Libyan Revolution Tweets, Day 20 (or 22*), Part 2

[Catherina]

Libyan Revolution Tweets, Day 20 (or 22*), Part 2

Today's threads: Part 1

#Feb17 Youth organizers invite Gaddafi's collaborators to stand under his umbrella ella ella ella ella ella http://bit.ly/faa34E

"We have Plan A, Plan B, Plan C. Plan A is to live and die in Libya. Plan B is to live and die in Libya. Plan C is to live and die in Libya."
- Saif Islam Qaddafi during interview

*I called this Day 20 because the official start date was #Feb17 but events kicked off 2 days earlier.

Previous Day 19 threads: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9

The world’s 100 largest arms dealers, excluding Chinese vendors, sold weapons for $401 billion in 2009, with US vendors in first place

Threads for Days 1-18 are in my journal

"I was born in Tunisia, I persevered in Egypt, I sacrificed myself in Libya, I have fought in Yemen&Bahrain. I am Freedom, I will not die."
- Libyan4life Jeel Ghathub

LibyanThinker The Libyan Thinker
New video of Soldiers Executed for Refusing to Shoot Protesters in #Libya

Click here for updated and interactive map

Military Installations

Oil Map


- Google Earth DL here to see positions of army and patrolling route of mercenaries
- MAP of Protests across the Middle East

Please rec if you read these so I know if the effort here is worth it.

[pinboy3niner]

1. K&R

[Catherina]

2. Haven't lost your touch at all! n/t

[pinboy3niner]

4. I should go on 'Jeopardy.' :)

[Catherina]

3. #Saudi: Mass protest set 4 #mar11 in Saudi Arabia, Saud govt say's demonstrations will not tolerated

C0d3Fr0sty Anonymous
Mass protest set 4 #mar11 in Saudi Arabia, Saud govt say's demonstrations will not tolerated, #saudi 'Day of Rage'
6 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

[Catherina]

5. Dear House of Saud: banning protests is a guarantee of bigger ones. Epic fail.

timeoutcorner Andrew McInnes
Dear House of Saud: banning protests is a guarantee of bigger ones. Epic fail.
8 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

[joshcryer]

13. +1 Pretty much. Say hello $5 gas.

[roamer65]

25. $5? Try $10 to $15.

[madmax]

6. The dry cleaner in Saudi Arabia is busy cleaning robes.... nt

[pinboy3niner]

7. They're switching to brown robes now. nt

[roamer65]

10. Here we go...

$300 a barrel. I predicted this "road" would lead to Riyadh. I am not at all surprised. The chickens are coming home to roost.

[Catherina]

12. That's my estimate too. $300. n/t

[Catherina]

8. Italy sold Libya explosives, gun targeting equipment & other military hardware worth tens millions >

Malik_73 Khawar Mahroof
by UKguy4justice
#Libya. Italy sold Libya explosives, gun targeting equipment and other military hardware worth tens millions of euros in past two years.
1 minute ago Favorite Retweet Reply

[Catherina]

9. Big oil companies and Wall Street banks have stopped trading crude with #Libya

UKguy4justice Aminul Hoque
WSJ: Big oil companies and Wall Street banks have stopped trading crude with #Libya #Feb17 on.wsj.com/fisQ9E
16 minutes ago

West Shuns Libyan Crude
Oil Price Spike Continues as Energy Giants, Banks Stop Trading With Gadhafi

MARCH 8, 2011
By GUY CHAZAN And CAROLYN CUI

Big oil companies and Wall Street banks have stopped trading crude with Libya in response to sanctions against the country, threatening a near-shutdown of exports from the North African country and driving oil prices even higher.

Morgan Stanley, which buys Libyan oil for its clients, has stopped buying because of sanctions announced last month, according to a person familiar with the matter. ConocoPhillips Co. said it isn't exporting any of the 46,000 barrels a day of oil it normally produces in Libya. Exxon Mobil Corp. also said it is complying with the sanctions against Libya. A person familiar with BP PLC said the company wasn't currently doing any new trading deals in Libya.

These moves are putting further strains on an already-volatile oil market, threatening to send gasoline prices higher around the world. Oil is already trading at its highest level in 2½ years as antigovernment protests sweep further across the Middle East, and worries increase that disruptions could spread from Libya to bigger producers like Saudi Arabia and Iran. Crude futures rose $1.02 per barrel, or 1%, to $105.44 at the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday.

