Trump extends Obama-era sanctions against Gaddafi's family
US President Donald Trump has extended sanctions against the family of Libya's former strongman Muammar Gaddafi, citing ongoing fighting in the North African country for the decision. 'The arms embargo has become a joke'Libya has been plagued by chaos since a Nato-backed uprising toppled Gaddafi in 2011, with rival powers seeking to fill the power vacuum left by the longtime leader's death. Libya has also been under an international arms embargo since the 2011 uprising, though it has been routinely violated by different groups, according to the UN. "The arms embargo has become a joke. Amid these violations, the European Union launched a new mission in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday attempting to enforce the UN-sanctioned arms embargo.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 18:56 UTC
Islamic mysticism: From spiritual experience to anti-imperial socio-political program
Islamic mysticism, as an institution with a set of practices, was already in the offing. He undertook an intellectual task of explicating philosophically the practices and gradations of Islamic mysticism. Was Islamic mysticism in line with the injunctions of the Quran and the normative practice of the Prophet? These scholars gave a solid Islamic character to the institution of Islamic mysticism. Importantly, Islamic mysticism organized itself into orders with its own hierarchies and gradations in the 12th and 13th centuries.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 17:15 UTC
Libya: Nine years of revolution - Opinion
Last Monday, 17 February, marked the ninth anniversary of the Libyan Revolution. Back in 2011, the Libyan Revolution was part of a snowballing process that began in Tunisia, spread to Egypt and finally Libya, meaning that North Africa was the core of the political unrest the Arab world witnessed in 2011. Libya, however, proved to be a different pattern altogether in comparison to other cases in the Arab Spring. However, Libya took a completely different track because the beginnings of the 17 February revolution did not witness the amount of mobility and political participation of the two other models. Military confrontations have been occurring in Libya since 2011 and until today, of course with varying degrees of intensity.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 16:41 UTC
Significant changes in Arab public opinion
With regard to Syria, there is a growing acceptance in Arab public opinion that the Assad government has survived the civil war. One of the more intriguing results in our 2019 survey were the changes in Arab views toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Also noteworthy is the fact that majorities in most Arab countries now say that normalization with Israel, which they acknowledge is already happening, may be a good thing. In our 2019 survey we find a continued slide in the USA’s favorability in the Arab World. Instead of the USA, respondents in a number of Arab countries now look elsewhere, to China, the European Union, Saudi Arabia, or Russia.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 16:18 UTC
Libya: Human Rights Council must take important step towards ending impunity
States meeting in Geneva next week for the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) must establish an international investigative mechanism as a step towards accountability for perpetrators of horrific human rights violations in Libya, Amnesty International said today. Yesterday the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, released an important report on the situation in Libya for the HRC’s review. Whether the Libyan government will support the establishment of an international investigative mechanism represents an early test as a new member. “Next week’s session is the moment for Council members to prove they are serious about their mandate to protect human rights,” said Heba Morayef. “Justice for victims in Libya must be high on the agenda.”Background:The 43rd session of the Human Rights Council takes place between 24 February and 20 March.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 15:00 UTC
Relieving Libya’s Agony by Javier Solana
MADRID – Over the last decade, Libya has become a failed state, descending from its own Arab Spring into the coldest of winters. Libya is a failed state today largely because certain external actors adopted failed policies toward it. To understand the origin and magnitude of the Libyan debacle, we must go back to the beginning of 2011. The resolution was adopted because the two permanent members with the greatest reservations – China and Russia – decided to abstain. A course correction is long overdue, in order to give the Libyan people the direction and hope they deserve.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 12:56 UTC
U.N. says Libya ceasefire talks back on track in Geneva
GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations said on Friday ceasefire talks were back on track between the forces fighting over Libya’s capital, days after the internationally recognised government pulled out of the negotiations as its foes shelled Tripoli’s port. There was no immediate comment from the Government of National Accord (GNA), which withdrew from the talks on Tuesday. Its rival - Libyan National Army commander Khalifa Haftar - told Russia’s RIA news agency a ceasefire would only be possible if Turkish and Syrian fighters stopped supporting the GNA. Turkey has backed the Government of National Accord to fend off the Libyan National Army, which is backed by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. The United Nations said the talks had resumed on Thursday.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 11:37 UTC
Tebboune Promises 'Radical Changes' in Algeria
Algiers - Paris - Boualem Goumrassa and Asharq Al-AwsatAlgerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who succeeded longtime leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika in December, asked in the face of his country's insistent protest movement for time to implement "radical changes", in an interview published Thursday. "We cannot reform, repair and restore that which was destroyed over a decade in two months," Tebboune told Le Figaro. Tebboune, who after his election "extended a hand" to the Hirak movement to build a "new Algeria", said he has prioritized "political reforms". In his interview, Tebboune dismissed any notion that he -- like his predecessors -- was a president chosen by the army, a pillar of the regime. A group of activists said they will release a document which will determine the objectives and the spirit of the protest movement.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 09:22 UTC
