Libyan Civil War

[Javalin]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8390550/Libya-ceasefire-declared-in-wake-of-UN-resolution.html

 

and Gaddafi calls a ceasefire, looks like threat of getting a hammering has somewhat dulled his enthusiasm.

 

 

Apparently Gadaffi's troops are ignoring the order for a ceasefire, and also Gadaffi blamed the UK for the uprising in the first place. Wow, just.. Wow..

[JimboUK]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8390550/Libya-ceasefire-declared-in-wake-of-UN-resolution.html

 

and Gaddafi calls a ceasefire, looks like threat of getting a hammering has somewhat dulled his enthusiasm.

 

 

Apparently Gadaffi's troops are ignoring the order for a ceasefire, and also Gadaffi blamed the UK for the uprising in the first place. Wow, just.. Wow..

 

I thought it was too good to be true, it wouldn't have lasted anyway, once the rebels were safe from the air they would have pushed back. I'd love to know how we are to blame, so far he's blamed Al Qaeda, drug use, bad parenting, Iran and Al Jazeera.

[Aurielius]

"We may be just hours away from air strikes on Colonel Ghadaffi’s forces in Libya. Sources close to the emergency summit in Paris, which has brought together Britain, France, Canada, the USA, several European leaders, members of the Arab League and an African Union representative, say the air strikes could begin as early as 4pm this afternoon.

Although German leader Angela Merkel has ruled out her country’s participation in military action she is at the summit, which has been called by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

In anticipation of air strikes Ghadaffi appears to have gone back on his word to order a ceasefire on Friday, and has bombarded Benghazi, sending in ground forces. In the open desert, these are easy targets, but air power will be hard to apply if street fighting is taking place."

~ Euronews

 

 

About bloody time, unfortunately if you are looking for leadership from the US in this matter you will be holding your breath till you turn blue, Obama is foreign policy risk adverse.

Edited March 19, 2011 by Aurielius

[ginnyfizz]

Newsflash from the BBC two minutes ago- French warplanes have opened fire on Libyan military vehicles. British planes are said to be en route - my relatives in Norfolk have certainly noted a lot of activity around a significant nearby airbase.

[JimboUK]

Newsflash from the BBC two minutes ago- French warplanes have opened fire on Libyan military vehicles. British planes are said to be en route - my relatives in Norfolk have certainly noted a lot of activity around a significant nearby airbase.

 

According to the news they were Tornados off to Cyprus, also Canadian F18s were seen at Prestwick this morning before flying off to wherever they are to be based.

 

Edit: There are rumours reported by Al Jazeera that US warships have launched Cruise missiles from the Mediterranean.

[Gracinfields]

The US launched a salvo of Tomahawk Cruise missile, and several other Stand Of Weapons into Libya Striking 20 Target Area target coditions not stated. However 1 French Euro Fighter Typhoon was shot down while enforcing the No Fly Zone by Libyan Loyalist forces. As for the Rebels two groups captured several Loyalist aircraft however these aircraft didn't get to far as they ended up shotting each other down from what I heared on the news :( . Hate to compare it to a game but sounds like how some pilots acted in BF2.

[ginnyfizz]

Apparently, British naval vessels are also conducting a blockade.

[HappyHerring]

Yes, I just checked out the links. So King's College London and the LSE accepted donations from Ghadaffi? Big deal! I know that we in Britain have the reputation of being ill educated, but we still have an awful lot more universities than that.

 

And I LOL'd at that bit where Mad Mo is saying that his good buddy Sarko is off his pram. That really is the pot calling the kettle black.

 

Darius, your views are still profoundly disturbing, not to mention contradictory. On the one hand you clearly support the iron fist type of rule that allows no form of dissent nor opposition and grinds down the conquered. You idolise Ghadaffi. On the other, you mention the massacre of Serbs, who were the conquered, in Vojvodina. Now you are quite right in saying that this massacre was a monstrosity and a war crime. So how on earth can you support regimes of the very type that perpetrated such an atrocity?