U.S. retail gasoline prices rose 4.1% over the past week to average $3.52 per gallon, the highest since September 2008, compared with a little over $3 at the beginning of the year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Monday.

...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703386704576186361903201684.html?mod=e2tw

Links in article

[Catherina]

11. No.10 hangs Hague out to dry over SAS humiliation in the desert

UKguy4justice Aminul Hoque
MailOnline: No.10 hangs Hague out to dry over SAS humiliation in the desert: William Hague was accused of… goo.gl/fb/xtfZA #Feb17 #Libya
14 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

No.10 hangs Hague out to dry over SAS humiliation in the desert

Last updated at 1:07 AM on 8th March 2011


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1363985/No-10-hangs-Hague-dry-SAS-humiliation-desert.html#ixzz1Fy3aTMau

- Cameron's aides try to distance PM from special forces fiasco
- Foreign Secretary 'accepts responsibility' but passes buck to generals
- Rebels still hold key towns despite Gaddafi's boasts

The SAS’s humiliation in Libya triggered civil war in government yesterday as a blame game erupted between Downing Street, the Foreign Office and the military.

Embattled Foreign Secretary William Hague was accused of ‘serial bungling’ after the Special Forces and an MI6 spy were captured and detained by a bunch of Libyan farmhands.

Mr Hague, who signed the final order, accepted ‘full responsibility’ for the debacle but he refused to accept the blame.


a rebel fighter points his machine gun at attack aircraft loyal to Colonel Gaddafi. Rebel leaders accused the government of only being interested in their country's oil wealth.


'Serious misunderstanding': a rebel tank in Ras Lanuf. Foreign Secretary William Hague accepted full responsibility for the bungled mission to meet rebels. But he also blamed generals who gave him 'advice'

He passed the buck to Armed Forces chiefs, saying they decided to send the heavily-armed team into rebel held territory by helicopter in the dead of night.

...


Fighting continues: a Gaddafi bomber strikes a road filled with rebels near Ras Lanuf, eastern Libya


'Massacre': Gaddafi's forces are accused of killing civilians in a Zawiyah hospital. Rebels are show atop an armoured personnel carrier


Not abiding by the rules of war: doctors who treat both Gaddafi forces and rebels, above, say they are being targeted by government forces


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1363985/No-10-hangs-Hague-dry-SAS-humiliation-desert.html?ITO=1490

[defendandprotect]

43. KR

[Catherina]

14. amnesty: Pres Obama embraces Bush-era counterterrorism policy with signing today's executive order

UKguy4justice Aminul Hoque
amnesty: Pres Obama embraces Bush-era counterterrorism policy with signing today's executive order ow.ly/49K7j #Jan25 @AP @Reuters
15 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

CSRTs Come Back From The Dead
United States, War on Terror | Posted by: Tom Parker, March 7, 2011 at 6:35 PM
Tom Parker, March 7, 2011 at 6:35 PM


With a stroke of his pen, President Obama today extinguished any last lingering hopes that his administration would eventually do the right thing on Guantanamo and restore due process rights to all the detainees held there.

In an Executive Order and accompanying fact sheet and press release, the White House formally announced the resumption of Military Commission hearings – memorably denounced as “an enormous failure” by candidate Obama – and outlined the new review process that will accompany the indefinite detention of individuals deemed to dangerous to release and to hard to prosecute.

The decision to resume Military Commissions has been a long time coming. Despite the fact that the most recent Commission cases all ended in a series of shady backroom plea deals which have done nothing to improve their reputation, the administration has now all but abandoned its halfhearted attempts to bring Guantanamo cases to federal court despite the inclusion of some lofty (and entirely unpersuasive) rhetoric to the contrary in today’s announcement.

For detainees slated for indefinite detention the administration has to all intents and purposes resurrected the widely discredited Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) used at Guantanamo by the Bush administration.

