looks like Gaddafi is done,
This is the 911 of the ME,
another fine mission accomplished by Bin Laden,
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looks like Gaddafi is done,
This is the 911 of the ME,
another fine mission accomplished by Bin Laden,
...as it would come back full circle. Chances are, that's where they originated.Quote:
Originally Posted by BobR
Iraq nothing, I would love to see it happen in Washington.Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
Yes, in cahoots with his good friends from Washington and London.:mid:Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
No, I say they had it coming. We TK'ees where putting the finger in the wound for a long time. Maybe sometimes too vulgar and not as diplomatic as ....Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
What is going on in these arab/muslim countries ?
-I guess there are tired of eating cous cous,
- having too much sperma in the cephalo
-its a little bit like the falling of the iron curtain, except....
Is or was there ever such a thing as a good/sane muslim leader ?
- I can't think of any! Can You?
Now can you imagine what a total fu*k up this Muhammed must have been?
Well, we had plenty of discussions about this nice guy, but always negative.
Can democracy and islam go together?
N O !
Is this so called Arab/Islam revolution any good? AlJazzera and CNN are all hots about it!
N O ! Because these Arab/Islam countries have just catapult themselves back again. Back to the drawing board or stone age with them.
Has the west learned anything from this turmoil ?
I'am afraid not. Or else we would have pulled out our troops from Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and the rest of these fuc*ked up muslim countries.
Let it be !
Because it is done !
Brutal dictatorships armed, funded, installed and supported by the west, or the peoples choice of what kind of a political/social system they want to live in.Quote:
Originally Posted by HermantheGerman
The only reasons the west gives a rats arse about the Middle east is because of the oil and the strategic geographic location.
All this talk about human rights and democracy verses a radical Muslim system is just a load of hypocritical moralizing and fear mongering. Western powers were and still are quite happy to support dictators who murder and torture their own people if its in western financial interests. In fact its been well documented that USA sent suspects to Egypt to be tortured. Add to that that the US and its "coalition of the willing" have murdered tens of thousands in Iraq and Afghanistan. And they continue to do so.
The west bears as much responsibility for the crimes we are seeing now in places like Libia and Bahrain as those dictators we support/ed do.
see how Gadaffi doesn't give a fuck when shaking Blair hand,
Blair was really a whore, so typically British :)
Stability in the middle east and the oil producing areas of North Africa has been bought by alliances with undemocratic and repressive regimes. We only have ourselves to blame since we are the ones dependent on automobiles, jet planes, plastics and chemicals made possible by petroleum. If we go back to horses and buggys we can rid ourselves of the tremendous guilt and angst we direct against the US and its friends.:mid:
I've maintained for some time now that oil is far too cheap . Should the retail price be allowed to reflect the true cost then the search for alternatives would become realistic .Quote:
Originally Posted by Humbert
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011...fi-sas-embassy
Libya: UK officials tell Gaddafi loyalists to defect or face war crimes trial
• SAS on standby to rescue trapped Britons
• Leader says Libya will be 'red with fire'
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/02/5077.jpg
In a televised address, Colonel Gaddafi vowed to ‘open up the arsenals’ to arm his supporters. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
British officials are contacting senior Libyan regime figures directly to persuade them to desert Muammar Gaddafi or face trial alongside him for crimes against humanity, the Guardian has learned.
With SAS troops and paratroopers on standby to rescue an estimated 150 Britons at workplaces in the Libyan desert, contingency measures were being drawn up to close the British embassy in Tripoli to pre-empt possible reprisals.
But the Foreign Office denied reports that the embassy would be closed as soon as this weekend. "We will react to the situation as it unfolds on the ground. If it gets too dangerous for our people to be there, of course we will pull them out of there. But are we planning to close the embassy down? No," a spokesman said. The US said it was closing its embassy in Tripoli as well as imposing limited unilateral sanctions on Libya.
The foreign secretary, William Hague, urged Britons still in Tripoli to board the last UK-sponsored chartered flight out of the capital at first light. He said HMS Cumberland would return to Benghazi on Sunday to pick up any remaining Britons there, but added that those in the desert remained Britain's biggest worry. All options were being considered, he said.
There were reports that two RAF helicopters had arrived in Malta in what may be the next stage of preparations to airlift some UK oil workers.
Britain's direct warnings to Libyan officials coincided with a joint British and French draft UN security council resolution the Libyan leadership to face war crimes prosecutions at the international criminal court for attacks on protesters. The resolution also called for travel bans and asset freezes for Libya's leaders.
Gaddafi showed no sign of heeding the warnings. Reports said that gunmen in cars in the capital, Tripoli, opened fire on protesters as they emerged from Friday prayers.
Nearby, in Green Square, the Libyan leader made another defiant televised appearance, promising to arm his supporters. "Retaliate against them, retaliate against them," he told a crowd of loyalists from the ramparts of a crusader fort overlooking the square. "Dance, sing and prepare. Prepare to defend Libya, to defend the oil, dignity and independence."
