Egypt Said to Be Arming Libyan Rebels with US Knowledge

[Hannah Bell]

CAIRO—Egypt's military has begun shipping arms over the border to Libyan rebels with Washington's knowledge, U.S. and Libyan rebel officials said.

The shipments—mostly small arms such as assault rifles and ammunition—appear to be the first confirmed case of an outside government arming the rebel fighters. Those fighters have been losing ground for days in the face of a steady westward advance by forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

The Egyptian shipments are the strongest indication to date that some Arab countries are heeding Western calls to take a lead in efforts to intervene on behalf of pro-democracy rebels in their fight against Mr. Gadhafi in Libya. Washington and other Western countries have long voiced frustration with Arab states' unwillingness to help resolve crises in their own region, even as they criticized Western powers for attempting to do so...

The vote provided critical political cover to Western powers wary of intervening militarily without a broad regional and international mandate. On Thursday evening, the U.N. Security Council voted on a resolution endorsing a no-fly zone in Libya and authorizing military action in support of the rebels.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704360404576206992835270906.html

[GodlessBiker]

1. Well, somebody has been arming Gadhafi over the years, so it only seems fair.

[aquart]

2. Duh.

For the first time in years people in the MidEast aren't spitting when they say "American" and that's not good enough for us?

[The Magistrate]

3. Captain Obvious Strikes Again, Ma'am

This has been common knowledge for a couple of weeks, and any competent observer would have expected arms from this source would appear from the start of the episode. There is no evidence anything beyond small arms is involved, and in the greater scheme of things, these are relatively unimportant. Artillery, whether in the form of cannon or rockets, and armor are decisive here. What would be news would be reliable reports or evidence that longer-ranged anti-tank missiles were being supplied, and men trained in their use appearing in the rebel ranks.

[David__77]

4. Algeria would probably be supporting the opposite side.

There's an interesting tension there. It may not be relevant before too long.