...

http://blog.amnestyusa.org/waronterror/csrts-come-back-from-the-dead/

[Catherina]

15. 3:45 AM in Tripoli. Almost nothing tweet wise. Going out for cigarettes b back soon n/t

[joshcryer]

16. Enjoy.

[Catherina]

17. Wait... one more. Not Libya but it's all inter-related. Thanks n/t

[Catherina]

18. US law enforcement authorities r investigating plans by members of the hacking collective Anonymous>

CyanideL Lily
US law enforcement authorities are investigating plans by members of the hacking collective Anonymous to disrupt activities at the (con)
3 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply


CyanideL Lily
(con) Marine Corps base in Quantico to protest against the alleged rough treatment given suspected WikiLeaks source Bradley #Manning.
3 minutes ago


CyanideL Lily is part of Anon. Anon just introduced her about a week ago.

[pinboy3niner]

19. Ben Wedeman, CNN: A wake-up call in Libya's Ras Lanuf

A wake-up call in Libya's Ras Lanuf
By Ben Wedeman, CNN
March 7, 2011 7:49 p.m. EST

Editor's note: CNN's Ben Wedeman filed this first-person account of the scene in rebel-controlled Ras Lanuf, Libya, as Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's forces prepared to launch an aerial strike against the town Monday.

Ras Lanuf, Libya (CNN) -- "Down! Down!" the man at my hotel room door said. It was 4:30 a.m. Monday in Ras Lanuf, and I had hoped to get a decent night's sleep for the first time in weeks. Yet again, my hopes were dashed.

...

As we waited in the lobby, I had visions of the Libyan army pulling up outside the hotel, rounding us all up and taking us back to Tripoli, hands bound and blindfolded, to be put on trial. Libyan state television had announced that all journalists who had entered the country from Egypt without visas would be considered outlaws and, worse, collaborators with al Qaeda. As the first Western television journalist to enter Libya from Egypt during the current crisis, I had reliable information I was high on Tripoli's wanted list.

...

When it became light, instead of going east -- away from the supposedly advancing Libyan army -- we and a crew from the BBC went west, toward Bin Jawad, to see if there was any truth to the claims Gadhafi's men were on the move.

...

The few we met assured us the government forces were still on the outskirts of Bin Jawad and weren't moving forward. It was disconcerting, however, that as we continued to drive, there was almost no one to speak with. The usual gatherings of boisterous, friendly rebel fighters gathered around cars, pickup trucks and Chinese- and Soviet-made anti-aircraft guns were nowhere to be seen. The road was almost empty.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/07/ras.lanuf.libya.wedeman/?hpt=T2

[joshcryer]

21. Impressive story, thanks for posting it.

"morale is high, and so are the troops"

[Catherina]

20. The 'new' rhetoric of Islamophobia

C0d3Fr0sty Anonymous
The 'new' rhetoric of Islamophobia http://bit.ly/gqPjIy #Peterking #congress
10 minutes ago Favorite Undo Retweet Reply

The 'new' rhetoric of Islamophobia
Islamophobes in and outside Congress are claiming that a mass 'radicalisation' of American Muslims is taking place.
MJ Rosenberg Last Modified: 13 Jan 2011 12:42 GMT



US Rep. Peter King (R-NY) - formerly an ardent supporter of the IRA - has been making no distinctions between the average Muslim layman and a radical

New York City's former mayor, Ed Koch, has taken time off from his new career as a film critic to offer a valentine to Rep. Peter King (R-NY), the new chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, for scheduling hearings on the dangers posed by Muslim Americans.

Koch's support for King is not surprising. Koch has always been open about his contempt for Arabs and Muslims and his belief that a war of civilisations is now in progress between Muslims and everyone else. He recently wrote:

For me, the question is this: will the secular Western civilisation shared by America and Europe, which allows us to enjoy life and its creature comforts, still be standing at the end of that war? Or will radical Islam, with an aggressive culture that treasures martyrdom and death over life, prevail.... (italics mine)

For years, Koch, King and others who share their anti-Muslim views hid behind that word: "radical". They said that they have no problem with Muslims as people or Islam as a religion. It is only "radical Islam" or "Islamists" that they can't abide.

...