Wearing a fur-lined cap and sunglasses, and flanked by bodyguards, Gaddafi declared: "At the suitable time we will open the arms depot so all Libyans and tribes become armed, so that Libya becomes red with fire."
A vote on the UN resolution is not expected before next week. EU officials also discussed the possible imposition of punitive measures against the Gaddafi government, but stressed that any action would be led by decisions taken by the security council.
The steps under discussion fall a long way short of steps called for by some human rights groups, which wanted the UN to declare a no-fly zone over Libya if the regime continued to use warplanes to bomb or strafe demonstrators.
Mention of a no-fly zone was removed from the Franco-British draft , and an emergency Nato meeting in Brussels did not even discuss it as a contingency measure.
European officials said Russia and China would veto any such suggestions in the security council. They were also anxious about the timing of any punitive action, hoping to avoid a backlash against the many thousands of foreign workers still in the country, while seeking to maximise incentives for Gaddafi's supporters to defect.
Such defections seemed to be accelerating . Envoys to Portugal and Sweden renounced Gaddafi, with the ambassador to Lisbon, Ali Ibrahim Emdored, telling AP he was leaving "due to the killing of my people by this fascist regime".
In Geneva, the Libyan delegation to the UN human rights council called for a moment of silence in the chamber to "honour this revolution".
"We in the Libyan mission have categorically decided to serve as representatives of the Libyan people and their free will. We only represent the Libyan people," one envoy, Adel Shaltut, declared, drawing thunderous applause.
The 47-nation council unanimously declared that it "strongly condemns the recent gross and systematic human rights violations committed in Libya", calling for the launch of a UN human rights investigation into the bloodshed of the past few days. It took the unprecedented step of calling for Libya's membership to be revoked.
Hague, the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, and the EU foreign affairs chief, Lady Ashton, are due to fly to Geneva on Monday to promote the case for prosecutions of Libyan leaders by the international criminal court. The foreign secretary said: "The message is clear: that there will be a day of reckoning for those guilty of the appalling atrocities. The world will act together to hold them to account."
Such measures were decried as paltry by some organisations calling for immediate action to stop the bloodshed.
A coalition of more than 200 Arab organisations and 30 leading Arab intellectuals appealed for the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya .
One of the signatories, the Egyptian writer and commentator Hani Shukrallah, said: "Stopping Gaddafi and his family shopping in Harrods or on the Champs Elysées is not going to prevent him unleashing further bloodshed.
"It's time to stop fiddling about and get serious."
There's lots of oil in various places around the world. Just its too expensive to extract at the moment. In fact you can make oil out of just about any kind of organic waste product. The only problem is that the set up costs are very high and the price of production is very high too. To be competitive the price of oil would have to be around $180 a barrel to make synthetic oil viable.Quote:
Originally Posted by Humbert
No need to go back to horse and buggies at all. Simple fact is that the cheap and good quality oil is running out. But there will be an almost endless supply of much more expensive stuff to fill the void. Canada has the second biggest known reserves in the world, but its in tar-sands and expensive to extract. Saudi Arabia has the biggest known reserves of good quality and cheap to produce oil at the moment, but its due to run out in the next decade or two. Iraq has huge reserves of the good easy to get at stuff as yet untapped and after Iraq is Iran. Go figure why the US government is so interested in these two countries.
You are forgetting one little thing...the extraction causes B I G pollution.Quote:
Originally Posted by PandaThere's lots of oil in various places around the world. Just its too expensive to extract at the moment. In fact you can make oil out of just about any kind of organic waste product. The only problem is that the set up costs are very high and the price of production is very high too. To be competitive the price of oil would have to be around $180 a barrel to make synthetic oil viable.Quote:
Originally Posted by Humbert
No need to go back to horse and buggies at all. Simple fact is that the cheap and good quality oil is running out. But there will be an almost endless supply of much more expensive stuff to fill the void. Canada has the second biggest known reserves in the world, but its in tar-sands and expensive to extract. Saudi Arabia has the biggest known reserves of good quality and cheap to produce oil at the moment, but its due to run out in the next decade or two. Iraq has huge reserves of the good easy to get at stuff as yet untapped and after Iraq is Iran. Go figure why the US government is so interested in these two countries.
You are right, and nothing new about your statements. But why do muslims always get chased arround like camels? Where is the pride and dignity?Quote:
Originally Posted by PandaBrutal dictatorships armed, funded, installed and supported by the west, or the peoples choice of what kind of a political/social system they want to live in.Quote:
Originally Posted by HermantheGerman
The only reasons the west gives a rats arse about the Middle east is because of the oil and the strategic geographic location.
