What security?
"Niger says it hasn’t found missiles; Worries growing about Libyan arms" November 12, 2011|By Rukmini Callimachi, Associated Press
DAKAR, Senegal - Niger’s minister of defense denied yesterday that his country had seized the dangerous surface-to-air missiles left behind by Moammar Khadafy’s retreating army, which military specialists fear are being sold to terrorist organizations in the region.
“We have not found any surface-to-air missiles yet,’’ Minister of Defense Mahamadou Karidio said by telephone from Niamey, the capital of landlocked Niger.
Niger is one of the world’s poorest countries and shares a massive border with Libya. It is through this ungoverned desert border that three of Khadafy’s generals, one of his sons, and his chief of intelligence fled in convoys escorted by ethnic Tuaregs, the traditional inhabitants of the Sahara who fought alongside Khadafy.
See: Where Are Khadafy's Kids?
They have been found.
The stretch of desert separating Libya from Niger and Mali has also been used by arms smugglers and drug traffickers for decades.
Related: Joe Camel Works For "Al-CIA-Duh"
Yeah, someone is blowing some smoke.
On Sunday, Niger’s military intercepted a convoy and found two 14.5mm and four 12.7mm machine guns, two ML-49 and three M-80 machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, and belts of ammunition, Karidio said. The army also found a satellite phone, seized six Toyota pickup trucks, and took several prisoners.
Military specialists are concerned about Khadafy’s stockpile of SA-7 surface-to-air missiles, a shoulder-fired weapon that can be hidden in a PVC tube, said Peter Pham, director of the Michael S. Ansari Africa Center.
Like the stinger missiles that allowed the Afghans to take down Soviet planes, the SA-7s usually have an infrared sensor on them, allowing fighters to aim them in the general direction of a passing plane. The weapon is powerful enough to take down a commercial jet in mid-flight.
So WHEN is the NEXT FALSE FLAG?
Observers worry that the hundreds of surface-to-air missiles left behind by Khadafy’s fleeing military are being sold to terrorist groups, including Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Al Qaeda’s affiliate in North Africa.
Oh, they were sold to "Al-CIA-Duh," huh?
In an interview that appeared Thursday in the private Mauritanian newspaper Nouakchott Infos, a leader of the Qaeda affiliate said his terror group had procured weapons from stockpiles left unguarded in Libya, but he did not specify what kind.
“It’s totally natural we benefited from Libyan arms in such conditions,’’ Mokhtar Belmokhtar, one of the chiefs of the group, was quoted as saying.
So how much is the CIA paying him -- if he even exists!
Niger’s president, Mahamadou Issoufou, said his army clashed repeatedly with arms traffickers from Libya, underlining the security threat posed by the fall of Khadafy’s regime.
Maybe this whole thing wasn't the successful victory the agenda-pushing mouthpiece claims, 'eh?
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What threat?
"Libya leader says ex-rebels can take months to disarm" November 05, 2011|By Karin Laub, Associated Press
TRIPOLI, Libya - Disarming former Libyan rebels could take months, and weapons will not be taken by force, Libya’s new prime minister said in an interview broadcast yesterday, signaling a shift from previous pledges of quick action.
Abdurrahim el-Keib also acknowledged that the National Transitional Council, which will lead Libya to its first free election within eight months, has not established full control over the country, but said it is making progress....
It's the SAME SCRIPT for EVERY F***ING WAR!!!!
The proliferation of armed former rebel militias in Libya and the council’s still shaky grip have raised concerns about growing instability during the transition period, which is to end with the election of a national assembly by June.
Thousands of civilians across Libya took up arms during the eight-month war that brought down Khadafy.
Some have returned to their prewar lives, but others have remained in their fighting units, manning checkpoints and patrolling streets.
In recent weeks, there have been reports of fighters using weapons to settle personal scores....
But that DOESN'T FIT the agenda-pushing NARRATIVE!
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"Militias still fighting in turf battle in Tripoli" November 14, 2011|Associated Press
WARSHEFANA, Libya - Rival militias clashed on the outskirts of the Libyan capital for a fourth day yesterday in the deadliest and most sustained violence since the capture and killing of Moammar Khadafy last month.
Fighters attacked each other with rockets, mortars, and machine guns, witnesses said. The fighting, which has killed at least 13 people since late last week, raised new concerns about the ability of Libya’s transitional government to disarm thousands of gunmen and restore order after an eight-month civil war....
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"Libya’s AG says gunmen threatened to kill him" December 08, 2011|By Rami Al-Shaheibi, Associated Press
TRIPOLI, Libya - Libya’s attorney general said gunmen dragged him from his car in broad daylight in Tripoli, threatening to kill him if he did not let one of their friends out of jail.
The attack on one of Libya’s highest legal authorities highlights the tense security situation that has persisted in the capital since revolutionaries toppled Moammar Khadafy’s regime in August.
The National Transitional Council, which led the uprising and took power after Khadafy’s fall, has made limited progress in extending its rule and disarming the militias that fought government forces during Libya’s eight-month civil war, which ended with Khadafy’s capture and killing in late October.
“Tripoli is not safe,’’ Attorney General Abdul-Aziz al-Hassady said Tuesday, just hours after being attacked.
Some victory.
Hassady said he was leaving work when a pickup truck with a mounted machine gun on the back blocked his way, at which point he noticed about 300 armed men in the area.