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/01/201111074425968803.html

I found this very interesting

[Catherina]

22. SPECIAL FOCUS: America's secret plan to arm Libya's rebels

feb17libya Feb17Libya
#Feb17 #Libya MILITARY SPECIAL FOCUS: America's secret plan to arm Libya's rebels http://f.ast.ly/gF5PU
13 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Obama asks Saudis to airlift weapons into Benghazi

By Robert Fisk, Middle East Correspondent
Monday, 7 March 2011

Desperate to avoid US military involvement in Libya in the event of a prolonged struggle between the Gaddafi regime and its opponents, the Americans have asked Saudi Arabia if it can supply weapons to the rebels in Benghazi. The Saudi Kingdom, already facing a “day of rage” from its 10 per cent Shia Muslim community on Friday, with a ban on all demonstrations, has so far failed to respond to Washington’s highly classified request, although King Abdullah personally loathes the Libyan leader, who tried to assassinate him just over a year ago.

...

But the Saudis remain the only US Arab ally strategically placed and capable of furnishing weapons to the guerrillas of Libya. Their assistance would allow Washington to disclaim any military involvement in the supply chain – even though the arms would be American and paid for by the Saudis.

...

Supplies could reach Benghazi within 48 hours but they would need to be delivered to air bases in Libya or to Benghazi airport. If the guerrillas can then go on to the offensive and assault Gaddafi’s strongholds in western Libya, the political pressure on America and Nato – not least from Republican members of Congress – to establish a no-fly zone would be reduced.

...

For several days now, US Awacs surveillance aircraft have been flying around Libya, making constant contact with Malta air traffic control and requesting details of Libyan flight patterns, including journeys made in the past 48 hours by Gaddafi’s private jet which flew to Jordan and back to Libya just before the weekend.

...

http://feb17.info/general/military-special-focus-americas-secret-plan-to-arm-libyas-rebels/

[pinboy3niner]

23. AJE hosts video of Libyan army officers killed for refusing to fire on opposition

From AJE live blogs:

3.52am < (7:52 PM EST Mar. 7) >

Al Jazeera has received pictures that purportedly show Libyan army officers killed for refusing to fire on the rebels.

It is claimed the soldiers refused to shoot rebels in the mountainous region west of Tripoli. The pictures were sent to Al Jazeera by a rebel group in the area.

A survivor of the killings says the men were rounded-up, their legs tied before being shot in the head or back from close range.

The pictures emerged as rebel fighters face perhaps their greatest challenge yet as they take stock of what seems a slowing of momentum in their campaign.


Watch video on YouTube (2:27):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7QwHffIJaU&feature=player_embedded


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[Catherina]

24. richardengelnbc "On maddow in a few"

richardengelnbc richard engel
#libya.. On maddow in a few
13 seconds ago Favorite Retweet Reply

watching it here http://msnbclive.eu/

Link doesn't really work for my location.

[pinboy3niner]

26. Engle: We have just confirmed Saudia Arabia IS sending wpns to help the rebels here

On Rachel Maddow show, Engle said:

"We have just confirmed that Saudi Arabia IS already involved in sending weapons to help the rebels here."

[roamer65]

27. This is heading towards a regional war.

I hope the Israelis just sit down and shut up.

[joshcryer]

29. No Gaddafi's loyalists are falling one after another, it's only a matter of time.

[roamer65]

30. The neocons are behind the scenes pushing other ME countries.

BBC interviewed one of them the other day and he wanted Egypt to invade. I think it was Feith.

[joshcryer]

28. Welp, the west stayed mostly not-involved until now. Stupid, stupid.

[Catherina]

32. It's a good thing I couldn't watch it then

This has been an incredibly ugly week. They're determined to have a their war thinking they can control it. They can't. I think we're heading to world war.

[roamer65]

33. I couldn't agree more Catherina.

Once the genie is out of the bottle, good luck. I think the genie is already out.

The wild card is, of course, the Israelis.

[Catherina]

34. At this point there are so many loose cannons trying to save their own skins

they might as well all wild cards.

Gaddafi's jet went to Jordan this week. Really? Jordan?

[roamer65]

36. I am very surprised at that...

I would hope that it was not a visit with King Abdullah.

[joshcryer]

31. Kick.

[Catherina]

35. Goodnight guys, 6AM in Libya, probably best to grab some sleep now.

See you later and I hope it's not to wake up to anything dreadful.

Gaddafi, please die tonight.

[defendandprotect]

44. LIBYA HURRA -- !!

[pinboy3niner]

37. Libya FM Musa Kusa: Pres. Obama "spoke like a child" on Libya

Musa Kusa, the Libyan foreign minister, said that the regime of Muammar Gaddafi was disappointed by the actions of President Barack Obama, who "spoke like a child".