All this talk about human rights and democracy verses a radical Muslim system is just a load of hypocritical moralizing and fear mongering. Western powers were and still are quite happy to support dictators who murder and torture their own people if its in western financial interests. In fact its been well documented that USA sent suspects to Egypt to be tortured. Add to that that the US and its "coalition of the willing" have murdered tens of thousands in Iraq and Afghanistan. And they continue to do so.
The west bears as much responsibility for the crimes we are seeing now in places like Libia and Bahrain as those dictators we support/ed do.
Of course, we squeeze them like lemons until the last drop of oil comes out of them. We supply the blender, and they are more than happy to turn it on. :rolleyes:
Gadhafi war crimes reported in Tripoli
Published: Feb. 26, 2011 at 11:31 AM
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/02/5233.jpg
The office of the chief of police is burned by anti-regime protesters in Benghazi, Libya, on February 25, 2011. Euphoria in Libya's second city Benghazi gave way to growing concern that it remains vulnerable to a counter-attack by Moammar Gadhafi's forces. UPI
TRIPOLI, Libya, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- Horrific reports of Moammar Gadhafi's repression emerged from Tripoli Saturday as the world community moved to sanction the Libyan dictator.
Witnesses told The New York Times government forces were shooting protesters from ambulances and turning antiaircraft guns against crowds. They also said bodies and wounded were being removed from hospitals and morgues to conceal the death toll.
The U.N. Security Council was considering war crimes charges against Gadhafi and the United States declared it had closed its embassy in Tripoli and was imposing sanctions, The Guardian newspaper in Britain said.
A rebel officer in Benghazi, Col. Tarek Saad Hussein, said a force of 2,000 men, including army defectors, was marching on Tripoli from the east, but this was not confirmed.
Gadhafi spoke on national television Friday, shouting that he was opening the arsenals to his supporters and warning "Libya will turn to hell."
Libya's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Ibrahim Dabbashi, who has defected from Gadhafi like many diplomats, said in New York on Friday that government forces were shooting from ambulances, and pleaded for international intervention.
"Hundreds of people have been killed. We expect thousands to be killed," he said.
There were indications some Western countries were preparing for a military response to the North African crisis. Britain had its SAS paratroopers on standby and helicopters in Malta, The Guardian said.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper made an unusually aggressive statement Friday night, saying the country had military aircraft stationed in Malta and "we are actively preparing to move to the next steps and to take other measures."
Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-Ne...#ixzz1F5OamDzC
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/8...dafi-Inc..html
Exposed: Gaddafi Inc.
The Libyan dictator has salted away billions from stolen oil revenues in London, buying prestigious assets and influence among the Establishment. We should be ashamed, says Michael Burleigh.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/02/5261.jpg Colonel Gaddafi, with his ever-present female guards, meets Silvio Berlusconi. Photo: REUTERS
By Michael Burleigh
7:00AM GMT 26 Feb 2011
As his country teeters on the brink, the embattled dictator Colonel Gaddafi is clawing for survival – both political and financial. Whether he is toppled or not, Gaddafi is desperate to preserve his fortune – some estimate it to be as much as £60 billion – which has been squirrelled away in safe havens across the globe. Yesterday, we learnt that the Treasury has set up a specialised unit to trace Gaddafi’s assets in Britain.
So should we be surprised to learn that much of his wealth has been salted away here? As we shall see, the warm embrace of the Gaddafis into our society – particularly Saif, the dictator’s second son – may have offered financial gain, but it has also brought shame to our shores. Only now can we see the damage done by those who rehabilitated the Gaddafis on the international stage.
This was painfully revealed when Saif, a supposed friend of the West, spoke on Libyan television this week. Saif took the awkward manner of an international plutocrat, forced only by circumstances out of his usual exalted milieu of Blairs, Deripaskas, Mandelsons and Rothschilds, to address Libya’s “little people”.
The “little people” are the protesters in Benghazi, an area now largely freed from government forces. This region in the east of the country has long been treated as Tripoli’s poor relation – mainly because King Idris’s regime was strong here before Gaddafi’s 1969 coup. How demeaning it must have been for Saif to even talk to such a poor, insignificant rabble. He and his sibling Muatassim are so accustomed to the high life that they have paid $1 million a pop to hear Mariah Carey, Beyoncé and Usher sing at their birthday parties. Perhaps Mariah sang Can’t Let Go or Can’t Take That Away From Me – those lyrics of hers seem curiously apt today.
It became clear to me from his 45‑minute monologue that Saif, friend of the Duke of York, was just another dictator in a flashy suit. Whatever plutocrat’s polish he had acquired along with his MSc and PhD at the London School of Economics was rapidly shed. Jabbing his forefinger, Saif warned that the besieged Gaddafis would “fight to the last bullet”.
Much of Libya’s wealth, generated by crude oil and gas, has apparently been looted by Gaddafi and his regime. His sons vie between them for such rich pickings as the franchise to sell Coca‑Cola in Libya.