Gunmen jumped out of the pickup, dragged him from his car, and demanded he release one of their friends, who had been arrested on suspicion of murder, he said. Hassady said he escaped after snatching a gun from one of the attackers and pointing it at the head of another until he was able to get away.
This story is beginning to stink.
He said he intended to quit his job, though he had not officially informed the National Transitional Council of his resignation.
Scores of armed groups still operate in Tripoli, Hassady said, making it harder for the new government to establish rule of law.
As if they were really interested in that.
Most police stations remain closed, and many officers complain that the presence of armed militias makes it impossible for them to do their jobs.
Earlier this week, police arrested a member of an armed brigade from the city of Misurata. His colleagues responded by storming the police station and freeing their friend.
Yeah, Libya is looking great!
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Related: Libya Looking Like Iraq
Actually, it is looking worse.
"Gunmen try to kill leader of Libya army" December 11, 2011|By Rami Al-Shaheibi, Associated Press
TRIPOLI, Libya - Gunmen tried to kill the head of the Libyan Army yesterday in a bold daylight attack in the country’s capital, setting off hours of intense gun battles along the main highway to the airport. Assailants in Tripoli also attacked one of Libya’s largest military bases.
The gunmen were believed to be from renegade groups of former rebel fighters.
Our guys?
The violence deepens concerns about unity among the former rebels, many of whom remain heavily armed, while the police and military struggle to restructure their forces after the overthrow of Moammar Khadafy.
Military officials said revolutionary fighters from the western mountain town of Zintan were likely behind the violence. They spoke on condition of anonymity because an investigation was still under way....
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At least the weapons are being disabled:
"US team disposes of Libyan explosives" December 12, 2011|Associated Press
TRIPOLI, Libya - A team of US weapons experts disposed of about 1,300 pounds of explosives in Libya yesterday as part of an ongoing effort to disable unsecured weapons.
A US military demolition team is in Libya to help dispose of weapons and other munitions after eight-months of civil war that ended with the ouster and death of Moammar Khadafy.
American diplomats said the team has secured around 5,000 shoulder-fired missile launchers since September. A large amount of weapons that vanished during Libya’s civil war has led to fears that the material could fall into the wrong hands.
Also yesterday, a Libyan military spokesman said rebels tried for a second time to assassinate the country’s new national army commander late Saturday.
Sergeant Abdel-Razik el-Shibahy said revolutionary fighters from the western mountain town of Zintan opened fire on General Khalifa Hifter’s convoy in Tripoli, after failing to assassinate him hours before. One guard was killed and four injured in the second attack. No one was killed in the first attempt....
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So how is Libya, Leon?
"In Libya, US defense chief offers aid; Panetta cites need to unify militias in restive nation" December 18, 2011|By Liam Stack and Thom Shanker, New York Times
TRIPOLI, Libya - Presidents from Jefferson to Obama have waged war on these shores. Given such volatile relations, it is little wonder that no US defense secretary had ever set foot here.
But yesterday, Leon E. Panetta became the first defense secretary to visit Tripoli. He arrived to assess the progress and challenges facing a postrevolutionary government struggling to control the disparate rebel bands that ousted Moammar Khadafy with the support of NATO attacks from the air and sea.
“I have come here to pay tribute to the courage and determination of the Libyan people,’’ Panetta said as he stood next to Prime Minister Abdel-Rahim el-Keeb. “They bravely came together. They rose up against an oppressive regime. They fought, and many died, to chart a better future for themselves and for their children.’’
Panetta said he was “looking forward to building a close partnership with the Libyan government,’’ and he pledged that the United States “stands ready to offer security assistance cooperation once the government identifies its needs.’’
But he also listed challenges facing the new government, including “bringing together all of the revolutionary forces that fought from west to east, securing weapons stockpiles, confronting terrorism, professionalizing the army and police, and developing the institutions of a free and representative government.’’
As they destroy the ones here at home!
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The militias have emerged as major power brokers in postwar Libya. Many of the most influential portfolios in el-Keeb’s government, including the Defense and Interior ministries, have been awarded to representatives of powerful militias from places like Misurata and Zintan.
The groups are especially troublesome in the capital, which has been occupied by a patchwork of heavily armed bands from across the country since Khadafy’s forces fled the city in August. The government has asked out-of-town militias to leave the capital by Tuesday, but the most powerful ones have shown few signs of complying with that demand.
Hundreds of armed men backed by pickup trucks mounted with heavy weapons, like antiaircraft guns or rocket launchers, have staked out territory across Tripoli.
Looks like we know where those missing weapons went, huh?
Skirmishes between them are common, and tensions have emerged between militia commanders and figures in the transitional government. Last weekend, fighters from the Zintan militia clashed with soldiers from the fledgling army loyal to General Khalifa Hifter.
In the last several days, Zintan fighters have shot and wounded one of Hifter’s sons and arrested another.
In a somber tribute to casualties of past US conflicts in Libya and nearby seas, Panetta visited the cemetery that is home to remains of some of the 13 US sailors killed offshore on Sept. 4, 1804. Their mission was to sail the USS Intrepid into a pirate fleet anchored in Tripoli harbor, then detonate explosives packed on board to destroy as many of the buccaneer vessels as possible.
The charges detonated prematurely, killing 13 sailors.
FALSE FLAG GONE WRONG even WAY BACK WHEN!
Also see: U.S. in Libya Since 1804
Some things never change.
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