"We felt that he was a democratic man and he would extend his hand to others, especially people of the third world because he came from that world."

Unfortunately he spoke like a child and said we should punish those people that have sided with Muammar Gaddafi.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

38. Migrants from North Africa arrive on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa (PHOTO)

More than 1,000 illegal immigrants escaping political turmoil in North Africa arrived on this southern Italian island in the Mediterranean during the night. (Reuters)

Via AJE:
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

39. NYT: Discord Fills Washington on Possible Libya Intervention

Discord Fills Washington on Possible Libya Intervention

By DAVID E. SANGER and THOM SHANKER
Published: March 7, 2011

WASHINGTON — Nearly three weeks after Libya erupted in what may now turn into a protracted civil war, the politics of military intervention to speed the ouster of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi grow more complicated by the day — for both the White House and Republicans.

...


Of most concern to the president himself, one high-level aide said, is the perception that the United States would once again be meddling in the Middle East, where it has overturned many a leader, including Saddam Hussein. Some critics of the United States in the region — as well as some leaders — have already claimed that a Western conspiracy is stoking the revolutions that have overtaken the Middle East.

...


Some of these critics seem motivated by political advantage. Others, including the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, John Kerry, who is among Mr. Obama’s closest allies, warn of repeating mistakes made in Iraqi Kurdistan, Rwanda, and Bosnia and Herzegovina by failing to step in and halt a slaughter.



On television Mr. McCain has made similar points, and portrayed Mr. Obama as indecisive and weak. But curiously, in a sign of the uncertainties about how the politics of an American intervention would play out, few of the potential nominees for the 2012 Republican presidential ticket have expressed a strong opinion.

...


A version of this article appeared in print on March 8, 2011, on page A1 of the New York edition.


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/world/middleeast/08policy.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

[joshcryer]

40. This is Gaddafi's ultimate endgame. Make this last until foreign intervention is called upon.

This will be used to delegitimize the revolutionaries and sully their efforts to have free elections and a constitution and universal human rights (which could take a decade or more to be realized to its fullest potential, mind). Gaddafi knows that he's done for and will do one of two things, either kill himself, or get out of dodge to a friendly state and disappear into obscurity (he'll be "on the lam" and will stay low for years until that time some young journalist finds him and presses the international community to prosecute, etc). Because he knows his reign is over he's going to keep it going as long as possible so that many Libyans die, and the international community is called upon to intervene. At that point thousands will already be dead (we're there now), but the intervention itself will kill many thousands more, as Gaddafi will use them as hostages. Already I expect that a good portion of his biggest targets are filled with human shields (dead or alive) in order to blame the interventionists on their deaths in the event those targets are hit.

If the revolutionaries cannot march upon Tripoli before the intervention occurs, Gaddafi will likely get away with one of the biggest massacres ever seen. Even if the evidence shows that he did use human shields, even if the evidence shows that he did execute his own officers who disobeyed, there will be doubt and doubt is what tyrants thrive on, spreading propaganda and lies leads to questions with no answers. When that happens it will be used to foment division within the Libyans themselves. "Did the interventionists really murder wholesale thousands of people? Did Gaddafi really use human shields?" The revolution then will be damaged greatly, because those doubters in it will question the motivations and desires of their fellow comrades.

It is extremely, unbelievably important that those calling for intervention wait until all hope is lost before truly acting. There is no doubt in my mind that western intelligence knows how things are going and are likely well on their way to seeing how things will pan out for the Libyans. My only hope is that they see success in the revolutionaries and continue to sit back and allow nature play its course. There was a famous CIA briefing released a long time ago saying that Gaddafi had a "better than 50%" chance of being overthrown. I think the Libyans are showing that these odds are far favorable than that, and that ultimately it will happen.

Just let them do it and don't allow desires to help in any significant way sully that. Blow some tanks and runways, anything beyond that is going to fuck things up, badly.

[David__77]

42. Progressives need to defend Obama on Libya at this time.

In foreign relations, he is doing the correct thing by criticizing violations of human rights, but stopping short of military aggression against sovereign states - unfortunately still with the exception of Iraq and Afghanistan. There is a difference between Obama and Bush, for instance, who almost certainly would have militarily intervened in Libya by now, in my opinion.