 

The fact is, I don't support autocrat regimes, I support iron law, that is just one of the many segments in one regime.

 

I wouldn't kill my political opponents if I were a ruler, nor I would put them in prison or have them expelled from the country. If people aren't satisfied with my rule, I would step down, without waiting for elections to take care of me. But if a mass gathers and wants your head for no reason, calling their meeting a peaceful revolution, then I would act seriously. No killing innocents or killing at all if it is not needed, such rigorous ways are the last option in dealing with those kind of situations. Why would anyone kill people if not provoked and pushed over the limit with a situation which is life threatening? I'd sent some serious police force and impose some discipline, until we sit down and to resolve the situation peacefully.

 

And yes, Serbs were massacred in Vojvodina. By a foreign <<<<< force, not internal one. They were killed on direct order of Hitler and the rest of Axis gang. They were killed in ways beyond a nightmare.

 

Gaddafi didn't threw his people in a frozen river, nor he made them to swallow rusty nails, neither called on a mass rape or killing little kids with hammers, for no reason. He didn't kill 70 000 people for his own amusement.

 

He is fighting a war over there, and in war, people die. On both sides. They die from bullets , shells, mines, etc. They don't have to torture each other just to be dead, they shoot on each other , simple as that.

 

He did a fair game tonight. Offered the rebels to leave the country in peace. And I do believe that many of them will leave their strongholds without worrying about their lives.

 

He could have call upon a total extermination, but he didn't. That makes him different then the dictators you think he is connected with. Describing like you do, I imagine someone like Pol Pot, not Gaddafi. And there is a huuuuge difference between the two.

 

Libyan war is over tomorrow, hopefully, and I do hope that people will walk Libya freely again and to work their jobs and spend time with families. It is a long road to recover, but it can be done with a good will and dedication .

 

Moranda

 

He's fighting a war against his own people, he's killing them so he can cling on to power. The term "Despot" fits him prefectly. I feel sorry for those who stood up to him, no doubt they will soon be disappeared.

 

Actually, rebels fired a first shot and police responded with force, then rebels started to rob the stores and to steal weaponry from the police stations and army bases, with many of them being armed already.

 

'Despot' is not a term, it is a title of a ruler in Byzantine Empire and Serbian Empire from medieval times. It defines someone who is a huge land owner, not a dictator or an autocrat.

I must admit that I have always found the Russian sponsored idea of pan slavic solidarity odd when I look at how historically they have suppressed the desires of other slavic peoples.

 

How would you decide that you were past the point where your rule was effective or just if you not only refused to listen to the point of views of your opponents but were prepared to put them into prison purely due to the fact that they opposed you. I would so much love to think that you were joking with us, but having seen some views expressed by contributors from the balkans and Turkey contributors in different forums, I have to say that I think that at best the Libyans and Serbs are misinformed or the west in general is wrongly informed . Considering the amount of venom I have seen I from the denizens of the balkans and anatolia in different forums I have to say I have my opinion and it has not been modified by your contributions to this topic.

Edited March 20, 2011 by happy pig

[Vindekarr]

Oh boy, it's on now folks!

 

US and British missile ships/subs started shooted today, and poured 100 Tomahawk missiles into targets primarily around tripoli, their objective being neutralising the antiaircraft defences, probably so that they can have clear skies to begin air operations: a Eurofighter Typhoon is a superb fighter aircraft, however it works best when missiles arent chasing it.

 

Im just glad that the west has finaly gotten involved, a lot of people are going to die because of this, but in the end the deathtoll will probably be made up of less innocents than if they had not. Better to kill a thousand evil men than ten innocent ones.

[JimboUK]

Sky were saying earlier that there was an awful lot of AA fire over Tripoli, it does look as if they are trying to destroy his air capabilities as quickly as they can, possibly so he can't make good on his threat to attack civil shipping and aircraft in and over the Med. There have been a couple of worrying developments, he's threatened to open the armouries to civilians which could lead to chaos and he's using human shields.