Rival Militia Clash In Libya, Government Asks Rebels To Disarm....Good Luck

www.maltatoday.com.mt...

The casualties came after rival armed groups fired rockets and heavy machine guns around the town of Gharyan, about 80km south of the capital, Tripoli. The interim government had been trying to broker a ceasefire but failed.

In the hills surrounding Gharyan there were scenes rarely seen in Libya since the capture and killing of Col Muammar Gaddafi nearly three months ago. Revolutionary forces were again in position, their anti-aircraft guns mounted on the backs of pickup trucks pointing west towards the town of Assabia.

The fighting started on Friday and continued sporadically throughout the weekend. On Saturday, Libyan Defence Minister Osama al-Juweili travelled to the town to try to broker a ceasefire. However the deal did not hold.

So Libya just fought a civil war to oust a dictator, and now this is what's happening. Rival milita groups are now fighting eachother. How is the "new" government handling this? Hopefully they have this situation under control.....

Libya's interim government is pressing the country's various armed groups to hand in their weapons, giving them the option of joining a national army. But so far it has met with only partial success.

Oh okay...This dosent look too good now does it?

ca.news.yahoo.com...

The militias, which fought to unseat former leader Muammar Gaddafi, are now the biggest threat to stability in Libya, clashing regularly with each other in violent turf wars and undermining the authority of the country's new rulers.

The interim government, the National Transitional Council (NTC), wants to amalgamate the militias into the police force and army. The NTC's chief said this month that if they do not comply, the country risks being dragged into a civil war.

Sure, they may be engaging in turf wars and undermining the authority of the new Libya government, but Im sure most of the Militia's want peace for everyone in Libya, right?

But on the evidence of the trickle of people signing up at the Interior Ministry's main recruitment centre in a Tripoli compound, most militia members are still reluctant.

"Most militia members are still relucant"....I wonder what that number is? Im sure it cannot be in the hundreds of thousands....?????

There are no reliable figures for the number of fighters in Libya's militia units, but they could number in the hundreds of thousands.

Hundreds of thousands.....I guess I was wrong in my previous statement. Oh well, I mean, how well armed could these groups be nowdays?

Those that did turn up to seek jobs in the new police force were not from the heavily-armed and well-organised militias from outside Tripoli which pose the biggest headache for the NTC.

Instead, the prospective new recruits were from smaller militias which in any case did not have the resources to challenge for power. Some recruits said they were there because their units had not paid them.

Libya got thrown back at least 3 to 4 decades.

I dare anyone to find a Libyan and ask them how the situation was before this coupé d'état.

I bet you'll find more Libyan refugees now than there ever were as well.

were we the only ones to see this coming?gadaffi was made out as some kind of villian in the uk since i was a kid-mad dog gadaffi,perhaps he was the sane one and our glorious leaders are insane.let them kill each other and leave them alone,thats what i say!the dodgy western governments are also about to try the same carry on in syria and iran given half a chance.in the name of freedom,yeah right.

reply to post by buni11687

So Libya just fought a civil war to oust a dictator, and now this is what's happening.

Are you serious? What do you think war does to a nation? How long did it take Germany to get back up? Iraq is still struggling 10 years on. War shatters generations with lost and broken infrastructure, organisation and social cohesion. It is going to take a lot of continued conflict and competition to reorganise the pecking order and government processes.

If you though it was just about dropping a few bombs, having a cheer and walking away, the lessons are only just beginning for you.

reply to post by kwakakev


You obviously do not understand the scope of the Iraq or Libya war.

Oh well, I'm not going to educate you, just letting you know you're wrong.

reply to post by InfoKartel


Can I get a hint? Oil, Money, Religion, Race, Politics, Fear, Control?

The scope of these regional wars...

The conflicts of Muslim v Hindu and Muslim v Judeo Christianity have been going on for 1000's of years, nothing new their. There is the more organised corporate political control that is establishing its dominance in the region. Will this bring schools, hospitals, trade and security to the region?

I know there are a lot of complex and different ideas around, if we have to use a bullet to get the message across is it really a realistic and good idea?

reply to post by kwakakev

Can I get a hint? Oil, Money, Religion, Race, Politics, Fear, Control?

The scope of these regional wars...

These are not regional no matter how much you parrot your television set. This is World War 3 by proxy. I don't know if you've read any books by geopolitical grandmasters that steer entire governments or if you have any real interest in geopolitical matters, but this is all happening according to plan - the real scope. (Which always has been for any empire or power: world domination).

The conflicts of Muslim v Hindu and Muslim v Judeo Christianity have been going on for 1000's of years, nothing new their.

Disputes of religions is but a false pretense,
Having not seen the Truth, they speak nonsense.

That's from Hafez, a poet that lived over 600 years ago. He knew it, you do not. HMMM. YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE TRUTH.

There is the more organised corporate political control that is establishing its dominance in the region. Will this bring schools, hospitals, trade and security to the region?

Corporate = Shenanigans. Take a look at how Congo has built Belgium amongst others. Are there schools, hospitals or trade security? Or just more wars brewing?

I know there are a lot of complex and different ideas around, if we have to use a bullet to get the message across is it really a realistic and good idea?

The point is that there is no security in Libya's future. Control over resources is what it is all about, water and oil. The more in-fighting in Libya, the easier it is to get all the resources unseen (even though contracts have been signed that promise France and others resources; Do you think the Libyans support this?)

So the power vacuum you see in Libya is very different from the one in Iraq.

reply to post by InfoKartel


Religion helps define the teams and cultural norms. So it all about the resources, this has been going on since we where bacteria. Is all the pain and chaos really worth saving $20 - $100 or so on a barrel of oil?

This world is a complex, messy place, been that way for billions of years. Whoever has the guns in now in control of Libya, will be that way for some time. I do see your point and know there are lots of people and forces involved. If there was a bunch of reptiles, aliens, elves or bankers writing this stuff it would not surprise me. The wheels of evolution will sort it out one way or another.

So I wonder if these militias are rebelling against the Council or if the war gave them the opportunity to form their little proto-feudalistic system where the militias effectively are the government in areas they control?