around Tripoli and he could drag it out longer. And while all the other parties want to end the bloodshed, he's the only one who has no compunctions about prolonging it.

Here's hoping it will all be over soon...

Love & Peace,
pinboy3niner

[joshcryer]

18. Love & Peace, pinboy3niner.

:hug:

[tabatha]

19. This is for Inna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mV7HGNJ_YSs&feature=share

And from GH
GH: a question needs a answer
this civilians who died in zlitan was from a rocket fired from a daffi position.
awacs and firefind - radar datas are fixed and on tape.
the hole thing going to the criminal court in haag added to daffis crimes.

If you don't understand what he is saying - he says that the rocket that Gaddafi claims killed by NATO was actually fired by Gaddafi. Everything is recorded on tape, and the evidence has been sent to the ICC as a war crime.

Also, Gaddafi's troops killed

--- 30 of his own troops who wanted to go home for Ramadan
--- 120 of another group of his troops for not wanting to kill Libyans
--- 8 Egyptians
--- mercenaries hired by him are there to make sure none of this troops defect, and if they try they are shot

etc, etc

[pinboy3niner]

21. SYRIA: Gunfire in Syrian coastal city; 35 dead in 4 days

BEIRUT (AP) — Heavy machine-gun fire erupted across the besieged Syrian city of Latakia on Tuesday as the death toll rose to 35 from a military assault now in its fourth day, residents and activists said.


President Bashar Assad has dramatically escalated the crackdown on a 5-month-old uprising since the start of the holy month of Ramadan. Despite broad condemnation, the regime is trying to retake control in rebellious areas by unleashing tanks, ground troops and snipers.


Assad has launched military operations in the opposition stronghold of Hama, the eastern city of Deir el-Zour, the central city of Homs and now the port city of Latakia.


Most of the shooting early Monday was in Latakia's impoverished al-Ramel, al-Shaab and Ein Tamra areas. Al-Ramel is home to a crowded Palestinian refugee camp where many low-income Syrians also live.

...


http://news.yahoo.com/gunfire-syrian-coastal-city-35-dead-4-days-090453102.html

[joshcryer]

22. AJE: Inside Story - Who is in control of the Libyan opposition?

http://youtu.be/Hih80SVP4ZI">Inside Story - Who is in control of the Libyan opposition?
Al Jazeera’s Inside Story discusses with guests: Ashur Shamis, a Libyan journalist and writer; Shashank Joshi, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute; and Anas El Gomati, a Libyan political analyst.

[joshcryer]

23. Why Gaddafi's Grip On Power Looks So Shaky

http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16050995">Why Gaddafi's Grip On Power Looks So Shaky
Predicting the end of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has often turned out to be foolish, or premature. But what can be said with some certainly is that his 41-year grip on power is shakier than ever before.

For most of the past four decades he has been an international pariah, but he has survived.

...

But is this a man who knows the noose is gradually tightening, or does he genuinely believe that the setbacks his forces have suffered in recent days are only temporary?

What has changed dramatically is Tripoli's ability to bring supplies to a city which was already running short of fuel and food.

Gaddafi still has support, but there are strong signs suggesting the balance is shifting.



Got to go, as pinboy3niner says, Peace & Love. :)

[Iterate]

24. Fight or flee: decision time for Libya’s Gaddafi

Fight or flee: decision time for Libya’s Gaddafi
By: Christian Lowe

The battle to control Libya has entered its final phase when Muammar Gaddafi must make a choice: to seek a negotiated exit or to defend his capital to the last bullet.

Rebels with support from NATO warplanes have, over the past 48 hours, taken key towns around Gaddafi’s stronghold in Tripoli in a dramatic series of advances which cut the city off from supplies of fuel and food.

Rebel offensives have, in the past, turned into headlong retreats. But if they hold their ground, the end of Gaddafi’s 41-year rule will be closer than at any time since the conflict began six months ago.

A U.S. official said that for the first time in the conflict, government forces on Sunday fired a Scud missile — an act that was pointless from a military point of view but signalled the desperation of pro-Gaddafi forces.

more... http://feb17.info/news/fight-or-flee-decision-time-for-libyas-gaddafi/

[pinboy3niner]

31. Yeah, I know

:blush:

[Iterate]

25. No stalemate in Libya – the writing is on the wall for Gaddafi

No stalemate in Libya – the writing is on the wall for Gaddafi
A quick exit for the colonel matters less than a well-managed transition, preparing the country for representative government
Brian Whitaker guardian.co.uk, Monday 15 August 2011 17.15 BST

Take a look on Google and you'll find more than 1,500 news items combining the words "Libya" and "stalemate". Repeating the search for Syria and "stalemate" reveals a mere 109 items, and for Yemen only 73.

This is rather strange, because the Yemeni and Syrian uprisings – unlike that in Libya – are both obvious examples of a state of stalemate. In Yemen and Syria, the regimes have no prospect of restoring the status quo, but at the same time it's difficult to see how their opponents can decisively gain the upper hand.

That has never really been the case in Libya, despite many articles predicting that stalemate would occur, and others treating it as an established fact. Once Nato intervened and the National Transitional Council (NTC) began winning international recognition, the writing was on the wall for Gaddafi.

It has turned into a drawn-out struggle and Gaddafi's forces have had successes as well as failures along the way, but the overall direction has always been clear: the regime's opponents have been getting stronger while the regime itself, under multiple pressures, has been steadily weakening. There is also no realistic possibility now that Gaddafi can reverse this trend.

more... http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/aug/15/no-stalemate-libya-gaddafi

[pinboy3niner]

26. ANALYSIS-Fight or flee: decision time for Libya's Gaddafi

• Rebel advances take conflict into decisive phase

• Gaddafi must choose if he seeks talks or defends capital

* Rebels will seek to avoid battle for Tripoli

• Gaddafi loyalists may prefer 'fight to the death'


By Christian Lowe


ALGIERS, Aug 16 (Reuters) - The battle to control Libya has entered its final phase when Muammar Gaddafi must make a choice: to seek a negotiated exit or to defend his capital to the last bullet.


Rebels with support from NATO warplanes have, over the past 48 hours, taken key towns around Gaddafi's stronghold in Tripoli in a dramatic series of advances which cut the city off from supplies of fuel and food.


Rebel offensives have, in the past, turned into headlong retreats. But if they hold their ground, the end of Gaddafi's 41-year rule will be closer than at any time since the conflict began six months ago.


A U.S. official said that for the first time in the conflict, government forces on Sunday fired a Scud missile -- an act that was pointless from a military point of view but signalled the desperation of pro-Gaddafi forces.


"The Libyan regime may or may not collapse forthwith but it now looks like it will happen sooner or later," said Daniel Korski, a fellow at the European Council for Foreign Relations.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77E0RO20110816?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

27. Thousands of migrants flee north Africa for Italy

Tue Aug 16, 2011 12:47pm GMT


ROME Aug 16 (Reuters) - A boat carrying around 280 migrants arrived in the small Italian island of Lampedusa from north Africa on Tuesday, bringing the total number of arrivals since the weekend to more than 2,000, authorities said.


Tens of thousands of refugees and would-be migrants have arrived in Lampedusa since the upheavals in North Africa this year, setting off a crisis that has come close to overwhelming the tiny island.


According to estimates from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, more than 1,500 people have died trying to make the crossing in overcrowded, often poorly maintained fishing vessels.


UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards said the weekend arrivals had come from Libya and Tunisia and included 200 women and 30 children.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77F0I620110816

[pinboy3niner]

28. Battle for Libya: On Brega's frontline

Uploaded by AlJazeeraEnglish on Aug 15, 2011


Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces fired a scud missile for the first time since the uprising against his rule began six months ago, but it landed in the desert and injured no one.


The missile was fired on Sunday morning from a location about 80km east of Sirte, Gaddafi's home town, and landed east of the coastal oil town of
Brega.


The oil port of Brega has been the main front line in the east of the country for months. Rebels have seized the port's eastern residential areas since last week, but Gaddafi's forces still control its oil terminal, refinery and port.


And as Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley reports from the city, there are several reasons why it is an important prize for the opposition (2:23).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMA9mA_os6I&feature=player_embedded

[pinboy3niner]

29. TIMELINE-Libya's uprising against Muammar Gaddafi

Reuters has posted an updated timeline:

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL6E7HE0120110816?sp=true

[Iterate]

30. #Gmata, #QasrKhayr

Yes, it's another front. This time between Tripoli and Al Khums.