As well as Saif, the LSE seminarian and habitué of London casinos and nightclubs, other Gaddafi brothers include Hannibal, whose model wife Aline’s face has had several nasty encounters with doors and furnishings in swanky hotels in Geneva and London.
Aline’s not the only one to have come a cropper. When Hannibal was accused of assaulting two maids in a Swiss hotel, and subsequently arrested, Gaddafi retaliated by arresting Swiss nationals in Libya (one poor chap found himself in solitary confinement for more than 50 days) and even suspended oil deliveries to Switzerland, as well as withdrawing money and assets worth nearly £4 billion from Swiss banks. Similar “heat” was applied to Blair’s government over the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdulbaset al-Megrahi, together with intercession by former MI6 personalities such as Mark Allen, who had moved on to well‑rewarded positions at BP.
What’s clear is that just as controversy and violence follows the Gaddafi clan, so does the stench of filthy lucre.
The main vehicle for the Gaddafi’s wealth is the $70 billion Libyan Investment Authority (LIA), a “sovereign wealth fund” set up in 2006 to spend the country’s oil money. Let’s call it Gaddafi Inc. In Britain, its assets include 3 per cent of the publishing giant Pearson, which owns the Financial Times and Penguin Books; and several prestigious office blocks, including 14 Cornhill, opposite the Bank of England, and Portman House, home to several major stores in Oxford Street.
The LIA’s huge investment in Britain happily coincided with the meeting of minds between our leaders and the Libyans over the release of the Lockerbie bomber. Likewise, British investment in Libya has soared in recent years, with some 150 of our companies – from BP to Next – establishing a lucrative foothold there. Extraordinarily, Saif told a British newspaper last year that his “good friend” Tony Blair had become an adviser to the LIA – an allegation the former PM denies.
And it’s not just business. The Gaddafis had ingratiated themselves into the upper echelons of British society, handily aided by Saif’s charm and the sage-like status apparently conferred by his LSE doctorate. It is reported that Saif was even hosted at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle by the Duke of York. To go with this highfalutin, upper-class lifestyle, Saif also purchased a £10 million mansion in Hampstead – complete with suede-lined cinema room and swimming pool. Land Registry documents reveal that he used a British Virgin Islands-registered company, Capitana Seas, to make the purchase.
So successful was his adoption of British ways that he was lauded at the LSE by Professor David Held in a speech. It described his former student as: “Someone who looks to democracy, civil society and deep liberal values for the core of his inspiration.”
Now keen to prove that it is not as amorally venal as many suspect, the LSE has announced it will not take more of the £1.5 million pledged by Saif than the £300,000 it has already spent on its weighty purposes. It is worth noting that Mark Allen, who is credited with bringing Gaddafi senior in from the cold, and Tony Blair’s former chief of staff Jonathan Powell are present on the board of the LSE’s IDEAS cost centre, while its director, Sir Howard Davies, is a quondam adviser to the LIA. Tony Blair is a highly paid consultant to J P Morgan, the US investment bank that handles the LIA’s liquid funds. Small world, isn’t it?
Swinging London is but one hub of Gaddafi Inc – a useful networking site where the Rothschilds were able to point Saif Gaddafi to investment opportunities in marina complexes in Montenegro. It’s known that Saif had a desire to replicate a Dubai-style tax- and visa-free enterprise zone north of Tripoli, as well as developing luxury resorts near the spectacular Roman ruins of coastal Libya. Funds for the latter emanate from Magna Holdings, a Bermuda-based company chaired by Charles Powell – yes, you guessed it, that’s the brother of Jonathan Powell – and the firm responsible for Gaddafi Tower, a 50‑storey development in Tripoli.
Ties between Libya and its former colonial master, Italy, are also dense. A quarter of Libya’s oil and 15 per cent of its natural gas goes to Italy, in the last case via the Green Stream pipeline. Gaddafi Inc owns significant shares in Italy’s ENI oil corporation, Fiat and Finmeccanica, the Italian aerospace and defence conglomerate. Its 7.5 per cent holdings in the football team Juventus and the Unicredit bank are more controversial, exercising the Northern League coalition partners more than Prime Minister Berlusconi. This may not be unrelated to the fact that both he and the Libyans are heavily invested in a Paris-based film company, Quinta Communications, which makes Arabic language thrillers.
Yes, as in Britain, the Italian political class has not been fastidious in its Libyan dealings. This may be why Italy’s response to the crisis has been mixed, echoing Gaddafi’s warnings of a series of al-Qaeda emirates, or of a tidal wave of African migrants, if the Libyan lion ceases to roar at Europe’s southern gates.