[joshcryer]

48. That was unexpected.

I was expecting Obama bashing. I've been cautious defending the west so far, and I'm glad they haven't acted beyond humanitarian means. I still am somewhat troubled by the arms supplying, but to the revolutionaries credit, they did get their munitions depots bombed before this all started.

[pinboy3niner]

41. Libyan Government Presses Assault in East and West

Libyan Government Presses Assault in East and West

By KAREEM FAHIM and DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: March 7, 2011

RAS LANUF, Libya — Government warplanes taunted rebels with flyovers and repeatedly bombed their positions near this coastal city’s oil refinery on Monday, seeking to drive the opposition forces back farther to the east, as Libya continued what appeared to be a slide into civil war.

...


The bombing runs began in the morning, sending huge plumes of smoke into the air around 10 a.m. With every roar of a jet engine, the rebels opened fire with what sounded like every weapon available, from heavy artillery to pistols. In the evening, a warplane swooped low and on two separate occasions dropped bombs near a heavily defended rebel checkpoint, striking a car carrying the family and sending rebel fighters fleeing for cover in chaotic scenes.

...


The steady attacks from the air helped further turn the momentum of the conflict in eastern Libya, where opposition fighters had made strong gains recently in their drive to the west, toward Surt, a stronghold of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, and on to Tripoli. But on Sunday, troops loyal to Colonel Qaddafi stormed the town of Bin Jawwad, just to the west of Ras Lanuf, backed by fierce air power, and sent the fighters holding it into retreat.

...


In addition, the elite Khamis Brigade continued on Monday to batter the opposition-held city of Zawiyah, west of Tripoli, with tanks, artillery and snipers, residents there said. With cellphone and Internet communications cut off, virtually the only source of information on events there was a lone reporter for Sky TV, a British television channel. She said the heavily armed government troops attacked in the morning and inexplicably withdrew after several hours, even though their tanks seemed to have taken control of the city’s central square.


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/world/africa/08libya.html

[joshcryer]

49. Doesn't look good. This is maybe why they are talking up intervention.

They may be seeing that the revolutionaries are having trouble keeping up with Gaddafi's overpowering position.

[pinboy3niner]

45. Opposition faces 'severe shortages' of fuel soon

From AJE Live Blogs:

9:17am < (2:17 am EST March 8) >

Rebel-controlled eastern Libya is at risk of running out of petrol within a week after refineries in the region halted operations, Gulf News reports.

Dwindling supplies of vehicle fuel in Benghazi and throughout eastern Libya were a rising concern for the rebel movement, the Dubai-based newspaper reported.

A spokesman for eastern Libya's rebel-controlled interim government, Tarek Bu Zaqiya, told the newspaper the region faced "severe shortages" of fuel soon.

While oil is still flowing in eastern Libya, regional refineries had cut crude processing, the report said.

Rebels were discussing plans to obtain imported fuel, including from Italian refineries, the report said.

The rebels, who already control huge areas of Libyan territory, rely on a steady supply of fuel to wage battle soldiers loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in a push to topple his regime.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

46. 'Yeah!' Usher is giving back Libya money

'Yeah!' Usher is giving back Libya money

By Ed Payne, CNN
March 8, 2011 2:08 a.m. EST

(CNN) -- Add R&B star Usher to the list of entertainers giving up the paychecks they earned performing for members of embattled Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's family.

"I am sincerely troubled to learn about the circumstances surrounding the Nikki Beach St. Bart's event that took place on New Year's Eve 2009, " Usher said in a statement Monday. "I will be donating all of my personal proceeds from that event to various human rights organizations."

According to U.S. diplomatic cables posted by WikiLeaks, the Caribbean island was the site for a New Year's Eve party thrown by Mutassim Gadhafi, Libya's national security advisor and one of the dictator's sons. Usher, along with Beyonce, were the entertainment in what the cables called a $1 million personal concert.

Beyonce said through a representative last week that she had donated the money she received to earthquake relief in Haiti.


http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/Music/03/08/libya.usher/index.html

[pinboy3niner]

47. The GCC condemns 'massacres' by Libya regime as 'crimes against humanity'

AJE reports:

The six US-allied Gulf Arab nations have condemned killings by pro-government forces in Libya as "massacres".