LibyanLion17 A Free Libyan
BREAKING - #Gmata - FFs destroy a G car and tank carrier. They were en route to #Zliten. Casualties currently unknown. #Libya #Feb17 15 Aug
The car was a Mitsubishi, belonged to G troops. The type you commonly see which transports troops etc.
update - G forces won't use coastal highway anymore due to FF threat. Now using alEsmaili Road.
#Gmata Update - G forces strengthened their checkpoint at an area called Marghana, 5KM west of Qasr Khayr.
FURTHER INFO - #Gmata - The fighting was centred around the towns of al'Alous and Qasr Khayr. #Libya #Feb17 20 hours ago

Map, the towns and highways are centered on this area:
http://wikimapia.org/#lat=32.6818633&lon=14.0291977&z=12&l=0&m=b

LibyanLion17 A Free Libyan
BREAKING - Phone call from #Gmata - CONFIRMED - FF attack took place. 5 cars destroyed, 4 G troops dead. FF = VERY active. #Libya #Feb17 16 hours ago

LibyanLion17 A Free Libyan
BREAKING - #Gmata - Heavy gunfire in Qasr Khayr #Libya #Feb17 16 hours ago
BREAKING - CONFIRMED - Qasr Khayr FFs attacked govt building. G has closed off the coastal highway totally.
BREAKING - CONFIRMED - #Gmata - The bridge between Alous and Ganeema was blown up, to prevent #AlKhums reinforcements.
Liberating #Gmata will cut G's #Tripoli - #AlKhums / #Zliten supply line. So, #PrayforGmata and #PrayforFF #Libya #Feb17
BREAKING - CONFIRMED - G sent two battalions to #Gmata - 1 outside Qasr Khayr and 1 around Ghaneema. Main roads closed. #Libya #Feb17 13 hours ago

RRowleyTucson: #Gaddafi has sent 2 battalions to #Gmata - 1 outside #QasrKhayr & 1 near #Ghaneema. Main roads closed. @USNAVY @NATO 13 hours ago
(possibly copied info)

LibyanLion17 A Free Libyan
BREAKING - CONF. - #Gmata - G forces attacked Qasr Khayr + Alous early morning, indiscriminately firing with 14.5 MG. #Libya #Feb17 2 hours ago
Main areas of the crackdown in #Gmata = Qasr Khayr and Alous. The latter esp. as they always cause problems for G troops. 2 hours ago
BREAKING - CONFIRMED - V. heavy Gunfire in Qasr Khayr and Alous all morning + early aft. Gunfire calmed down a bit now. #Gmata #Libya #Feb17 56 minutes ago
BREAKING - #Gmata - 10 men confirmed to have been arrested. Number is increasing tho. Fighting earlier took place in Ghaneema. #Libya #Feb17 20 minutes ago

ETA a map from LibyanLion17
http://twitter.com/#!/LibyanLion17/status/103511898158411776/photo/1



ETA2:
LibyanLion17 A Free Libyan
BREAKING - CONF. - #Gmata - FF destroy 1 tank, 2 trucks + G cars, 3 G men died, all in Qasr Khayr. They were going to #Zliten. #Libya #Feb17 6 minutes ago

[pinboy3niner]

32. Sniper's bullet ends life-long friendship in Libya

Tue Aug 16, 2011 4:24pm GMT

By Michael Georgy


ZAWIYAH, Libya Aug 16 (Reuters) - Life-long friends Abdul Ghani and Majdi often played soccer and billiards together as youngsters, went to the same law school and then joined the rebel movement fighting to topple Muammar Gaddafi.


A sniper's bullet shattered their dream of opening up a law practice together in a new democratic Libya where they intended to focus on human rights cases.


Minutes after doctors began putting a cloth over Abdul Ghani's corpse in a hospital on the edge of the strategic town of Zawiyah, Majdi was slowly led into the room.


He recognised his lifeless best friend, who had a bullet lodged in his head, then broke down and wept in the arms of an older rebel.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77F0UM20110816

[pinboy3niner]

33. Libya rebels deny talks with Gaddafi government

(Reuters UPDATE 1)

• No secret talks with Gaddafi, says rebel council

• Report of Djerba meeting denied


BENGHAZI, Libya, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Libya's rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) is not holding any talks with Muammar Gaddafi's government or with the U.N. special envoy for Libya to resolve the civil war, the council's head said on Tuesday.


"The NTC would like to assure that there are no negotiations either direct or indirect with the Gaddafi regime or with the special envoy of the United Nations," NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil said at a briefing where he spoke through an interpreter.


Asked about reports of secret negotiations at the weekend on the Tunisian resort island of Djerba, Mustafa Abdel Jalil denied any back-channel communications with Gaddafi.


"I would like to affirm that the NTC has no knowledge and no backing of these talks ... Any political consultations or contacts should be done through or with the council," he said.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL5E7JG24420110816?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

34. Reuters: Latest developments in the Libyan conflict

Tue Aug 16, 2011 5:00pm GMT


Aug 16 (Reuters) - Following are the latest political and military developments in the Libyan crisis.


• Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi fired a Scud missile for the first time in Libya's civil war on Sunday.


• NATO said the use of Scud missiles by Gaddafi could harm civilians, but has as much chance of changing the military course of the war as "throwing dishes against a wall".


• Rebels fighting to end Gaddafi's 41-year rule have seized two strategic towns near Tripoli over the past two days, cutting the city off from its supply lines and leaving the Libyan leader with a dwindling set of options if he is to stay in power.


• Libya's rebel National Transitional Council said it was not holding any talks with Gaddafi's government or with the U.N. special envoy for Libya to resolve the civil war.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77F10V20110816?sp=true

[Iterate]

35. Libya seen through Gadhafi’s keyhole

Libya seen through Gadhafi’s keyhole
August 16, 2011
Posted in August 2011, News, Week Commencing August 15 | 18:10

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — “Mia mia.” It is an extremely popular phrase, widely used in Libya, that translates roughly to “100 percent.”

Nine times out of 10, that is what Libyans said when I asked how they were coping with nightly bombardments by NATO warplanes, electricity blackouts that lasted days and rebel forces who were pressing forward on three fronts.

“Mia mia,” they said with a smile. In other words, everything’s great! No problem!

Was this the cheerful coping method of a society living amid olive groves and palm trees next to the Mediterranean Sea? Or was “mia mia” a survival tactic for people who had grown up within the authoritarian system of Moammar Gadhafi’s perpetual revolution?

more... http://shabablibya.org/news/libya-seen-through-gadhafis-keyhole

[Iterate]

36. Stop the anguish of families of disappeared in Libya

Stop the anguish of families of disappeared in Libya
10 August 2011

“I fear the worst since he has been in the hands of al-Gaddafi forces. But I just want to know if he is dead or alive. If we know , at least we will be able to mourn, and start the healing process.” Sister of 19-year-old Mostafa Ibrahim El-Baghdadi, who disappeared in Misratah in mid-March 2011

Across Libya, anguished families wait to learn the fate of their vanished relatives. Hundreds – possibly thousands – have reportedly been subjected to enforced disappearances by Colonel al-Gaddafi’s forces since the unrest began. Some were arrested before the 17 February “Day of Rage”, in a vain attempt to quell opposition. They face torture and other ill-treatment, and even extrajudicial execution.

The al-Gaddafi forces refuse to disclose any information about the fate or whereabouts of those detained. Some may be held in key detention facilities such as the Ain Zara and Abu Salim prisons, the Salaheddin facility in Tripoli, and the Sirte military police barracks; but the authorities deny independent bodies access to these places.

The disappeared – mostly men – come from across Libya: Benghazi and other part of Eastern Libya, Misratah, the Nafusa Mountain; and the capital, Tripoli. They include those suspected of opposing al-Gaddafi; those taken by retreating al-Gaddafi forces; and those who vanished in fighting in the east. Some were taken away after raids by al-Gaddafi forces on opposition-controlled territory; others when leaving opposition strongholds. Since the unrest, the families of political prisoners already held by the Tripoli authorities have had no news about their imprisoned relatives.
While some have been released, many others remain disappeared. Some former detainees reported torture or ill-treatment by al-Gaddafi forces in Sirte and Tripoli. Some have appeared on state television, apparently after being tortured, purportedly “confessing” to joining armed groups, belonging to al-Qa’ida, being drug addicts, or having been deceived by the opposition.

more... http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/stop-anguish-families-disappeared-libya

Just one of the tens of thousands -
Gulf_of_Sirte Sirtawi
One of the hostages taken by G forces. The man is from #Sirte and his whereabouts are still unknown. http://t.co/G1tK1TO

[pinboy3niner]

37. Also known elsewhere as "Los desaparecidos"

In any language, the term doesn't begin to do justice to the suffering of those affected by this repressive tactic, and their families.

Never mind the torture and killing--it takes cold, hard men and women to even resort to inflicting this on their fellow human beings.

[pinboy3niner]

38. Rebels scorn talks with isolated Gaddafi

Reiters WRAPUP 6:

• Zawiyah rebels under rocket and sniper fire

• U.S. says Gaddafi's days numbered

• Rebels deny any move to make deal with Gaddafi


By Robert Birsel


BENGHAZI, Libya, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Rebels fighting to topple Muammar Gaddafi scorned reports of secret talks with the Libyan leader on Monday as their forces fought to secure gains and the United States said Gaddafi's days were numbered.

After 41 years of supreme power in his oil-rich desert state 69-year-old Gaddafi was isolated in the capital Tripoli, with reinvigorated rebel forces closing in from the West and South.

...


In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Gaddafi's forces had been thrown back onto the defensive, and reports that a senior figure in the Libyan security apparatus had defected indicated the regime was cracking.

...


Medical workers at one of the (Zawiya's) hospitals said 20 people, a mixture of rebel fighters and civilians, were killed on Monday, and the death toll for Tuesday had reached one.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL5E7JG00820110816?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

39. UN peace envoy leaves Tunisia after talks

The AFP news agency said UN envoy on Libya flew out of Tunisia after holding informal talks with Libyan government officials and rebel representatives, airport sources said.


UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's special envoy, including former Jordanian foreign minister Abdul Ilah al-Khatib, told the official TAP news agency he had met "representatives of the National Transition Council and the Libyan government."


Amid growing speculation over reports that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime was on its last legs, Khatib stressed however that his meetings "were not part of official negotiations."