And, as one would expect of the self-styled “King of Kings”, Gaddafi Inc has major investments in sub-Saharan Africa. The ex-footballer Sa’adi Gaddafi, the third son of the dictator, took charge of all the family’s investments in Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe, where the Libyans were keen on developing agriculture and tourism. Much Libyan money has also been disbursed in Chad, Sudan, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Various things may happen in Libya, where the army lacks the unity and prestige of its Egyptian analogue, and tribal allegiances are potent. As generals, ministers, diplomats and brave fighter pilots defect, the regime will be reduced to the hardcore of Gaddafi and his sons. Threats to destabilise the flow of oil to Europe are not as effective as they might be since the Saudis, who hate Gaddafi’s guts, can increase production.
There are more local lessons for us in this story. It was predictable that revolutionary Left regimes – Castro, Chavez and Noriega – would defend Gaddafi, even as his jets reportedly strafed “his” own people.
But Britain’s gossip columns and glossy magazines also indulge a deracinated group of international plutocrats whose greed is aroused by the oil and gas revenues Gaddafi Inc has systematically embezzled. Rather than mouthing empty platitudes about orderly transition to democracy, in a country where civil society has been suffocated by a police state, our government should confiscate all the Gaddafis’ assets, so as to return them to the Libyan people. After all, in all its disgusting dealings with Libya, Britain knows that money talks.
Mariah Carey might be excused – but London’s high society and academic circles might be more fastidious too about consorting with such a grotesque as this ghastly murderous man.
BBC News - Libya: UN Security Council passes sanctions vote
27 February 2011 Last updated at 01:20 GMT
Libya: UN Security Council passes sanctions vote
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Saturday night's vote was passed unanimously by all 15 members of the Security Council
The UN Security Council has voted unanimously to impose sanctions on Muammar Gaddafi's Libyan regime for its attempts to put down an uprising.
They backed an arms embargo and asset freeze while referring Col Gaddafi to the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity.
US President Barack Obama has said the Libyan leader should step down and leave the country immediately.
Discussions on forming a transitional government are reportedly underway.
Mustafa Abdel-Jalil - who resigned as justice minister in protest against the excessive use of force against demonstrators - said a body comprising military and civilian figures would prepare for elections within three months, Libya's privately-owned Quryna newspaper reported.
Libya's ambassadors to the United States and UN have both reportedly voiced their support for the plan, which was being discussed in the rebel-controlled eastern town of Benghazi.
The UN estimates more than 1,000 people have died as Col Gadddafi's regime attempted to quell the 10-day-old revolt.
The global body's World Food Programme has warned that the food distribution system is "at risk of collapsing" in the North African nation, which is heavily dependent on imports.
Struggle for control
Saturday night's vote was passed unanimously by all 15 members. Ahead of the vote, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had urged the Security Council to take "decisive action" over the Libya crisis.
The Libyan delegation at the UN had sent a letter to the Council backing measures to hold to account those responsible for armed attacks on Libyan civilians, including action through the International Criminal Court - which had been one of the main points of contention in the resolution.
The US has already imposed sanctions against Libya, and closed its embassy in Tripoli.
On Saturday, one of Col Gaddafi's sons, Saif al-Islam, insisted that normal life was continuing in three-quarters of Libya. By contrast, anti-Gaddafi forces say they control 80% of the country.
Each side's claims are difficult to confirm but it is known that the opposition controls Benghazi, Libya's second city, while Col Gaddafi still controls the capital Tripoli, home to two million of the country's 6.5 million population.
Evacuation
Thousands of foreign nationals - many of them employed in the oil industry - continue to be evacuated from the country by air, sea and land.
Saturday saw two British military transport aircraft pick up about 150 foreign nationals in the desert south of Benghazi and fly them to the Mediterranean island of Malta.
Britain also announced it had temporarily closed its embassy in Tripoli and pulled out its staff on the last UK government-chartered aircraft because of the deteriorating security situation.
Some 10,000 people remain outside Tripoli airport's terminal building and several thousand more are inside, says BBC Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen, who saw piles of discarded luggage abandoned by people desperate to flee the country.
Most of those trying to leave were Egyptians, many of whom had been waiting at the airport for several days.
Friday saw Col Gaddafi make a defiant address to supporters in Tripoli and reports of anti-government demonstrators in several areas of the city coming under fire from government troops and pro-Gaddafi militiamen.
On Saturday the capital city was calm, with shops open, people on the streets, and supporters of Col Gaddafi reportedly occupying central Green Square in a public show of support for the beleaguered leader.
Outside the capital, anti-Gaddafi protesters were consolidating their power in Benghazi, with leaders of the uprising establishing committees to run the city and deliver basic services.
Rebels were reportedly fighting units of the regular army in the western cities of Misrata and Zawiya.
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At the scene
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Jeremy Bowen
BBC Middle East editor
Colonel Gaddafi's men look to be in firm control of Tripoli.
Checkpoints are operating at major crossroads and on arterial roads into the city. Some are run by the army, at others armed men in civilian clothes are stopping cars.
The authorities here admit there's been trouble in Tripoli, but picking up the line used by Colonel Gaddafi himself they say it was caused by youths who'd been using drugs or by al-Qaeda supporters who are said to have hijacked the protests.
