03/01/11 - In Zawiya, just 30 kilometers West of Tripoli, the freedom movement strengthened its control of the city of 200,000 people while Gaddafi chided them as being under the influence of Bin Ladin. Residents have built defenses including tanks, anti-aircraft guns and other captured army weapons, with many manned by soldiers who have joined the rebellion. Between Zawiya and Tripoli, pro-government security forces have set up at least six barricaded checkpoints to ward off any threat to the capitol from the east, and they have also sent armored forces to the outskirts of Zawiya to prevent the rebellion from spreading from that point. The Libyan air force mounted emergency air ferry operations to bring in more foreign fighters from the south to reinforce the capitol.
In Tripoli itself, Gaddafi has taken a leaf from the Kuwaiti book by instructing the banks to pay a dividend of 500 Dinars ($400 US) to all city citizens, and promising to issue them low interest loans for housing. He has literally bought an interval of quiet, now rigidly enforced by security forces in the city. The streets of the capitol were eerily quiet and deserted.
Debka reported that US and other NATO nations have sent in military and intelligence advisors to the victorious rebel forces in the east. The US is also reportedly moving CV Enterprise and Kearsarge (a Marine amphibious transport carrier) to positions off the Libyan coast. The American carrier based air power could easily enforce a no-fly zone over Libya, and the Marine unit would serve for other contingencies.
In Tripoli itself, Gaddafi has taken a leaf from the Kuwaiti book by instructing the banks to pay a dividend of 500 Dinars ($400 US) to all city citizens, and promising to issue them low interest loans for housing. He has literally bought an interval of quiet, now rigidly enforced by security forces in the city. The streets of the capitol were eerily quiet and deserted.
Debka reported that US and other NATO nations have sent in military and intelligence advisors to the victorious rebel forces in the east. The US is also reportedly moving CV Enterprise and Kearsarge (a Marine amphibious transport carrier) to positions off the Libyan coast. The American carrier based air power could easily enforce a no-fly zone over Libya, and the Marine unit would serve for other contingencies.
Meanwhile, protests continued in Yemen, Bahrain and now Oman, where looting was reported in the latest round of demonstrations. And let us not forget the ticking clock on the planned “Day Of Rage” in Saudi Arabia, where demonstrations are planned for March 11 in Riyadh. Saudi security forces have already responded to minor protests in the kingdom, and they are reported to be mobilizing assets in the event the turmoil that has rocked the region comes home to plague the House of Saud.
02/28/11 - As Americans shook off the last hangover watching the 3.5 hour Oscars and another 2 hours of post ceremony partying by the Hollywood elite, the residents of Tripoli endure a virtual lockdown. Gaddafi’s security apparatus has manned checkpoints throughout the city and killed just enough people to frighten the remainder into staying home. Bread is now being rationed, with a limit of five loaves per family. The price of a 10 pound bag of rice has skyrocketed 500 percent to the US Equivalent of $40, money the people just do not have. So while the entire east of Libya has been liberated from Gaddafi’s rule, he remains the embattled Mayor of Tripoli, holding 2 million residents there hostage with gas, armored cars, kalishnikov rifle toting militias roving the city in SUVs and pickup trucks, and a hyperinflation fueled bout of starvation. Something tells me that by adding hunger to his mix of oppressive tools he is making a fatal mistake. Hungry people soon become desperate people, and it may not be long before the masses brave the rifles in their overwhelming numbers and emerge from their homes with a vengeance.
02/28/11 - As Americans shook off the last hangover watching the 3.5 hour Oscars and another 2 hours of post ceremony partying by the Hollywood elite, the residents of Tripoli endure a virtual lockdown. Gaddafi’s security apparatus has manned checkpoints throughout the city and killed just enough people to frighten the remainder into staying home. Bread is now being rationed, with a limit of five loaves per family. The price of a 10 pound bag of rice has skyrocketed 500 percent to the US Equivalent of $40, money the people just do not have. So while the entire east of Libya has been liberated from Gaddafi’s rule, he remains the embattled Mayor of Tripoli, holding 2 million residents there hostage with gas, armored cars, kalishnikov rifle toting militias roving the city in SUVs and pickup trucks, and a hyperinflation fueled bout of starvation. Something tells me that by adding hunger to his mix of oppressive tools he is making a fatal mistake. Hungry people soon become desperate people, and it may not be long before the masses brave the rifles in their overwhelming numbers and emerge from their homes with a vengeance.
The interim government of Eastern Libya announced it would form paramilitary forces to extend their control over more cities. Gaddafi has already lost control of 80% of the oil production capacity of Libya, and his control anywhere outside of Tripoli is marginal in the west. Western national, including oil field workers, have fled the country, but locals have been reportedly struggling to keep the oil flowing. Even though Saudi Arabia increased production by 500,000 barrels per day to take up any slack, speculators have bid the price of oil futures up higher. Brent crude briefly hit $114/barrel before retreating to about $96/barrel over the weekend. Even though all the gasoline in the system now was purchased long ago at much lower prices, the oil companies have used the threat of future disruption in oil flows to ratchet up prices here almost immediately, with some US cities reporting prices nearing or exceeding $4.00/gallon. The Libyans pay inflated prices for their bread. We pay inflated prices for oil. This situation was further compounded by the spread of protests in Iraq, and now Oman, where demonstrators targeted oil facilities, refineries and roads used to transport refined oil to port. Clearly the people instinctively know how to get the world’s attention.
02/24/11 - Gaddafi claimed today that, (you guessed it), Al Qaeda was behind the Libyan uprising, and that it was mostly comprised of misled kids under 20 on drugs. This repeats the tired theme that all unrest is the work of “terrorists.” In fact, governments the world over have come to define any anti-government sentiment or action as “terrorism,” even here in the USA. In the meantime, Gaddafi has apparently called for a muster of his fighting militias, long veterans of the warfare with Chad, and columns have been seen heading north on the roads to Tripoli. Africa has no shortage of machete wielding, kalishnikov toting thugs who will kill and maim indiscriminately for pay. These are the real terrorists in the world, the men who gave us rape, pillage and death on a genocidal scale in Sudan, Darfur, Somalia and elsewhere. With most of western Libya no longer in government control, Gaddafi continues to hold on to his center of power in Tripol,i where leaving your home courts death these days. Yet an ominous, and as yet unconfirmed, “tweet” on the Internet has reported a large column of tanks heading west from Tripoli.
President Obama asked his national security team to consider “the full range of options” concerning Libya, but the word “sanctions” was high on the list, so don’t expect any real response in support of the freedom movement from Uncle Sam. Sanctions? This is a tool that can work only on a government concerned that shortages imposed by the measures will harm its people and economy. Gaddafi has no such qualms.