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/libya-aug-16-2011-2123

[Iterate]

40. The Fight for Sabratha

The Fight for Sabratha
2:26 PM, Aug 16, 2011 • By ANN MARLOWE

Western Libya—Only about thirty volunteers of the three hundred strong Martyr Wasam Qaliyah Brigade are gathered around former Libyan army general Senussi Mohamed as he outlines the plan for the liberation of the coastal city of Sabratha, about 90 kilometers north from Qaddafi’s forces. Crouched in a pleasant pine grove in Jafara Valley, just north of Zintan, they listen intently. This morning, they struck their camp in Jadu, in the western mountains, to join the Sabratha Brigade and volunteers from other cities in what’s planned as a big operation for this Lilliputian war, where groups of 100 or 200 barely trained volunteers skirmish in the streets of rundown cities.

Sabratha is directly ahead, but the men's main objective is moving westward along the coastline to liberate their coastal hometown of Zwara, a busy port of 47,000 inhabitants, all ethnic Amazigh or Berber. About 100 kilometers west of Tripoli, Zwara is the first town of consequence in Libya as one enters from the Tunisian border, another 65 kilometers west.

Zwara is historically hostile to the Libyan dictatorship, which suppressed its distinctive language and culture. The townsfolk rebelled against Qaddafi on February 18th and remained free until March 14th when Qaddafi’s forces invaded the city with 700 men and 13 tanks. The government forces used Grad missiles and other anti-armor and anti-aircraft weapons, but the city’s fighters killed 16 of them and seized 300 weapons. Qaddafi’s forces killed seven locals and in the ensuing months have jailed more than 200, including women. There are allegations of rape as well

Many of the inhabitants of Zwara fled to Tunisia, but a lot of men of fighting age went to Jadu, about 120 kilometers south in the western mountains, to train to retake their city. The inhabitants of Jadu are also ethnic Amazigh, and for the Amazigh this war is about two types of independence: not only freedom for Libya, but freedom to maintain their distinct ethnic identity. For decades, Qaddafi banned the teaching, broadcast or speaking of Amazigh, an ancient indigenous language written in an alphabet that looks like pictographs, called tefenagh. Children could not officially receive or use Amazigh names. Here, all the men speak in Amazigh.

more... http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/fight-sabratha_590281.html?nopager=1

Good piece, but the author is too good to be blogging with that lot. I hope she moves on.

[pinboy3niner]

41. Africans stuck in Tunisia after fleeing from Libya

Tue Aug 16, 2011 6:57pm GMT

By Ulf Laessing


RAS JIDR, Tunisia Aug 16 (Reuters) - Five months after Sudanese worker Mohammed Hassan fled civil war in Libya he is still stranded in a tent city just across the border in Tunisia.


"In my own country there is a conflict and violence. I cannot go there so where do I go now?" said Mohammed, who comes from Sudan's troubled Darfur region. He left years ago for Libya to escape violence at home.


The United Nations says almost 900,000 people, including 200,000 foreign workers, have fled Libya into Tunisia to escape fighting after rebels launched an uprising against the 41-year-rule of Muammar Gaddafi in February.


African workers in particular were frequently targeted by Gaddafi's opponents, who sometimes accused them of working for the government as mercenaries.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLAE58476820110816

[pinboy3niner]

42. Gadhafi's troops use hospital as base, doctors say

By KARIN LAUB - Associated Press | AP – 49 mins ago


ZAWIYA, Libya (AP) — The day Libyan rebels advanced into the strategic city of Zawiya, Moammar Gadhafi's forces clamped down on the local hospital.


They forced doctors to perform hours of consecutive surgeries, put snipers on the roof and an anti-aircraft gun near the entrance, two doctors who managed to escape said Tuesday.


As the Libyan regime's grip on this coastal city of 200,000 is slipping, stories are seeping out about the reign of fear and intimidation imposed here over the past five months.


Residents interviewed in rebel-controlled parts of Zawiya gave accounts of mass arrests in the preceding months. A woman said her son-in-law and two of his relatives were arrested and killed by Gadhafi agents. A rebel fighter said he was subjected to beatings and electric shocks.


http://news.yahoo.com/gadhafis-troops-hospital-doctors-185422331.html

[joshcryer]

50. Libyan Revolution Day 181 updates below, current time in Libya, 4:33am Wednesday, August 17

[Iterate]

43. Xinhua: Gaddafi Forces declare victory in #Misrata

Libyan gov't forces claim victory in Misrata
English.news.cn 2011-08-16 17:25:33

TRIPOLI, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi have declared victory in the stronghold of Misrata as soldiers fought their way into the city center, a government spokesman said Monday.

Government forces had started wiping out the remaining rebel forces inside Misrata, a city some 200 km east of Tripoli, Moussa Ibrahim told a local television station.

Ibrahim said local tribal forces had provided much help to maintain the city's security during the fighting.

The spokesman also denied the rebel claim that they had taken the city of Zawiyah, some 50 km west of Tripoli. He said the rebel forces in Zawiyah were weak and that it was only a matter of time before their defeat.

more... http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-08/16/c_131053298.htm

This story has been active for days. First it was too dumb to report. Now it's too common to ignore. These are a few of the sources I've sometimes referred to as statetv repeaters, but even the usual cast in that category, like RT and Presstv, won't touch this one.

English Pravda.ru isn't troubled though:
Libya: NATO is getting desperate, Misratah liberated from NATO/terrorists 16.08.2011
http://english.pravda.ru/opinion/columnists/16-08-2011/118752-nato_desperate-0/

It's picked up by tweeters like these. They often have organizations and bloggers behind them:
GloPeaceLibya Global Peace Libya
#Libya is #Green including #Zawiah & #Sorman also #Misrata liberated all #Rebel Terrorists fled out to Sea bye bye #Gaddafi4ever RT 1 hour ago

stopimperialism stopimperialism
Liberation of #Misrata from rebel terrorists=decisive moment in the struggle. Western media lies won't change reality. mathaba.net/news/?x=628042 5 hours ago

ted619 Ted Friedman
Even the AntiWar sites will not get off the propaganda tip and report the facts about #Libya! #Misrata is Green including the port! 6 hours ago

syriancommando ✩ Syrian Commando ✩
Further confirmation from #Xinhua: Libyan government forces claim victory in #Misrata news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/wo… #Libya 8 hours ago

For_Gaddafi #Gaddafi is troops attacked to #rebels on all fronts. #Libya. #feb17 #war #NATO

ggohom homie
Battle for Libya <16. August 2011> CONFIRMED: MISRATA HAS BEEN LIBERATED. libyasos.blogspot 1 hour ago

alberarce albertoarce
¿qué fuman? Los Freaks de Venezuela continúan repitiendo que <16. August 2011> MISRATA HAS BEEN LIBERATED. libyasos.blogspot 35 minutes ago

SZhazi Sarsenbaeva Zhazi
Confirmed: Misrata is Liberated - mathaba.net/t/?x=628042 #mathaba 1 hour ago

Al_Fatah69 Al Fatah
Devolopments in Zawiyah and Misrata in Western Libya since August 14, 2011 fb.me/18pDVmYZj

The story is also found in blogs:
Waterput Thoughts in English
Devolopments in Zawiyah and Misrata in Western Libya since August 14, 2011
waterput.yolasite.

Battle for Libya: MISRATA HAS BEEN LIBERATED <15. Auguts 2011.>
libyasos.blogspot
(That one is famous for, among other things, being the only place on the internet where you can learn how 3 NATO SHIPS WERE SUNK)

Confirmed: Misrata is Liberated
Posted: 2011/08/16 From: Mathaba

Mathaba is in another universe. Within no time you learn that when you encounter that color green for a blog theme, click it away.

It was celebrated on youtube as well:
Libya: Tripoli celebrates the liberation of Misratah, 15 August 2011, II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTAUV7m5S2k&feature=youtube_gdata_player
(That one is for real. People in Tripoli really were celebrating the fall of Misrata)

Libya : Lions Libyans purify Missurata <15-08-2011>
http://www.youtube.com/user/Rayyisse#p/u/17/Wy8Rsn4tb7M
(that's from the famous Algerian channel)

Reports. 1/ Misrata retaken from rebels by Libyan Army (2nd Half of Video)
From: 108morris108 | 14 Aug 2011 youtube
"Morris" is particularly lame. He found a real live Libyan (Algerian, that is) who he skypes with and gets the real inside story. The connection was made by means of a people's committee member from Bani Walid. They sometimes have a conference call with "Lenore", a Spanish lady who seems better ill-informed. They all connect and talk about tribes.

I first noticed her for a claim she made that Libya was being "uranium bombed". She cited as her source a doctor from South America who couldn't be found anywhere on the internet except in another article where he quoted her as a source. Thus the circle was complete.

Finally, this roundup wouldn't be complete without checking globalresearch. They were happy to repeat this often quoted gem:
"The regime controls around 20 per cent more territory than it did in the immediate aftermath of the uprising on 17 February." (Independent.co.uk - 2011-07-27)
Did they repeat the statetv story of Misrata? Nah, too nutty for them.

[UnseenUndergrad]

45. Frankly...

I'm fully expecting Ibrahim to be spouting this stuff when he's in a cell in Benghazi.

But just to be on the safe side, could someone get on the horn to Misrata, just to double-check?

[joshcryer]

48. Mathaba used to be a sacred source for counterrevolutionaries here...

...until I guess the mods decided it was a propaganda site and deleted one of the OPs linking there for the umpteenth time.

Post #35 links http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/08/16/libya.gadhafi.keyhole/">an article that pretty much debunks the very essence of Gaddafi's regime:

They were furious at my reported estimate that "more than 10,000" regime supporters attended a recent pro-Gadhafi rally. They would have preferred the headline printed in the regime's English-language Al-Jamahiriya News: "More than Five Million Libyans organized in the Marches." Considering Libya's entire population is estimated at just over 6 million, Al-Jamahiriya's alleged rally would have been a remarkable event to witness, especially when broad swaths of the country were still under the control of the rebels.