Small but very noisy crowds of Gaddafi loyalists surrounded the BBC team wherever we went.
Everywhere I went in Tripoli was calm except for the airport where there was chaos.
The security forces at the airport are tense and jumpy, struggling to control the crowds at the terminal entrances, sometimes using various kinds of clubs to keep them in line.
if the US was to face such a revolt, and they started bombing their own people, would the UN security council vote for sanctions ?
one would expect so , one would also expect that such a scenario would be highly unlikely .
one also wonders what your point may be ?
Was a whore? As sluts of his ilk don't change their spots that fast. I'm sure that Mr. Blair still holds true to that club, in which there are numerous members.Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
my point is that the UN security council vote is quite hypocrite,Quote:
Originally Posted by Mid
every single member of that council have entertained those brutal ME leaders for decades, and now they are trying to white wash their complicit attitude with a single vote
so you would have had them do nothing ?
They would arrest the owner of facebook and twitter etc.Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
exactly, let their hypocrisy surface for the world to seeQuote:
Originally Posted by Mid
besides, you do realize that such a vote is not going to stop the battle on the ground, so it will accomplish nothing except white wash their conscience
and shutdown the Internet for the entire world, no doubtQuote:
Originally Posted by HermantheGermanThey would arrest the owner of facebook and twitter etc.Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
let's not forget that the root DNS servers are under the control of ICANN and indirectly the US Treasury
originally the US Treasury was the "operator" of the root DNS system, the contract for technical control was handled by Network Solutions,
http://af.reuters.com/article/egyptN...00466020110227
Britain says Libya's Gaddafi must go
Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:01am GMT
LONDON Feb 27 (Reuters) - The British government has revoked the diplomatic immunity in Britain of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his sons, Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Sunday, urging Gaddafi to step down.
(Click the link for the rest of the story)
they should send Blair to negotiate an exit
would bring the whole situation to a new level of comedy
Libyan rebels control city closest to capital - CBS News
Libyan rebels control city closest to capital
Opposition forces have taken several Libyan cities but Tripoli remains in hands of Qaddafi loyalists
(CBS/AP) ZAWIYA, Libya - Anti-government forces backed by rebel army troops are in control of the city closest to the capital Tripoli.
An Associated Press reporter who arrived Sunday in Zawiya, 30 miles west of Tripoli, says forces loyal to longtime ruler Muammar Qaddafi are surrounding the city of 200,000.
(To see the full news story, please click the link above)
can we have more twitters please ? :)
Well, I'm just following policy on the news mate...I'll forget the tweets for now as that annoys people too.
Welcome to the new news. Highly abbreviated and edited. :)
Revealed: Blair's secret calls to Gaddafi - UK Politics, UK - The Independent
Revealed: Blair's secret calls to Gaddafi
Ex-PM phones Libyan despot – and urges him to quit, while SAS mounts daring rescue of oil workers stranded in desert
By Donald Macintyre
Sunday, 27 February 2011
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
afp/getty images
Tony Blair with Muammar Gaddafi in 2007
Tony Blair, widely criticised in recent days for offering Muammar Gaddafi "the hand of friendship" seven years ago, made an extraordinary personal intervention when he twice phoned the embattled Libyan dictator on Friday and asked him to stop killing protesters rising up against the regime.
(To read the full story, click the link above)
Not a word regarding the so-called Ghaddafi loyalists. Not citizenry, but regular military {whom are defecting in round about numbers} and straight up hired foreign mercenaries, which I understand are in the thousands, whom might not be so "loyal" to the ruling Ghaddafis, but to hard cash.
This is pretty scary. Obviously the line in the sand Gaddafi has drawn.Quote:
Originally Posted by StrontiumDog
A town of 200,000 close to Tripoli, and surrounded where Gaddafi has considerable back up. This may be where the revolution succeeds or turns into a massacre on a scale not seen yet.
Nice of Tony to ask his old mate to stop the killing. I wonder if he offered to act as a political adviser? Old Tony boy just pulled a $43 million contract with the Kuwaiti government as political adviser while supposed to be acting in the role of UN Middle East envoy on $600k.:rolleyes:Quote:
Originally Posted by StrontiumDog
^ gotta love international politics, a lucrative business
don't forget he needs to pay his agent for the 43m deal :p
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politic...medium=twitter
28 February 2011 Last updated at 18:11 GMT
Cameron: UK working on 'no-fly zone' plan for Libya
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Britain is working with its allies on a plan to establish a military no-fly zone over Libya, says David Cameron.
The prime minister said the threat of "further appalling steps" being taken by Col Muammar Gaddafi to oppress his own people was behind the talks.
He said he did not rule out "the use of military assets" in Libya and said the "murderous regime" must end.
Fewer than 150 British citizens are thought to remain in Libya and only a "very small proportion" want to leave.
The government would continue to do "all we can" to get them out, he said.