Commissioner urges Italy to suspend co-operation activities with Libyan Coast Guard and introduce human rights safeguards in future migration co-operation
LetterStrasbourgIn a letter addressed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy, Luigi Di Maio, published today, the Commissioner urges the Italian government to introduce human rights safeguards in the Memorandum of Understanding between Italy and Libya. While noting that discussions to improve human rights compliance in the future are ongoing, the Commissioner calls on Italy to acknowledge the realities currently prevailing on the ground in Libya and to suspend co-operation activities with the Libyan Coast Guard that result in the return of persons intercepted at sea to Libya. In this context, Commissioner Mijatović draws the attention of the government to key safeguards to be introduced in any migration co-operation with third countries to effectively guarantee respect for human rights. Referring to her Recommendation ‘Lives saved. Rights protected.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 09:00 UTC
Algeria's President Says Capable of Bringing Peace to Libya
REUTERS/Tiksa NegeriAlgeria - Asharq Al-AwsatAlgeria's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said his country is capable of quickly bringing peace to Libya if he receives a mandate by the UN Security Council. In an interview with French newspaper Le Figaro, Tebboune confirmed that Algeria is ready to act as a mediator in any Libya ceasefire talks. "If we are given a mandate by the UN Security Council, we are capable of quickly bringing peace to Libya since Algeria is a sincere and credible mediator, and one that is accepted by all Libyan tribes,” he said. Algeria provides Libyans with food and medicine, not with weapons so they kill one another," he noted. He added: "We are the only ones who offered serious solutions and we ask nothing in return.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 08:48 UTC
Surgeon who harmed Scots is now working in Libya
The BBC has discovered that Sam Eljamel, who was suspended following internal and external reviews in 2013, is working as a surgeon in Libya. The former government adviser and head of neurosurgery at NHS Tayside removed himself from the GMC register after restrictions were placed on him. A BBC Disclosure investigation in 2018 found that Mr Eljamel had harmed patients for years at NHS Tayside. In 2013 Mr Eljamel removed her tear duct instead of her brain tumour. A number of patients have successfully sued NHS Tayside as a result of operations carried out by Mr Eljamel.
Source:Libya Today
February 21, 2020 00:33 UTC
Boat carrying 91 migrants missing in Mediterranean
Thank you for your reading and interest in the news Boat carrying 91 migrants missing in Mediterranean and now with detailsHind Al Soulia - Riyadh - A rubber dinghy packed with 91 migrants who set out from Libya for Europe has gone missing in the Mediterranean, the UN refugee agency said on Thursday. The inflatable boat carrying mostly African migrants left Al Qarbouli, 50 kilometres east of the capital Tripoli, on February 8, said Osman Haroun, whose cousin was on board. The charity said someone aboard the black rubber boat carrying migrants from Sudan, Niger, Iran and Mali called the hotline in distress at 3.30am on February 9. The EU-trained coastguard, which has been criticised by human rights groups, patrols Mediterranean water and intercepts migrants to keep them from reaching Europe. Last year, the agency documented seven missing vessels carrying 417 people, a fourfold increase from the year before.
Source:Libya Today
February 20, 2020 23:26 UTC
Australian camels come under artillery fire in Libya
Tripoli: Three thousand camels imported from Australia have been walked out of Libya's capital Tripoli after the port where they arrived came under artillery fire. LoadingThe camels left Tripoli's port shortly after midnight on Wednesday and were herded along a highway leading west to the city of Zawiya 45km away, according to a local merchant. However, he said that a local armed group had stolen 125 of the camels as they passed through the Tripoli suburb of Janzour. A Reuters reporter saw about 20 camel herders whipping the camels into line as they left central Tripoli, with some camels trying to search for food along the side of the road.
Source:Libya Today
February 20, 2020 23:03 UTC
Paranoia, racism: German killer drew on conspiracy tropes
(AP Photo/Martin Meissner)By LORI HINNANT and FRANK JORDANSHe mixed extreme paranoia about secret state surveillance with far-right conspiracy tropes, misogyny and racist vitriol. Germany's federal prosecutor, Peter Frank, described the rant as stocked with “confused ideas and far-fetched conspiracy theories.” It was last modified on Jan. 22 and offered no indication he was planning an attack, according to Rita Katz of the SITE Intelligence Group. Despite his incoherence, the 43-year-old tapped into an increasingly widespread vein of conspiracy theories originating in the United States, including many by QAnon, and woven into other specifically German themes. There’s of course evidence of his obsessions, conspiracy theories,” Neumann said. An FBI bulletin warned last May about the potential for violence among American fringe political conspiracy theorists.
Source:Libya Today
February 20, 2020 21:00 UTC
Libya crisis settlement: Algeria can be an "impartial" arbitrator
ALGIERS - President of the Republic Abdelmadjid Tebboune expressed his optimism with the settlement of the Libyan crisis, adding that Algeria "can assume the role of impartial arbitrator" as part of the approach and bring together the Libyan warring parties. During his periodical meeting with national media, President Tebboune said: "personally, I am optimistic about the settlement of the Libyan crisis, and this for the reasons mentioned by the Libyans themselves who expressed confidence in Algeria." All the Libyan protagonists "are in favor" of Algeria contribution to the process of resolving the crisis in Libya, said Tebboune, revealing that "some of them, and in both camps, said that apart from Algeria, they don't trust other parties." President Tebboune further explained that his optimism by the fact that all the actors in Libya "are brothers or friends," affirming that Algeria maintains good relations with Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and Turkey and is therefore capable of bringing all parties together and being an "impartial" arbitrator. "Libya is today the scene of an ideological and expansionist conflict of interest," said President Tebboune, adding that "the Libyans now wish to live free in their country and take advantage of its wealth".
Source:Libya Today
February 20, 2020 20:48 UTC