Meanwhile Mathaba and other sources reported "millions" in their sources, which was laughable. The reports were even reflected here on DU. It was a joke.

[Iterate]

76. And another...

"Lizzie's Liberation" -I should have included it, as it's key to the story.

Another blogger on AJE has followed this and posts an update:
Marevostrum
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/node/51656#comment-289282027

Mathaba is saying Daffyforce has taken Misrata. Their proof?
"So, we now have six independent sources that state that Misrata has been liberated: A young Libyan Army solider, Dr. Moussa Ibrahim, the Minister of Information, Lizze Phelan, Representatives of 200 Libyan tribes at a press conference, Leonor, A Mathaba reporter inside Libya"

mathaba net/news/

Who indeed could stand against those founts of truth, Moussa Pinocchio-nose, Lizzie Phelan, and Leonor (a Spanish blogger allegedly in Tripoli who announced a week ago that the Gaddafi army had captured "15 NATO soldiers" - but not even Moussa Ibrahim was interested enough to parade them on camera)? The 200 tribes representatives either don't exist or are busily defecting to Tunisia and Libya. The Mathaba reporter probably spends all his time informing on the other journos at the Rixos.

So, when the trolls come a-calling (if they dare) with this faked-up news, be kind. After all they are only quoting "six independent sources".

At first I was somewhat amused by this until I looked deeper into the accusations defaming free Libyans. They are truly vile. It might not matter much now, but it cuts off the possibility of help and cooperation from leftist activists later on. And the hot rhetoric against Nato only weakens the case of those in the future who might be investigating real transgressions or mistakes.

[Iterate]

44. Numidia (Dania Ben Sassi)

Uploaded by SavaSavanovic on 15 Aug 2011
http://youtu.be/s9yY0uQEHGw

This is a song dedicated to the Amazigh Berber fighters in Libya and their efforts to liberate their homes and lands in the west.
Support the Libyan Revolution and Berbers in their fight for freedom.

Lead Vocals: Dania Ben Sassi
Support Vocals: Aksel Ben Sassi, Tarak Ben Sassi, Ritaj Husein, Ilias Husein
Lyrics: Tarak Ben Sassi
Melody: Tarak Ben Sassi, Dania Ben Sassi
Music arangements and studio mixing: Andrei Andreievic
Camera/Video by:Aksel Ben Sassi

Here is the link for the fan made video of the first song we made called Itri http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJEvMWb1H7M&feature=BFa&list=FLEW1dRUh...
If you like the video and song, please share it as much as you can on Facebook MySpace via Email or any other way you can. Thank You :)

[joshcryer]

46. Libya's Zawiyah on edge after rebel capture

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/08/16/uk-libya-zawiyah-scene-idUKTRE77E3NP20110816">Libya's Zawiyah on edge after rebel capture
...

Gaddafi's men have recaptured Zawiyah twice before so the rebels say they are being extra cautious and thorough.

"The snipers are in many tall buildings in Zawiyah. It will take time to hunt them down," said Oraybee, 26, who was an accountant before he took up arms.

In central Zawiyah, a few families drove cars past a group of about 40 rebels and beeped to celebrate the rebel advance. A man and his sons grinned as fighters sped by in pick-up trucks mounted with machineguns.

...

He said he was also praying government forces never return to Zawiyah. "Gaddafi terrified us for months. His men randomly raided homes and beat people and took their valuables," said Waleed, with tears in his eyes.

...

I hope Waleed's sister makes it and is a testament to the bravery of the freedom fighters.

[joshcryer]

47. Turkey sends more fuel to Libya as rebels advance

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/08/16/uk-turkey-libya-idUKTRE77E47P20110816">Turkey sends more fuel to Libya as rebels advance
Turkey is ramping up shipments of diesel to Libyan rebels, effectively joining Qatar and trader Vitol in fuelling the uprising against leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Trade sources told Reuters Turkey is preparing to deliver a another, larger shipment of fuel to the rebels in the east as part of a multi-million dollar deal.

Ankara is stepping up support at a time that the rebels are in their strongest position since the uprising began in February against 41 years of Gaddafi rule. They have advanced into the town of Zawiyah, 50 km west of Tripoli, cutting off Gaddafi's stronghold in the capital from its supply lifeline to Tunisia.

"The motivation for this kind of relationship is political, more than trade" said a source with direct knowledge of the deal. "The purpose is improving relations."

Turkey knows the victor here.

[joshcryer]

49. Libya rebels see victory by end of August

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/1147451/1/.html">Libya rebels see victory by end of August
BENGHAZI: Libya's rebels were bolstered by fresh battlefield advances Wednesday, as leaders claimed the six-month-old civil war had entered a decisive phase and could end within weeks.

Revitalized rebel forces pushed further to isolate Tripoli and turn the screws on Muammar Gaddafi's regime, moving toward a western town that links the capital and Sirte -- Gaddafi's hometown and a stronghold for his military.

"The scouting teams of the revolutionaries reached the outskirts of Al-Heisha after expelling Gaddafi forces," the rebel military command said in a statement early Wednesday.

...

"We are entering a decisive phase. We hope to celebrate the final victory at the same time as the end of (Muslim holy month of) Ramadan" at the end of August, he said.

I post this even though I think it's wildly optimistic, I think there will be another lull in fighting as both sides regroup, Tripoli cannot be attacked until more civilians flee, over a period of time as the last lingering supporters realize which side has won.

So if it doesn't "end by the end of August" expect derisive mocking, though I don't think anyone else here believes it will end that soon either.

We can hope though.

[joshcryer]

51. AJE: Libya rebels push further to isolate Tripoli

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/08/201181715442761275.html">Libya rebels push further to isolate Tripoli
Rebel forces have pushed further to isolate Tripoli, moving toward a western town that links the capital and Sirte -- Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's hometown and a stronghold for his military.

"The scouting teams of the revolutionaries reached the outskirts of Al-Heisha after expelling Gaddafi forces," the rebel military command said in a statement early on Wednesday.


Al-Heisha lies roughly 70km south of Misrata and 250km from Tripoli, near two key crossroads that link loyalist-held territory in the west with that in the oil-rich Sirte basin.

It was just the latest in a series of battlefield operations to isolate the capital.

Wondering why I have an opportunity to actually post news and I realized pinboy3niner isn't here / is chilling elsewhere hopefully. I'll hope he stays away from the Nescafe as he takes his break!

[pinboy3niner]

52. Rebels scorn talks with isolated Gaddafi

This is Reuters' CORRECTED-WRAPUP 7:

Tue Aug 16, 2011 10:46pm GMT

• Zawiyah rebels under rocket and sniper fire

• U.S. says Gaddafi's days are now numbered

• Gaddafi spokesman says they've said that months


By Robert Birsel


BENGHAZI, Libya, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Rebels fighting to topple Muammar Gaddafi scorned reports of secret talks with the Libyan leader on Tuesday as their forces fought to secure gains and the United States said Gaddafi's days were numbered.


After 41 years of supreme power in his oil-rich desert state 69-year-old Gaddafi was isolated in the capital Tripoli, with reinvigorated rebel forces closing in from the West and South.


Libya's rebel National Transitional Council (NTC), recognised by many of the NATO nations whose air power is supporting their assault, denied any kind of negotiation with Gaddafi to resolve the six-month-old conflict.


"The NTC would like to affirm that there are no negotiations either direct or indirect with the Gaddafi regime or with the special envoy of the United Nations," said NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFL5E7JG00820110816?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

53. NATO cites 'significant advances' in Libya

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• The battle for Zawiya is called "urban warfare"

• Rebel forces in Tripoli are awaiting the "zero hour," a spokesman says

• Some Gadhafi forces are going to Tripoli from other fronts

• Secretary of State Clinton expresses optimism

By the CNN Wire Staff
August 17, 2011 -- Updated 0118 GMT (0918 HKT)


Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Over the past few days, anti-Gadhafi forces have made "significant advances" -- in the northwest and in the regions of Misrata and al-Brega -- a spokesman for NATO's military operation told reporters Tuesday.


"Anti-Gadhafi forces are now assuming control of the key approaches to Tripoli," said Col. Roland Lavoie, who described the advances as "the most significant anti-Gadhafi territorial gain we have seen in months."


Since the end of July, as the threat from pro-Gadhafi forces has diminished, thousands of people have returned to their homes in the western Nafusa mountains, he said.


Since Friday, the northwest coastal city of Misrata has been free of pro-Gadhafi forces, he said. And the threat from nearby Zlitan has diminished as pro-Gadhafi forces are being pushed farther west, he added.

...


http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/08/16/libya.war/

[pinboy3niner]

54. Dupe

[pinboy3niner]

55. Misrata Returns to Normal After Six-Month Siege as Libyan Rebels Advance

Source: Bloomberg

By Chris Stephen - Aug 16, 2011 2:00 PM PT


Libya’s rebel-held city of Misrata, under siege by forces loyal to Muammar Qaddafi for the past six months, is experiencing something new: traffic jams.


With rebels advancing toward the Libyan capital, Tripoli, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the west, honking horns and the voices of children playing in Misrata’s streets have replaced the explosions of incoming rockets and artillery shells.


“We are confident we are safe now,” English student Aisha Alifafer, 20, said in an interview yesterday. “We can go shopping and visit others. In the last six months we could not go outside and see the sun.”

...