Libya has been embroiled in turmoil as protesters demand Colonel Gaddafi - the Middle East's longest serving ruler - steps down.
The UN estimates that about 100,000 people have fled anti-government unrest over the past week and thousands may have been killed or injured in a violent crackdown by the regime.
In a statement to MPs after returning from a tour of the Middle East, Mr Cameron said the government was "taking every possible step to isolate the Gaddafi regime".
'Military assets'
The UK has frozen Col Gaddafi's British-held assets and those of his family, and withdrawn their diplomatic immunity and an export ban has been imposed on Libyan banknotes, which are printed in Britain.
Mr Cameron said that Britain had secured a European Union agreement on freezing the assets of a "wider group of individuals" connected to Col Gaddafi and banning them from entering the EU. A wider arms embargo was also being imposed against Libya.
The PM told MPs there would be "further isolation of the regime by expelling it from international organisations" and further use of asset freezes and travel bans to encourage those "on the fringes of the regime, that now is the time to desert it".
He added: "And we do not in any way rule out the use of military assets, we must not tolerate this regime using military force against its own people.
"In that context I have asked the Ministry of Defence and the Chief of the Defence Staff to work with our allies on plans for a military no-fly zone."
The Labour MP Ann Clwyd told him that a no-fly zone could "save thousands of lives if he's [Col Gaddafi] going to bomb his own people from the air".
Mr Cameron said they would comply with international law but planning for a no-fly zone had to start now because no-one knew what Col Gaddafi would do to his own people and one might have to be put in place "very quickly".
But he added that trying to secure a no-fly zone over a country as large as Libya was "not without its difficulties": "We would be trying to cover a vast area, it would take a serious amount of military assets to achieve it."
But he added: "I do think it's one thing we need to look at, look at it urgently and plan for, in case we find, as we may well do, that Col Gaddafi is taking further appalling steps to oppress his people and that is why the conversations are taking place today."
'Day of reckoning'
The Ministry of Defence said that the plans were still at an early stage and the initial focus would be on which countries would back it and what military assets they could then be deploy to enforce it.
The BBC's Jonathan Beale said it was not yet clear what contribution Britain might make but one source had suggested RAF Typhoon fighter jets could be stationed at a UK base in Cyprus, although the source made clear no decisions had yet been taken.
Mr Cameron also said the UK was acting to prevent a "humanitarian crisis" and would be flying in tents and blankets on Tuesday, and had dispatched technical teams to help migrant workers get home.
But Labour leader Ed Miliband urged him to apologise for the government's handling of the crisis last week - when a rescue effort for Britains in Libya was delayed - saying they had been let down by "chaos and incompetence".
However, he welcomed the comments that Britain's defence chiefs had been asked to work with Britain's allies on plans for a military no-fly zone and he welcomed the increasing international isolation placed on the regime.
Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary William Hague has called for an immediate end to violence against anti-government demonstrators in Libya and warned Col Gaddafi's supporters that there will be a "day of reckoning" for anyone involved in human rights abuses.
Addressing a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, he said: "This is a warning to anyone contemplating the abuse of human rights in Libya or any other country: Stay your hand. There will be a day of reckoning and the reach of international justice can be long.
"We must now maintain the momentum we have attained to ensure that there can be no impunity for crimes committed in Libya and to help bring about an immediate end to the violence."
Another illegal war for the UK. Here we go again.Quote:
Originally Posted by StrontiumDog
Has the UK declared war on Libya and if so on what grounds. If the Libyans shoot down a UK aeroplane does Dave plan to go nuclear?
Will he do the same to the Israelis who are currently bombing the Palestinians in the Gaza strip with "military assets" supplied by the US?
Will he do the same to the Bahranis whose mercenaries/Police/Armed forces from the Sudan, Pakistan and Egypt are currently shooting the local population in Manama with "military assets" supplied by the US/UK?
Will he do the same to ...........
^ Well, Libya does have oil :)
Lots of it...
Have got to have a good laugh at the way the western powers and particularly USA sit on their hands watching these events unfold in the Middle East during the early stages. A familiar pattern emerges; -- 1. In the early stages, before it is clear which side might win, western governments "urge restraint and condemn violence" on both sides. 2. Once it becomes clear which side is going to succeed they back the winner; -- In the case of Egypt and Libya, calling for their former dictator friends to step down.
Its not just a battle between the people of these Middle East countries demanding democracy and self determination and their western installed dictators now. The new battle is going to be between the peoples wishes for freedom, democracy and a fairer society and the new puppet dictator government the west might try to install through covert means.
As we are seeing now, there are new protests in Tunisia and Egypt against the re-establishment of the old regimes under new names.
good point, I think the current ME revolt is more revealing about us and our governments than the locals wishes for change
we have been exposed,
the Brits are taking it in the arse in every ways, couldn't happen to a better government
Cameron is a joke, a clown, like Sarko
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/a...230586880.html
Battles rage in Libya
Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi struggle to regain control of strategic cities amid growing humanitarian concerns.
