Saif al-Islam, Gaddafi’s son, arrested, Libyan commander says

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi

TRIPOLI— Saif al-Islam, the favored son of former Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, was arrested on the border with Niger while his supporters were trying to smuggle him out of the country, a Libyan commander said Saturday.

Othman Maigeta, a brigade commander, confirmed that the once high-profile member of the ruling family was detained and taken to the mountain city of Zintan. The city is home to one of the largest groups of fighters that swept across the west of the country, ultimately toppling the regime in August.

The announcement by Maigeta, made at a news conference at the Radisson hotel in the Libyan capital, was greeted with celebratory gunfire, singing and dancing.

Scenes of joy broke out in the streets as the news was announced on Libyan television, and people hung out of the windows of their cars, honking horns, flashing lights and flying the red, black and green revolutionary tricolor. Cries of “Allahu Akbar” filled the air as crowds hugged each other and wept.

Moammar Gaddafi was captured outside his hometown of Sirte last month, but was immediately killed in a mob attack. He was later buried quietly in the desert.

Saif al-Islam, the eldest son of Moammar Gaddafi and his second wife, was a prominent international spokesman for the regime. He was educated in London and portrayed himself as a reforming force.

But he became a leading force of the Gaddafi regime’s struggle for survival and is wanted for trial by the International Criminal Court, which has been negotiating with people who claimed to his representatives about his possible surrender.

Rebels from Zintan have maintained their status as a fighting force and control parts of Tripoli, as well as patrolling areas in the south of the country. Commanders said that the arrest was made in Obari, in the desert, 400 miles south of Tripoli.

Rumors had been circulating for weeks about the whereabouts of the man who was poised to take over from his father in ruling Libya, and who was both politically influential and widely reviled.

Fighting last week near the Western town of Zawiya intensified after word spread that Saif al-Islam was hiding in a residential neighborhood on the outskirts of Tripoli.

News by Washington Post


Read current news at http://bbc-cnn-worldnews.blogspot.com

Hugo Chavez: the U.S. and the EU "infiltrate terrorists" in Syria

Hugo Chavez

AFP - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Sunday slammed the attitude in the Syrian crisis of the United States and the European Union, which he said "redouble their offensive against Syria" and "infiltrate terrorists" there. Chavez made the remarks during a speech to several thousand supporters gathered in central Caracas. Was the first time taking part in such a public gathering since he was treated for cancer. "The United States and its European allies redouble their offensive against Syria, infiltrate terrorists to generate violence, blood and death, as they have done in Libya earlier this year," he told Mr. Chavez, leader of the radical left in Latin America.

"A bombs, they managed not only to overthrow the Libyan government, but also to destroy this country and assassinate Colonel Muammar Gaddafi (...) and now they are Syria," said the Venezuelan president. Chavez, who was a strong support of Colonel Gaddafi, has strongly condemned from the beginning the military operation in western Libya. He described as "killing" the death of Colonel Gaddafi, who died in suspicious circumstances after being captured by rebels after an air strike against its NATO convoy. In Syria, President Bashar al-Assad is facing since mid-March to suppress an uprising that hard. According to the UN, the repression has more than 3,500 dead.

Read current news at http://bbc-cnn-worldnews.blogspot.com

Official end of the NATO operation in Libya

Fighter

This is the official end of "Operation Unified Protector". Seven months and 26,000 sorties later, the NATO mission ends this Monday, October 31. In a statement, the organization had welcomed last week a success "historic" and called the new plan to "build a new Libya" democratic.

"The board of the North Atlantic [the governing body of the alliance, extended to representatives of five non-member countries - Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Jordan and Sweden - partners in the operation] confirmed the decision a week ago. The operation in Libya ends this Monday, October 31. Our military mission is now complete ", said Thursday the Secretary General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

"We have completely filled the historic mandate of the United Nations to protect the people of Libya, to enforce a flight ban and an arms embargo," he added. The operation "Unified Protector" is "one of the most successful in the history of NATO," welcomed the Secretary-General, while believing that the victory was won by the Libyan people, who "can take her future in his hands firmly and safe, "Rasmussen noted. For the head of NATO, the Libyans, however, "much work to do to build a new Libya based on reconciliation, human rights and the rule of law."

THE FEARS CNT the remnants of Qaddafi

The National Transitional Council (CNT) had asked last week to maintain NATO in Libya at least "until the end of the year", ensuring that even after the death of his last loyal Muammar Gaddafi a threat for the country. These fears were reinforced by reports of South African newspaper Beeld that a group of South African mercenaries was still in Libya and attempted exfiltration Saif Al-Islam, son of Muammar Gaddafi.