Rebel forces reached the nearby town of Tawarga to the east over the weekend, pushing government Grad missile launchers out of range and ending nightly attacks on downtown Misrata. In the west, opposition forces claim to be inside Zawiya, 35 miles from Tripoli.

...


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-16/misrata-once-besieged-relaxes-as-libyan-rebels-advance-against-qaddafi.html

[pinboy3niner]

56. "We want freedom"

A child joins demonstrators protesting against Libya's Muammar Qaddafi outside the Libyan Embassy in London. (Photo by Reuters/Luke MacGregor)

[pinboy3niner]

57. A (2 1/2 year old) child's killing freeze-frames Syria's tragedy...

Posted in LBN by Turborama:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4963715

[pinboy3niner]

58. NBC: US sends more Predator drones to Libya

Unarmed, unmanned aircraft being used for surveillance missions

By Courtney Kube and Jim Miklaszewski
NBC News

updated 8/16/2011 7:18:43 PM ET


WASHINGTON — The United States stepped up its military assistance to the NATO mission in Libya slightly this week, sending in two additional Predator drones to fly combat air patrols, a senior defense official told NBC News.


On Sunday morning, Gadhafi military forces near Sirte fired the first SCUD missile since this conflict began. The SCUD landed in the desert, about 50 miles east of Brega, but did not cause any casualties.


A U.S. military official could not say how many — if any — SCUD missiles Gadhafi’s forces may have in their arsenal still. SCUD missiles have a range of more than 200 miles but are notoriously inaccurate.

...


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44166967/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

[pinboy3niner]

59. Report: Libyan rebels move towards Tripoli

Source: Monsters and Critics

Aug 17, 2011, 8:02 GMT


Cairo/Tripoli - Rebels were advancing towards the Libyan capital after seizing a town between Tripoli and Sirte, the hometown of Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi, broadcaster Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday.


The commander of the Libyan rebels reportedly said in a statement that 'revolutionary forces' had flushed out troops loyal to Gaddafi from the town of al-Heesha, 140 kilometres west of Sirte.


Earlier in the week, the rebels said they had advanced into the centre of the key oil-producing port of Zawiya, 40 kilometres west of Tripoli.


Al-Jazeera reported Wednesday that the rebels had captured the security chief in Zawiya and others loyal to Gaddafi, including senior army officers.

...


http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/africa/news/article_1657410.php/Report-Libyan-rebels-move-towards-Tripoli

[pinboy3niner]

60. Gaddafi isolated as rebels fight towards Tripoli

Wed Aug 17, 2011 9:01am GMT

• Zawiyah rebels under rocket and sniper fire

• U.S. says Gaddafi's days are now numbered


By Michael Georgy


OUTSKIRTS OF ZAWIYAH, Libya (Reuters) - Libyan rebels aiming to topple Muammar Gaddafi are coming under fire from government troops as the insurgents fight to secure their latest gains and lay siege to the capital Tripoli.

...


After 41 years of supreme power in his oil-rich desert state 69-year-old Gaddafi is looking isolated, with reinvigorated rebel forces closing in on the capital from the west and south and cutting off its road links to the outside.


Six months into their revolt, the rebels appear to have pushed the war into a decisive phase in the last few days by seizing most of the city of Zawiyah on Tripoli's western outskirts, as well as a town south of the capital.


Gaddafi's forces have been fighting to retake Zawiyah, which controls the main highway into Tripoli from the west. Snipers are still on rooftops and the city has come under fire from rockets and mortars.


A reuters reporting team on Zawiyah's outskirts said it appeared quiet on Wednesday morning. Medical workers at a hospital there said three people had been killed and 35 injured on Tuesday, most of them civilians.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77G09F20110817?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

61. Rebels battle Libyan forces for Zawiya refinery

August 17, 2011 06:55 AM EST


ZAWIYA, Libya (AP) — Rebels and Moammar Gadhafi's forces are fighting for control of the only functioning oil refinery in Libya in the western city of Zawiya.


The refinery supplies oil and gas to the capital Tripoli, Gadhafi's stronghold and home to a third of Libya's six million people.


Rebel fighter Ramadan Keshada said Wednesday that his forces control parts of the refinery complex in the city's north on the Mediterranean coast, while some Gadhafi forces and civilian workers remain inside.


He says rebels and regime forces clashed there on Tuesday, then the opposition fighters pulled out at nightfall and made a new push in the daylight.


An Associated Press reporter in Zawiya saw three pickup tricks loaded with fighters speeding toward the refinery.

...


http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iT0Xzr0RAGFGaXmDcTr8UoBP-7Yw?docId=01144f8bc3d549f188002675ce21822f

[pinboy3niner]

62. Rebels launch push to consolidate Tripoli siege

Wed Aug 17, 2011 11:15am GMT


• Zawiyah rebels poised to attack Zawiyah oil refinery

• Rebel flag flying in most parts of the town

• U.S. says Gaddafi's days are now numbered


By Michael Georgy


ZAWIYAH, Libya, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Libyan rebels launched an assault on an oil refinery on Wednesday to drive the last remaining troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi out of a city on Tripoli's outskirts and consolidate their siege of the capital.

...


"There are some snipers inside the refinery facility. We control the gates of the refinery. We will be launching an operation to try to take control of it shortly," said rebel fighter Abdulkarim Kashaba.


Heavy shooting could be heard near the refinery and Gaddafi's green flags could be seen still flying from a building and an electrical pylon. The rest of the city now flies the red, black and green flag used by the rebels.


Under a bridge, rebels loaded large-calibre ammunition into a car and headed towards the refinery. Other rebels could be seen speeding in that direction.


Elsewhere in Zawiyah appeared quiet on Wednesday and under rebel control. The city was largely deserted and shops were boarded up, with clusters of rebel fighters in the streets.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77G09F20110817?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

63. Libya crisis: Tripoli 'at its most vulnerable'

Source: BBC

17 August 2011 Last updated at 04:23 ET


Libyan forces loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi are fighting rebels for control of the coastal town of Zawiya, less than 50km (30 miles) west of Tripoli.

Both government and rebels claim to control the town, which lies on a road linking Tripoli to Tunisia's border.

Opposition fighters have claimed big advances in recent days but the government insists it can re-take the lost ground.

The BBC's Matthew Price said that Tripoli appears "at its most vulnerable" since the start of the uprising six months ago.

The footage in this clip is of fighting in Zawiya and the aftermath of recent unrest in the oil town of Brega in the east (1:00):


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14555116

[pinboy3niner]

64. Advancing rebels in western Libya face snipers, shelling

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Most of Zawiya is in "rebel hands"

• Snipers, shelling are in the east of the city

• Rebels are "assuming control" of "key approaches to Tripoli"

From Sara Sidner, CNN

August 17, 2011 7:21 a.m. EDT


Zawiya, Libya (CNN) -- Rebel fighters in Libya, trying to take over a key western city, faced stiff resistance from Moammar Gadhafi's forces on Wednesday, a rebel commander said.


The fighters hope to seize Zawiya, about 30 miles west of the capital, in an effort to advance toward the capital of Tripoli in their fight to topple the Gadhafi regime that has controlled the North African country for decades.


"Most of Zawiya is now in rebel hands, but there are snipers and shelling coming from the east of the city," rebel commander Col. Radwan Heid told CNN.


"The snipers are near Zawiya hospital. People are leaving. They can't stay because of the shelling. These are the last days, God willing."

...


http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/08/17/libya.war/

[pinboy3niner]

65. Libyan rebels tweak transition road map

Source: AFP

2011-08-17 14:59


Benghazi - Libyan rebels have tweaked their road map to include a transfer of power to an elected body within eight months of an eventual ouster of Muammar Gaddafi, followed by the adoption of a constitution.


The National Transitional Council (NTC), the rebels Benghazi-based political and military leadership, amended a plan they mapped out in March with a "constitutional declaration", which AFP reviewed on Wednesday.

...


The council would move its headquarters from the rebel bastion of Benghazi in eastern Libya to the north African nation's historic capital in the west, Tripoli.


Within 30 days of this relocation, the CNT would appoint an interim executive committee - or transitional government - to run the country.


This government would be tasked with organising within eight months the election of a 200-member national transition assembly, or "national conference".

...


More details:
http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/Libyan-rebels-tweak-transition-road-map-20110817

[pinboy3niner]

66. Libya conflict: Beginning of the end?

17 August 2011 Last updated at 09:11 ET

By Jonathan Marcus
BBC defence and diplomatic correspondent


...


Indeed, the final stages of this conflict pose particular problems for Nato whose formal mandate, remember, remains the defence of Libya's civilian population.

...


Nato's intervention began with the immediate goal of protecting the people of Benghazi from advancing government forces.


The war could end with Nato having to ensure the safety of civilians in Tripoli as a new regime advances on the city.


This is going to be the real test of the understandings made between Western governments and the rebels and of the trust invested in the NTC by key Western governments like those in Britain and France.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14560983

[pinboy3niner]

67. Rebels say Gaddafi troops abandon towns in west

Wed Aug 17, 2011 1:47pm GMT


• Rebels launch attack on Zawiyah oil refinery

• Rebels say Gaddafi troops flee western towns Tiji and Badr

• U.S. says Gaddafi's days are now numbered


By Michael Georgy

ZAWIYAH, Libya, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Libyan rebels launched an assault on Wednesday to drive forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi out of a strategic city on Tripoli's outskirts, and said that encircled Gaddafi troops had abandoned two towns further west.

...


A rebel spokesman said remnants of Gaddafi's forces further west -- now cut off from the capital and effectively encircled following the capture of Zawiyah -- had abandoned two towns and were retreating toward the Tunisian border.