Last Modified: 01 Mar 2011 11:44 GMT
Government opponents in the Libyan city of Az Zawiyah have repulsed an attempt by forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi to retake the city closest to the capital, Tripoli, in six hours of fighting overnight, witnesses say.
Tursday's claims follow reports that government forces attacked the city from the west and the east, and that fighter jets bombed an ammunition depot in the eastern city of Ajdabiya.
There was no word on casualties in Az Zawiyah, which is 50km west of Tripoli.
"We will not give up Az Zawiyah at any price,'' one witness said on Tuesday.
"We know it is significant strategically. They will fight to get it, but we will not give up. We managed to defeat them because our spirits are high and their spirits are zero."
The rebels, who include army forces who defected from the government, are armed with tanks, machine guns and anti-aircraft guns.
They fought back pro-Gaddafi troops using the same weapons who attacked from six directions.
Battle for Az Zawiyah
A resident of Az Zawiyah told the Associated Press news agency by telephone on Monday that fighting started in the evening and intensified after dusk when troops loyal to Gaddafi attacked the city.
"We were able to repulse the attack. We damaged a tank with an RPG. The mercenaries fled after that," said the resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of government reprisals.
He said Gaddafi called the city's influential tribal leader, Mohammed al-Maktouf, and warned him that if the rebels did not leave the main square by early Tuesday, they would be hit by fighter jets.
"We are expecting a major battle," the resident said, adding that the rebels killed eight soldiers and mercenaries on Monday.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/03/158.jpg
Read more of our Libya coverage
Another resident of Az Zawiyah said he heard gunfire well into the night on the outskirts of town.
AP said its reporter saw a large, pro-Gaddafi force massed on the western edge of Az Zawiyah.
There were also about a dozen armoured vehicles along with tanks and jeeps mounted with anti-aircraft guns.
An officer said the troops were from the elite Khamis Brigade, named after one of Gaddafi's sons who commands it and said by US diplomats to be the best-equipped force in Libya.
Gaddafi, Libya's ruler of 41 years, has already lost control of the eastern half of the country since protests demanding his resignation began two weeks ago. He still holds Tripoli.
The fighting came amid mounting international pressure on Gaddafi - already under sanctions over his handling of the turmoil - to end a crackdown on opponents pushing for his ouster.
The US, meanwhile, said it was moving warships and air forces closer to Libya and France said it would fly aid to the opposition-controlled eastern half of the country.
But Abdel Fattah Younes, Libya's former interior minister who has defected to the opposition, told Al Jazeera that welcoming "foreign troops" was "out of the question" although "touching down in Libya is acceptable only in the case of emergency".
"For example if any pilot was forced to eject, he will be hosted and protected by us," he said.
Humanitarian concerns
With government forces and rebels clashing in different parts of Libya, the security situation in and around Tripoli has made it too dangerous for international aid agencies to assess the need for medicine, food and other supplies there, according to the UN.
"The major concerns are Tripoli and the west where access is extremely difficult because of the security situation," Valerie Amos, the UN humanitarian chief, told Al Jazeera on Monday.
"There are reports that between 600 and 2,000 people have already been killed in Tripoli. We don't know the absolute accurate number because we haven't got people there who are able to do assessments ... we've seen some horrific pictures of what is happening and we really want to be able to go in to help people in the time of need."
Amos also called on countries neighbouring Libya to keep their borders open so refugees can continue to flee.
As of Monday morning, an estimated 61,000 had fled into Egypt, 1,000 to Niger and 40,000 to Tunisia, according to the UN, which said there was concern about water and sanitation for the refugees.
Gaddafi insists his people "love him", while UN says 40,000 people have fled to Tunisia
Libya also borders Algeria, Niger, Chad and Sudan.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has also called for immediate and safe access to western Libya.
ICRC teams entered the eastern side of the country including the country's second city Benghazi over the weekend, and are now supporting local doctors with medical care. Two thousand people were wounded there, according to the agency.
A similar ICRC team including surgeons and supplies was waiting on the western border in Tunisia.
"Right now, the situation is far too unstable and insecure to enable much-needed help to enter western parts of the country," Yves Daccord, the ICRC director-general, said.
"Health and aid workers must be allowed to do their jobs safely. Patients must not be attacked, and ambulances and hospitals must not be misused. It's a matter of life and death."
Thousands of foreigners have been evacuated from Libya since the unrest began on February 17, with ships and aircraft sent by countries including China India, the US, Turkey and many other European countries.
Anti-government protests started in the country's second-largest city of Benghazi, which is now in the hands of the protesters, and have since spread to the west of the country.
Gaddafi, in power since 1969, remains defiant and has scoffed at calls to step down, saying foreign powers, including al-Qaeda and drug addicts, were behind the unrest.