News by Lemonde

Read current news at http://bbc-cnn-worldnews.blogspot.com

The mystery of 53 dead in Sirte Mahari Hotel casts a new shadow on the CNT

Mystery of 53 dead in Sirte Mahari Hotel

Sirte (Libya) Special Envoy - What happened in the days before the fall of Sirte and the death of Colonel Qaddafi, Thursday, October 20th at the Hotel Mahari? When he returned home, the morning of Saturday, October 22, Faraj Mohammed, near the luxury hotel, found 53 bodies lying on the grass: all men, all shot dead. They were lying on the lawn that slopes gently toward the sea still dark spots indicate the locations where the bodies were. Half of the bodies had their hands tied behind his back and wore casts and bandages, indicating their status as prisoners or wounded. All appear to have been summarily executed judging wounds to the head or the neck. Who are they? Faraj Mohammed claims to have found four people, the people of Sirte, which Ezzeddine Al-Hencheri, former Minister of Gaddafi and Moftah Dabroun, an officer.

It is impossible to know with certainty the date of death without an autopsy in good standing. It dates back between 14 and 19 October, according to Peter Bouckaert, emergencies chief of the division to the NGO human rights Human Rights Watch. Mahari Hotel is located near the Quarter Number 2, where Colonel Gaddafi and the last four of his supporters were entrenched, resisting fiercely, almost all civilians who then fled the city. The rest is history. Gaddafi tried to flee on Thursday morning October 20, aboard a convoy halted by NATO. Captured by the revolutionaries, he died while being transported by ambulance to Misrata, the result of his injuries, provides the National Transitional Council (CNT), a summary execution, accusing his family. Moatassim his son, who was arrested the same day, was seen on an amateur video talking calmly with the rebels who held.

The Mahari, transformed into a place of detention by the forces of anti-Gaddafi, he witnessed a mass execution of prisoners pro-Qaddafi. The establishment was controlled by Misrata forces since the end of the first week of October, between 7 and 10. Several groups of thowar the revolutionary fighters, had made their base, as evidenced by the walls of the hotel covered with graffiti of different brigades Misrata. The Al-Nimr katiba (the tiger in Arabic) is the present, it is one of the most powerful of Misrata, which has 230. There were also present katibas Al-Fahad (the jaguar), Al-Assad (lion) and Al Qasba (the citadel).

Misrata fighters, drunk with anger at the atrocities committed during the five months of siege and shelling of their city, they would have wanted revenge. The commander of the Al-Nimr katiba denies any involvement. "The hotel has never been a place of detention. On the morning of October 20, we were attacked by Gaddafi and his forces. We had to leave the place. When we came back the next day the bodies were there." To him, they were probably killed by Gaddafi "which would prevent them from speaking." An explanation unconvincing, since the Libyan seemed especially concerned about his flight that morning. The head of the military council of Misrata, Ramadan Zarmouh, for his part said that Sirte is full of graves of revolutionary arrested or disappeared for months and calls into question the identity of victims of the hotel Mahari. "They are prisoners removed by Gaddafi before their departure," he says.

Detail worse, the staff of the hospital Ibn Sina Sirte ensures that a week before the fall of the city, the revolutionaries entered the school, locked in a room physicians, and toured the rooms to retrieve injuries alleged to have participated in the fighting to take them to an unknown destination. For fear of reprisals, no one is willing to testify openly or give a figure, even the Ukrainian pediatrician remained throughout the siege. Upstairs, the wounded also show evasive, some even refusing to disclose the nature of their injuries for fear of being identified as combatants. If this massacre is found, it will not be the first attributed to the rebels. The Gaddafi regime, he, has been used to a much more systematic and significant. Peter Bouckaert, Human Rights Watch, the murders of the Mahari Hotel "require the immediate attention of the Libyan authorities," who must conduct a survey.

News by Lemonde

The UN mandate ends the intervention in Libya

Victory, Libya

AFP - The Security Council of the United Nations ended Thursday to warrant the use of force in Libya, seven months after the start of the intervention against the Gaddafi regime, despite calls from the transitional government of Libya for its extension. A Council resolution adopted unanimously, ends the no-fly zone and the authorization of the use of force to protect civilians, as of 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time Jamahiriya) on October 31. For its part, NATO, which had supported the military operations, is scheduled to meet Friday in Brussels to formally declare the end of the air strikes despite calls from the new regime.

The National Transitional Council (CNT) on Wednesday urged the continuation of NATO in Libya at least "until the end of the year", ensuring that even after the death of his last loyal Muammar Gaddafi represented a threat to the country. The resolution of the Security Council reduces the international embargo on arms, so that the CNT can acquire to ensure national security. The CNT declared the "liberation" formal Libya on October 23, three days after the death of Muammar Gaddafi. The green light of the Security Council in February and March for a military exclusion zone and air strikes had divided the fifteen member countries. Russia, China, South Africa, Brazil and India have accused NATO of overstepping the mandate they were given.