"Gaddafi's forces this morning withdrew from the towns of Tiji and Badr because they felt surrounded from all sides," said the spokesman, named Abdulrahman, by telephone from Zintan, a rebel headquarters in the Western Mountains.


"The revolutionaries have now entered Tiji and Badr. The (Gaddafi) brigades retreated to Zuwarah and Jameel, near the Tunisian border. I think they will surrender soon because roads to Tripoli are closed," he added.

...


http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77G09F20110817?sp=true

[inna]

68. Gadhafi support soars amid NATO bombing

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/1258350.html

...
On a fact-finding trip into Tripoli last week, I saw first-hand that Gadhafi has solidified his control over the capital and most of western Libya. Foreign diplomats still based in Tripoli confirmed to me that, since NATO started bombing, Gadhafi support and approval ratings have actually soared to about 85 per cent.

Of the 2,335 tribes in Libya, over 2,000 are still pledging their allegiance to the embattled president. At present, it is the gasoline shortage due to the embargo and lack of electricity from NATO’s bombing that are causing the most hardship to Libyans inside Gadhafi-controlled sectors. However, at present, the people still blame NATO — not Gadhafi — for the shortages.

~snip~

It is possible that the continued embargo, shortage of fuel and downgrading of Libyan utilities will create a humanitarian crisis inside Gadhafi’s Libya so severe that his followers have no choice but to turn on him for their own survival.

However, if that indeed transpires it will be impossible for the West to justify this as being a humanitarian intervention.

[mark7sys]

69. Scott Taylor Raises More Questions Than He Answers

Thank you, Inna. Mr. Taylor's editorial certainly does raise a number of provocative questions.

“Foreign diplomats still based in Tripoli confirmed to me that, since NATO started bombing, Gadhafi support and approval ratings have actually soared to about 85 per cent.”

“Soared” from what? If opinion “actually” “soared”, it must necessarily have started at a very low level to begin with; that itself is a story. Why so low?

How many respondents were there? Out of how many solicitations? What is the margin of error? What is the p-value?

Which “foreign diplomats”? The Russians, perchance? Have any “foreign diplomats” been interviewed by the press on the subject? Seems like a printable story all wrapped up in a nice bow, pre- digested for a Rixos reporter to convey. Have any ever reported on this data which is apparently well-known to diplomats (if to no one else)?

What organizations are doing public polling within Libya? Where is polling being done? Nationwide? In Tripoli? In a particular neighborhood within Tripoli? How many national polls (or even polls within the capital) have been taken since 1969? What percentage of the population (particularly in the capitol) would even be willing to speak to a pollster?

“Of the 2,335 tribes in Libya, over 2,000 are still pledging their allegiance to the embattled president.”

“Still” as of what date … and according to whom? Is there a tabulation of tribes available somewhere specifying who's who? Is there anyone, anywhere, who is privy to this information apart from Mr. Taylor? (If not, then perhaps this genuinely is 'privy' information.)

“... still pledging”? When did they originally pledge? What was the occasion upon which they were … encouraged? … required? … to “pledge” in the first instance?

“It is possible that the continued embargo, shortage of fuel and downgrading of Libyan utilities will create a humanitarian crisis inside Gadhafi’s Libya so severe ...”

Sure: anything's possible. The humanitarian crisis of the refugees from the Nafusa Mountains (and elsewhere) now in Tunisia (and elsewhere) vividly demonstrate the value of preventing humanitarian crises in advance, if possible (one cannot, after all, restore Benghazi and its population to its former state _after_ it has been devastated).

“If that indeed transpires it will be impossible for the West to justify this as being a humanitarian intervention.”

What is the antecedent of “this”?

If anyone has answers to any of these questions, please share.

--------------------------

“The rebellion in Libya has been more of a media war than a full-scale armed clash.”

Many thanks, Mr. Taylor: this news comes to the peace-loving among us as a great relief!

[al bupp]

70. Well put, sir

And allow me to be the 1st to welcome you both to DU, in general, and to this thread, in particular!

[tabatha]

72. Thanks for that.

"“Of the 2,335 tribes in Libya"

It is believed that there are currently 140 different tribes in Libya. Tribes and clans that have demonstrable influence in the country are about 30 or 32. Colonel Gaddafi belongs to the Gaddafi tribe. Majority of Libyans depend on the tribal connections which is the source of their rights. Largest and most influential among them are 2 tribes Bani Salim and Bani Hilal, settled near Tripoli.

http://magaffar.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/libyan-tribal-map/

[mark7sys]

83. Libyan Tribes: Categorized

Glad to have that cleared up about the tribes, tabatha. In view of the number of Tamazight dialects – and in view of the number of recognized ethnic groups in the country – I had been thinking that 2300+ tribes must be a breathtaking overreach.

For those interested, here is a convenient list of major tribes (alphabetically, and, separately, by region):
http://www.sandraoffthestrip.com/2011/02/26/libyan-tribes-in-alphabetical-order-and-by-east-or-west/

“The official number of tribes and clans in Libya seems to be about 140, but many of those appear to be subsets of each other. According to the Libyan social scientist, Dr. Faraj Adulaziz Najam, there are about 30 tribes or family clans considered significant.”

http://www.sandraoffthestrip.com/2011/02/22/nearly-impossible-to-wade-through-maze-of-libyan-tribes/

Similarly:

“There about 140 tribes and influential large families in Libya, regional expert Hanspeter Mattes told German magazine Der Spiegel, though only 30 have political influence.”

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Backchannels/2011/0224/Libya-tribes-Who-s-who


I sincerely hope that Mr. Taylor has now undertaken a “fact-finding” mission to Syria. Can't wait to see what amazing facts will finally be brought to light there.

[pinboy3niner]

84. Thanks, mark7sys

And welcome to DU! :hi:

[Iterate]

85. Another way to gauge Taylor's judgment comes from these lines:

"Despite all these measures, the ragtag collection of fractious units that compose the rebels have been unable to make any serious tactical headway against Gadhafi loyalists — let alone topple the dictator.

On a fact-finding trip into Tripoli last week, I saw first-hand that Gadhafi has solidified his control over the capital and most of western Libya. "
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/1258350.html

No need to list the dozens of towns and cities that have been part of the recent serious tactical headway.

His expertise though is in military matters, not surveys, demographics, or polls. An 85% popularity is 65 points higher than any other estimate I've seen (ranging from 5% to 20%), and even those are only tentatively offered as educated guesses by Tripoli residents who could speak freely. Truth is, we don't know.

Another way of gauging support is from the rallies. Ignoring the statetv overestimates, (see Clay Claiborne, http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/07/19/996082/-Tripoli-Green-Square-Reality-Check?via=blog_511082 ), they range from satellite counts of 12,000 at one to about 40,000 at the largest. Ignoring also for the moment the compulsory and coerced attendance plus those bussed in, that's about 6% of the adult population of Tripoli. Even if only half of the active supporters could attend, it's still only 12%. Even if we consider it as a percentage of adult males, that's still only 24%. It's a long road to get to 85. Wholly unrealistic.

For context, when Gaddafi's son was buried only about 2,000 attended. For context, about 40,000 to 80,000 are political prisoners.

Finally, there's a conceptual difference that often gets misunderstood. These are not North American-style campaign rallies, and neither are the support estimates like North American-style opinion. That opinion took 42 years to form and isn't going to change overnight.

Anyway, welcome to DU, great post.

[tabatha]

71. We discovered a mass grave containing 150 bodies in Tawargha.

A rebel spokesman from the rebel-held city of Misrata to the east of Tripoli said rebels had found the buried bodies of civilians slaughtered by Gaddafi forces.

"We discovered a mass grave containing 150 bodies in Tawargha. These are the corpses of civilians kidnapped from Misrata by Gaddafi's loyalists," he said. Rebels found a video "showing kidnappers cutting the throats of people," he said.

The spokesman said rebel forces were now outside a place called Hisha about 100 km (60 miles) west of Misrata on the road to Tripoli. "They are now on the coastal road," he said.

http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCATRE77A2Y920110817?sp=true

[tabatha]

73. Tripoli Surrounded, Cut Off - Juan Cole

Posted on 08/17/2011 by Juan

Aljazeera Arabic is reporting directly from Zawiya (to the west of Tripoli along the Mediterranean), where Free Libya forces have liberated some 80 percent of the city, all but the eastern areas and the refinery. People in most of Zawiya look pretty happy about the end of their ordeal. Stories are coming out about arbitrary arrests, torture, and disappearances during the period since March that Qaddafi’s forces ruled the city with tank shells and secret police. Qaddafi brigades have invaded a hospital in the east and taken medical personel hostage, placing snipers on the roof. Another sniper at the Martyrs’ Square has been wreaking havoc, and killed a woman in her living room. There had also been shelling of the city by Grad missiles launched from trucks, but the Aljazeera television crew seemed to move around without fear on Tuesday. NATO war planes hit positions of Qaddafi brigades to the east of Zawiya Tuesday affording protection to the city from indiscriminate bombardment.

The rebels say that they have complete control of Gharyan (Garyan) to the south of Tripoli, which sits astride a major smuggling route from Algeria.

The Voice of Free Libya broadcasting from Misrata alleged Tuesday that Qaddafi brigades in Surman have defected to the Free Libya forces who have taken most of the city, according to the Open Source Center.