Abdul Rahman Hamad al-Attiyah, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), says "the massacres committed by the regime'' in Libya against its own citizens amount to "crimes against humanity".

"The protection of Libyan citizens is an absolute priority."


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

50. Clerics laud GCC for ""their brave and moral stance in total support of the Libyan people"

The Network of Free Ulema - Libya, a group of clerics in tha country, have expressed their appreciation to Gulf states for "their brave and moral stance in total support of the Libyan people".

In a statement sent to Al Jazeera today, they asked for continued support of the people's aspirations ...

More (w/ copy of pres release):
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[steve2470]

51. k&r nt

[pinboy3niner]

52. ***Council spokesman CONFIRMS Gaddafi offer to negotiate his departure rejected***

This confirms both the offer and the rejection. From AJE Libya Live Blog - March 8:

11:01am < (4:01 AM EST) >

A representative of Muammar Gaddafi offered talks with the rebel National Libyan Council on his exit but the council rejected it, Mustafa Gheriani, a rebel spokesman said.

"I confirm that we received contact from a Gaddafi representative seeking to negotiate Gaddafi's exit. We rejected this. We are not negotiating with someone who spilled Libyan blood and continues to do so. Why would we trust the guy today?

Al Jazeera reports that the council said it may not pursue Gaddafi for crimes they accuse him of committing, if he steps down.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[joshcryer]

53. Knew it was true. It was a truly Gaddafi move.

Only a madman would make such an offer.

[pinboy3niner]

54. AFP reports new airstrikes on Ras Lanuf

11:15am < (4:15 AM EST) >

A fighter jet has launched an air strike just metres from houses on the edge of Libya's rebel-held Ras Lanuf, where dark grey smoke rose over the highway, an AFP reporter says.

The missile exploded next to the road around 100 metres from some houses on the outskirts of the strategic oil town, which is the eastern front for the rebels.

There were no casualties or damage, apart from a big crater in the ground. Witnesses reported another air strike an hour earlier in the same location.

"So far today we have not treated any casualties," said Doctor Yusuf al-Badri, who was stationed with an ambulance and another colleague at the main rebel checkpoint on the eastern outskirts of Ras Lanuf.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

55. Opposition leadership will not seek criminal charges if Gaddafi resigns, exits

AJE Live Blog - Libya March 8:

The leadership of Libya's opposition movements says that it will not pursue criminal charges against Muammar Gaddafi if he resigns and leaves the country, the head of their self-declared national council says to AFP.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[joshcryer]

56. Nice. That doesn't preclude individual citizens of Libya from filing, though.

:rofl:

[joshcryer]

57. What I don't get: what kind of person who is pondering stepping down...

...bombs his own people at the same time? I don't think he's seriously considering this to be perfectly honest. Unless he's blowing his load just to give one last "Fuck you!" you Libya, then he'll bail out after getting a "possible immunity grant."

It's sickening.

[pinboy3niner]

58. If he wants to negotiate a deal, the bombing does three things

It slows the opposition's advance, giving him the time and space to negotiate before his ouster is a fait accompli; it demonstrates his ability to drag out the conflict, with extensive casualties; and it provides an incentive for the opposition to deal (to end the bloodshed).

The opposition has said there can be no negotiation while Gaddafi is in power. Their announcement of no criminal prosecution if he resigns and leaves seems intended to give him an incentive to leave, but it's not much of one. Gaddafi remains subject to investigation and prosecution by the International Criminal Court.

[joshcryer]

59. Thanks for that analysis, it helps.

Makes sense.

[Catherina]

63. +1 n/t

[pinboy3niner]

60. BREAKING, AJE: Gaddafi's forces launch new artillery bombardment on Zawiyah

Posted by AJE about a half hour ago:

12:46pm


Gaddafi's forces launch a fresh artillery bombardment on Zawiyah and surrounded the town in the west of Libya. No further details available yet.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-8

[pinboy3niner]

61. BREAKING, AJE: Fresh airstrikes reported on Ras Lanuf

Reported on-air moments ago. AJE had an eyewitness on the phone, but I missed it. Did anyone see the report and hear the call?

[joshcryer]

62. Missed it. :(

[Catherina]

64. Part 3 here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x584297

So he's still alive and bombing ppl while talking about immunity?