The Ambassador of France to the United Nations Gerard Araud expressed "pride" of his country for taking part in the operations. "It was the liberation of Libya with the support of all countries who wanted to be part of this wonderful experience," he told reporters. But the Security Council remained divided until the end. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said that the two resolutions had been overridden. He spoke of "number of violations" of the resolutions and said that "lessons must be learned" in the Security Council after the military strikes that lasted seven months and have been instrumental in the fall of Gaddafi. 'Let history judge, "replied Mr. Araud. U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice spoke on the same mode. The resolution "concludes that history will judge as a chapter in which the Security Council can be proud," she said.

It welcomed the "prospect of a free and participatory Libya with the participation of all people, regardless of gender and religion." "The end of the no-fly zone and provisions to protect civilians shows that Libya has entered a new era," said British Foreign Minister, William Hague in a statement welcoming the resolution as a "another important step towards a peaceful and democratic future for Libya." In its resolution, the Council reiterates the need for a transition period "oriented commitment to democracy, good governance, the practice of law, national reconciliation and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Libya.”
Without explicit reference to vague terms of the death of Colonel Gaddafi, the Fifteen "urge the Libyan authorities to refrain from reprisals, including arbitrary detention (and) the extra-judicial executions." Click here to find out more!

Gaddafi son wants to surrender to ICC, says NTC

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi

(Reuters) - Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who once vowed to die fighting on Libyan soil, now wants to face international justice instead and avoid any chance of meeting the same grisly end as his father, Libyan officials said.

An official of the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) said on Wednesday that Saif al-Islam, the only one of Muammar Gaddafi's eight children still on the run, had proposed surrendering to the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has indicted him for war crimes.

Surrender by 39-year-old Saif al-Islam would close another chapter in the four-decade history of Gaddafi family rule, as the United Nations discusses an end to its Libyan mandate that allowed NATO to bomb the country and help rebels to take power.

He was widely seen as Muammar Gaddafi's favored son and his heir apparent.

Saif al-Islam wanted to surrender to the Dutch-based ICC with his relative, former intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi, said Abdel Majid Mlegta, an official of the NTC which overran the last Muammar Gaddafi stronghold of Sirte a week ago.

"They are proposing a way to hand themselves over to The Hague," said Mlegta.

The ICC indicted Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam and Senussi for their roles in using force to try to put down the uprising which began in February.

An ICC spokesman said it had no confirmation of any talks about Saif al-Islam's surrender.

ANOTHER U-TURN

NTC officials have said Saif al-Islam is hiding in Libya's southern desert after failing to find a safe haven in a neighboring country like Algeria or Niger, which have offered refuge to the other four Gaddafi children who survived the eight-month civil war.

Any surrender would mark a U-turn by Saif al-Islam, an internationally well-connected philanthropist and liberal reformer who turned abruptly into a soldier ready to die rather than capitulate when rebels rose up against his father.

"We fight here in Libya; we die here in Libya," he told Reuters Television in an interview earlier this year.

He now appears to prefer the prospect of a Dutch prison cell rather than risk falling into the hands of NTC forces.

NTC fighters seized Muammar Gaddafi last week after they overran his hometown of Sirte. Within hours he was dead, although it remains unclear who killed him, and his rotting corpse was put on public display for four days before being buried in a secret desert grave on Tuesday.

At the United Nations, envoys said the Security Council planned to end U.N. authorization this week for a no-fly zone and NATO intervention in Libya despite calls from the NTC for it to wait.

The Security Council made the authorization in March to protect Libyans from the forces that Muammar Gaddafi had deployed to suppress pro-democracy uprisings across the country.

Libya's people were "looking forward to terminating the no-fly zone over Libya as well as terminating the mandate accorded by Security Council resolution 1973 to protect civilians as soon as possible," Libyan Deputy U.N. Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi told the 15-nation council on Wednesday.

"In accordance with the initial assessments, the date of October 31 is a logical date to terminate this mandate," he said.

But he said the NTC had not yet made an official decision on whether to request termination of the U.N. mandate, which authorized members of NATO and other U.N. member states to take "all necessary measures" to protect Libyan civilians.

NATO bombing prevented Muammar Gaddafi's forces from taking the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and allowed often disorganized rebel units to eventually control the whole county.

Dabbashi said the government needed more time to assess the security situation in Libya and its ability to monitor its borders.

Western diplomats said issues the NTC had suggested it would like NATO to help with, including border security, fell outside the U.N. mandate to protect civilians and enforce a no-fly zone.

"The job was to protect civilians and from NATO's point of view, that mission has been accomplished," a diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "There's no point in delaying termination of the mandate."