It also reports that 5 officers in Tripoli who attempted to defect were arrested by Qaddafi security men and have been executed. It is also claimed that Qaddafi’s forces are refusing to let people freely leave the capital.

http://www.juancole.com/2011/08/tripoli-surrounded-cut-off.html

[tabatha]

74. Misurata's fighters have only the sea at their backs

The Gadafy regime seems to be twisting in the wind six months into the Libyan uprising, writes CHRIS STEPHEN

REBEL FIGHTER Farouk Arifay plans to mark the six-month anniversary of the Libyan uprising today by heading for his favourite place - the beach.

Misurata's Jazeera beach is like a nice beach anywhere in the world, with its soft sand and turquoise waters - if you ignore the grumble of gunfire to the west and the boom of Nato jets overhead.

As Libya's rebels score victory after victory on their drive to Tripoli, many in the city are celebrating, but Arifay plans a bit of quiet reflection first.

"My life was the beach before," explains this cherub-faced former student who is 20 going on 60, as he looks back over six months of hard fighting. "All my hobbies were the beach. I used to go harpooning. My uncle taught me, he showed me how you got to be quick, or the fish gets away."

The concrete beach hut where he used to spend idle days is still here, now painted, like almost everything else in this city, in the red black and green of the rebel tricolour. "We love this flag - even I want to paint it on my skin," he says.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0817/1224302579003.html

[tabatha]

75. Rebels See Victory By End of August

Libya's rebels were pushing further on Wednesday to isolate Tripoli in what their leaders have confidently predicted is a decisive phase in a six-month civil war that could end within weeks.

Further turning the screws on Moamer Kadhafi's regime, they moved toward a western town that links the capital and Sirte - Kadhafi's hometown and a stronghold for his military.

"The scouting teams of the revolutionaries reached the outskirts of Al-Heisha after expelling Kadhafi forces," the rebel military command said early Wednesday.

Al-Heisha lies roughly 70 kilometres (45 miles) south of Misrata and 250 kilometres (150 miles) from Tripoli, near two key crossroads that link loyalist-held territory in the west with that in the oil-rich Sirte basin.

It was the latest in a series of battlefield operations to cut off the capital, which the rebels hope will force defections from the regime and spark a Tripoli uprising against the nearly 42-year-old regime.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201108171151.html

[tabatha]

77. Just for one family and their loot

EndTyranny101 Ahmed Sanalla
#NTC Chairman: We estimate the number of dead (Martyrs) to be at 25,000, number of injured at 70,000 number of missing at 5000 #Libya #Feb17
11 minutes ago

[tabatha]

78. Gaddafi troops abandon towns in west, revolutionaries zero in on refinery

After 41 years of supreme power, the 69-year-old Gaddafi is looking isolated, with reinvigorated revolutionary forces closing in on the capital from the west and south and cutting off its road links to the outside.

....


An increasingly confident revolutionary leadership has dismissed reports that it was holding secret talks with representatives of the Gaddafi in neighbouring Tunisia.

Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) denied negotiating with Gaddafi to resolve the conflict. Sources have said the two sides were meeting in Tunisia this week where a U.N. envoy has also arrived for talks.

“The NTC would like to affirm that there are no negotiations either direct or indirect with the Gaddafi regime or with the special envoy of the United Nations,” said NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil. Gaddafi must step down and leave Libya, he said.

In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Gaddafi’s forces had been thrown back onto the defensive.

“I think the sense is that Gaddafi’s days are numbered.”

http://english.libya.tv/2011/08/17/gaddafi-troops-abandon-towns-in-west-revolutionaries-zero-in-on-refinery/

[tabatha]

79. Aid Agencies Finds Libyan Camp Conditions 'Horrific'

An inter-agency assessment mission to the remote southeastern Libyan town of Al-Kufrah has found around 3,000 to 4,000 African migrants living under horrific conditions in a camp on the outskirts of the town. The U.N. and private aid agencies on the mission report the mainly Chadian and Sudanese migrants have no basic services, are subject to theft and physical assault and are desperate to leave.

The assessment team says the African migrants are in desperate need of help. It says they are living under basic shelter and without access to running water, sanitation, electricity or security.

Spokeswoman for the International Organization for Migration, Jemini Pandya, says the migrants are living under very flimsy, open structures. She says the rudimentary shelters are constructed from anything they can find-bits of plastic or clothing. And, these are tacked onto wooden branches, which are then covered with straw.

Al-Kufrah is in a remote area near the Sudanese border.The assessment team found the lack of healthcare to be a major concern. It says the city hospital is in terrible condition, lacks the most basic medicines and only has one or two surgeons.

It notes most of the doctors and nurses on staff had been Egyptian migrants who returned home at the start of the crisis. It says a few North Korean and Pakistani healthcare workers remain in the town.

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/Aid-Agencies-Finds-Libyan-Camp-Conditions-Horrific-127945953.html

[tabatha]

80. Tweets - moooonlight22 Libya Free Forever.

moooonlight22 Libya Free Forever.
Message to #Benghazi #Gadafi goons ordered his men to cause riots and to embrace #NTC #GadafiCrimes #Libya
5 minutes ago

Follow twitter.com/#!/AlexCrawfor… she is now in #Zawyia #Libya Thank you.
7 minutes ago

Unconfirmed news #King Abudllah of #Saudi, 87years old died 2 weeks ago, news are kept hidden in Saudi.
8 minutes ago

#Bo Qrain 110Km from #Misurata #FF are fighting #Gadafi forces, freed few families close to #Sirt. Martyrs 3 #Libya
13 minutes ago

IMPORTANT MESSAGE to #FF in #Nafusa keep #Sniper rifle w Telescopic sight &Tear Gas to force Snipers come out from their hiding spots.
17 minutes ago

#Defected officer #Gadafi kept 4000 mercenaries in #Tripoli Airport Rd #Brazilian company #Libya
25 minutes ago

@NATO *moooonlight22: Sabha big number of Gforces arrived with one of Gadafi sons likely Muatasem,not clear he wants to flee Libya or attack
55 minutes ago

#Sabha big number of #Gadafi forces arrived with one of #Gadafi sons likely #Almuatasem,not clear he wants to flee #Libya or attack #Sabha
1 hour ago

2/2 #FF ve control over #Alarqoub #Brega number of martyrs 1 and causalities 24 #Feb17 #Libya
1 hour ago

1/2 #Brega #FF &#National Army attack #Gadafi forces from 3 directions with heavy artillery, #G forces laid big number of mines 1000 in 1Km
1 hour ago

#Sirt E #Misurata no #electricity in the city #GadafiCrimes #Libya
1 hour ago

A man escaped #Tripoli mentioned how bad s the situation in#Gadafi prisons,every cell has>40 prisoners w no enough food&bad sanitation#Libya
10 hours ago

HOW MUCH any person's conscious worth? still wonder how much ?
13 hours ago

http://twitter.com/#!/search/moooonlight22

[pinboy3niner]

81. Libya: Fierce battle underway for crucial Zawiyah oil refinery

Source: The Telegraph

A fierce battle was underway on Wednesdy night for outright control of Libya's only functioning oil refinery as opposition forces took on Gaddafi loyalists entrenched in the complex.


By Damien McElroy, Harsha

8:00PM BST 17 Aug 2011

...



The rebels have already managed to shutdown its pipelines leading to Tripoli - the manager of the plant fled on Tuesday night after closing down the pumping station - and they now have the facility surrounded. A brigade of locally-raised security forces tasked with protecting the oilfeed fled in a truce.


"I saw the flame go out above the refinery and I knew Gaddafi was cut off," said Osama Arusi, the rebel field commander, told The Daily Telegraph.


However, heavy gunfire broke out at the refinery on Wednesday between the rebels and the remaining Gaddafi loyalists - around 100 of whom remain inside the complex, roaming the pipelines, ports, storage tanks and housing divisions, determined to hang on to the bitter end. Snipers were said to be have been deployed.

...


The footsoldiers vowed to take down the green flag of the Gaddafi regime flying over a refinery building. Elsewhere in Zawiyah, the rebel tricolour is flying in most districts despite continuing clashes in the centre and east of the city.

...


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8707413/Libya-Fierce-battle-underway-for-crucial-Zawiyah-oil-refinery.html

[pinboy3niner]

82. 300,000 non-Libyans still in Tripoli, migration office exploring land, sea, air evacuations

From Reuters WRAPUP 6, Wed Aug 17, 2011 5:44pm GMT:

If the pipeline to Tripoli is indeed cut, "that would imply dire consequences for the population in Tripoli in terms of fuel supplies needed for the city to keep operating", said Fernando Calado of the International Organisation for Migration.


Calado said there had been a sharp increase in the past week in the number of foreign nationals asking to be evacuated. He estimated that more than 300,000 foreigners remain in Tripoli, including many from the Philippines and Sri Lanka as well as Libya's neighbours Chad, Egypt and Tunisia.


"We have received 2,000 requests at this point. The potential caseload is huge. We're exploring the possibility of land, sea and air evacuations," he told Reuters.

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE77G09F20110817?sp=true

[pinboy3niner]

86. Thousands of refugees from cities still under Gaddafi’s control stream west

WaPo's Thomas Erdbrink reports from Zawiya:

Families fleeing Tripoli in new Korean-made sedans drove through the violence in Zawiyah in order to get to rebel-controlled areas. Rebel forces counting the refugees heading to the mountains said that more than 2,000 families had passed their checkpoint in the village of Bir Aiab.


Farook Sherwan, a father of three from the capital, stepped out of his car to register with the rebel administration, saying that he expected “a big battle” in Tripoli soon.


“In the last days, we saw fewer and fewer government checkpoints and increasingly heard the sounds of gunfire,” he said.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/libyan-rebels-advance-stalls-in-zawiyah-as-refugees-stream-west/2011/08/17/gIQAnuZzLJ_story.html

[pinboy3niner]

87. LIBYAN REVOLUTION DAY 182: CURRENT TIME IN LIBYA = 12:01 AM THURSDAY, AUGUST 18

Libya time = EDT +6 hours, PDT +9 hours, UTC +1 hour, GMT +2 hours

[pinboy3niner]

88. Syria's Bashar Assad defends his "dignity"

Source: CBS/AP

August 17, 2011 5:17 PM


(CBS/AP) BEIRUT - The Syrian government continues to insist its crackdown is aimed at rooting out terrorists fomenting unrest in the country. In comments carried on the state-run news agency, President Bashar Assad appeared to lash out at the growing international reproach his country, saying his country will not give up its "dignity and sovereignty."


Human rights groups and witnesses accuse Syrian troops of firing on largely unarmed protesters and say more than 1,800 civilians have been killed since mid-March.


In a joint news conference held on the sidelines of an Islamic nations' meeting to discuss famine in Somalia, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said: "The bloodshed must stop, all soldiers must be withdrawn from the cities and life in these cities must return to normal."

...


President Bashar Assad has unleashed tanks, ground troops and snipers in an attempt to retake control in rebellious areas. The military assault has escalated dramatically since the start of the holy month of Ramadan in August, killing hundreds and detaining thousands.


"We made our calls (to Qaddafi) but unfortunately we got no result," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday. "The same thing is happening with Syria at the moment."

...


http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/08/17/501364/main20093732.shtml

[pinboy3niner]

89. Libyan embassy reopens its doors in Washington

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Libyan-Americans come to celebrate

• Ambassador regains control of embassy's frozen bank account, worth about $13 million

• Embassy was closed in March as part of Gadhafi regime
Envoy quit his post, then went to work for Transitional National Council

By Jamie Crawford, CNN National Security Producer
August 17, 2011 -- Updated 2211 GMT (0611 HKT)


Washington (CNN) -- While it technically began operating last week, the Libyan Embassy in Washington was officially reopened Wednesday by its ambassador amid a crowd of proud Libyan-Americans waving flags and singing Libyan songs.


"This embassy will serve as a symbol of the new Libya here in the U.S.," Ambassador Ali Aujali said outside the Watergate building in Washington where the embassy is located. "We will work tirelessly not only to serve the needs of the Libyans studying, living and traveling in this country, but also to thank the United States government on behalf of the Libyan people everywhere for its continuing support for transition to a free and democratic nation."

...


Speaking with reporters inside the embassy, Aujali said he hoped the United States would also lift restrictions on its financial assistance that limits its use to humanitarian purposes only.


"If Gadhafi is killing his people with potato and eggs, I will accept that, but Gadhafi is killing his people with real weapons, we must have arms to defend ourselves," he said.

...


http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/08/17/libyan.embassy/

NOTE: AFP reports that the U.S. State Department considers Aujali "charge d'affaires rather than ambassador since he represents a transitional authority."

[pinboy3niner]

90. Libyan Rebels Move Closer to Tripoli

Source: Wall Street Journal

AUGUST 17, 2011, 6:38 P.M. ET




A truck carrying Libyan rebel fighters drives towards the Zawiyah oil refinery. (Reuters)


By CHARLES LEVINSON


ZAWIYA, Libya—Fighting raged for a fourth straight day in this strategic coastal city 30 miles west of Tripoli on Wednesday, as rebel fighters battled to mop up pockets of loyalist soldiers and laid siege to the regime's last working oil refinery.


The roads leading to Zawiya were clogged with rebel fighters pouring toward town and refugees fleeing in the opposite direction. The refugee flow from Zawiya, a city of 200,000 people, and from Tripoli hinted at the possible flood that could pour into rebel-held havens and neighboring Tunisia as fighting moves closer to the capital.


Rebel fighters reported a series of other gains in the West as well. They said they had eliminated stubborn government forces in the town of Tiji and had secured the coastal town of Sabratha, west of Zawiya, bolstering their control of the vital coast road, a key lifeline to the capital, Tripoli, which is still controlled by Col. Moammar Gadhafi.


The regime wasn't available for comment. Officials in Tripoli have been quiet in recent days, not holding the regular news conferences and journalist trips they had sponsored earlier in the conflict.

...


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904070604576514710263791554.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

[pinboy3niner]

91. Libyan Rebel Forces Push South From Misrata to Cut Key Highway to Tripoli

Source: Bloomberg

By Chris Stephen - Aug 17, 2011 11:30 AM PT


Libyan rebel forces broke out of the besieged city of Misrata and pushed south toward a strategic highway linking up to Tripoli, a city radio station reported.


A column of armed jeeps drove unopposed through the desert to the village of Bir Durfan and is heading for Beni Walid, 40 miles (64 kilometers) away, to link up to the highway to the capital, Libya Freedom Voice in Misrata reported.


“They expect to reach Beni Walid in the next days,” said Ramadan Maiteeg, a reporter at Freedom Voice, the city’s principal rebel radio station.


A second advance south from Misrata along the coastal highway captured a key traffic junction, Bowaba Aseteen, and rebels are battling for control of the coastal town of Al Heesha, 65 miles south of Misrata, which is in western Libya. Three fighters are reported dead, Maiteeg said.


There was no independent confirmation of the advances, which follow the capture over the weekend of the southern town of Tawarga.

...


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-17/libyan-rebels-push-south-from-misrata-to-cut-road-radio-says.html

[pinboy3niner]

92. VIDEO report: Gaddafi loyalists resisting rebels advance in Az Zawiyah (AJE, 2:21)

Uploaded by AlJazeeraEnglish on Aug 17, 2011


In the battle for Libya, fighting has continued in Az Zawiyah between opposition fighters and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi.

Rebels say Gaddafi's forces are putting up a stiff resistance, using Grad rockets and mortars to prevent an advance.

Zeina Khodr has more from the frontlines (2:21):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpCbzcIugEE

[tabatha]

93. A little humor - Gaddafi's Mathaba web site

was invaded by some cyber Freedom Fighters

http://mathaba.net/news/?x=628053?disqus#comment-289547212

[al bupp]

94. LOL, a +1, for sure

Thanks for the heads-up.

[pinboy3niner]

95. ROFL!

Those comments are hilarious. Thanks for posting, Tab. :fistbump:

[pinboy3niner]

96. Libyan Battle Map

Weigant, ChrisWeigant.com|Aug. 17, 2011, 7:44 PM


The rebels are on the move in Libya.

Unfortunately, getting answers to the question "where exactly are they moving?" from the American media is not that easy. There are a few reasons for this, but before I get to that, here's the map the media really should be providing on a regular basis (but are not). (I suggest you open this map in a separate browser window, to use as a helpful reference for the rest of this article.)


The Libyan rebels have launched an offensive from all three of the major areas they currently control. The eastern part of Libya (see the smaller inset map at the bottom of the battle map) is the area around the rebel stronghold (and governmental center) of Benghazi. This is the largest area in the country which the rebels control. The fight westward from Benghazi to the Ghaddafi-held Sirte has ebbed and flowed over the course of the war. Currently, the battle for Brega (which I wrote about a few weeks ago) is still being fought. The slowdown in the rebels' advance here is due in large part to the new tactic the loyalist forces are using -- withdrawing from an area after laying hundreds of landmines. Clearing out these mines is slow and dangerous work (a recent photo showed over three thousand anti-personnel mines removed from Brega and disarmed). The rebels have taken over the eastern half of Brega, but the loyalists still control the western half of the city, and the refineries and pipelines.

...


In the westernmost part of the country, the rebels have had their biggest successes since securing Misrata. Starting from the border, the rebels have taken town after town until they now control the entire chain of the Nafusa Mountains. A few weeks ago, they took the town of Zintan, and as you can see on the battle map, they have quickly advanced from there in two separate directions.

...


The American media has been beating the drum of "the Libyan war is a stalemate" so long that they've been slow to realize the changing picture on the ground there. Rather than a ragtag bunch of guys who had never fired a gun before, the rebel forces are showing that they've spent the last six months getting a lot better at what they are doing. They have not achieved it yet, but they are on the brink of turning that battle map of Libya from one largely tinted green (with pockets of red) to one of mostly red (with ever-shrinking pockets of green).

...


http://www.businessinsider.com/libyan-battle-map-2011-8

[tabatha]

97. Amazing photos

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/9deaBg/www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/08/six-months-of-civil-war-in-libya/100130/

[pinboy3niner]

98. WOW! Recommended.

The photos are stunning. :thumbsup:

[pinboy3niner]

99. Syria holds hundreds in stadium; U.N. eyes (war crimes) tribunal

By Khaled Yacoub Oweis

AMMAN | Wed Aug 17, 2011 9:31pm EDT


AMMAN Aug 18 (Reuters) - Syrian troops held hundreds of people in a stadium in Latakia, residents said, while the U.N. human rights chief was expected to propose that the Hague war crimes tribunal review Syria's crackdown on protesters.


Residents said Syrian forces raided houses in a Sunni district of the besieged port city, arresting hundreds of people and taking them to a stadium after a four-day tank assault to crush protests against President Bashar al-Assad.

...


U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay will address the 15-nation council in a closed-door session on Syria on Thursday, along with U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos.


"OHCHR (Pillay's office) have indicated that their Syria report will find evidence that Syria has committed grave violations of international human rights law in its actions dealing with protesters over the past five months," a diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

...


http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/18/us-syria-idUSTRE77D0LP20110818

[joshcryer]

100. Week 26 part 3 here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1761171