Libya: Gaddafi escalates war, offers reward

Fighting has intensified as Gaddafi forces go after Ras Lanuf and Zawiya. Reports say that the Libyan regime has escalated “its ferocious military campaign” throughout the country in a bid to take back what it has lost to rebel forces.

The oil terminal of Ras Lanuf came under aerial bombardment as a fighter jet struck the rebel front line. A pipeline was hit by a bomb and the resulting fire spread quickly reportedly covering the refinery in thick black smoke which drifted across the coast. Whether or not the oil plant was deliberately struck was unclear, but there was no doubt of the growing intensity of the artillery barrages targeting rebel positions

Apparently state television has announced that there is a 500,000 Libyan dinar bounty on the head of the de facto opposition leader, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, a former Gaddafi minister. The prize goes to anybody who delivers the rebel to Gaddafi forces alive.

Reporters are coming back with stories from rebels and those supporting the rebels speculating about what will happen if the uprising fails. Some are saying that Gaddafi will be ruthless killing anybody who may have opposed him and that he will go after women and children too. 42 years of oppression have given many a realistic expectation about failure. If Gaddafi stays in power, everyone can count on a bleak future.

State television has reportedly broadcast pictures of captured rebels after pro-Gaddafi forces recaptured Bin Jawad, a village 19 miles west of Ras Lanuf. They were shown with their hands tied behind their backs, lying face down on a road.

Where is this going? Analysts are talking of a prolonged stalemate. Rebels are poorly organised, but have high morale. They have the will, but lack the means to decisively take on the better-armed troops loyal to Gaddafi. On the other hand, Gaddafi loyalists are unable to crush the rebels. This may end up being a protracted civil war.

No fly zone

Rebel leaders have called several times for western leaders to implement a no fly zone in Libya. So far though, there is a lot of talk but no decision to go ahead with this idea. It would be costly and dangerous and could very well drag other countries into the conflict.

Ibrahim Dabbashi, deputy U.N. ambassador from Libya who broke with Gaddafi’s regime and has been supporting the protesters, continues to call for a U.N.-imposed no-fly zone. Dabbashi feels would create a balance of power between the Libyan people and the regime adding that Gaddafi is “insane” and “will destroy everything to stay in power”.

Nevertheless, military experts doubt the effectiveness of a no fly zone. While it may stop fighter jets, it would do little to stop the use of helicopters which have been labelled the biggest threat in the conflict.

Libyan plane lands in Egypt

A mystery unfolds as one of Gaddafi’s private planes landed in Cairo, Egypt. Supposedly carrying Major-General Abdel Rahman Ben Ali al-Sayyid al-Zawy, the head of the Libyan Authority for Supply and Logistics, the plane was part of a mission to carry a message directly from Muammar Gaddafi to the military council governing Egypt or possibly to the Arab League who is meeting this weekend to discuss the Libyan crisis.

Al Jazeera has reported that two other of Gaddafi’s private planes also left Tripoli on unknown missions. Both are being monitored by NATO and one was seen in Swiss airspace and the other over Italy.

Egypt aiding rebels

UPI is reporting that Egypt has been quietly helping rebels in Libya. Egypt has apparently sent around 100 Special Forces troops to help the insurgents, providing weaponry and training to Libyan opposition forces and involving itself in the organisation of a political command in the east.

Results so far

Estimates on the number killed so far in the conflict range from 1,000 to 2,000. Over 200,000 have been forced out, attempting to cross into either Egypt or Tunisia to escape the fighting.

Associated Press – Mar 9/2011

Gadhafi Forces Hit Central Libya Oil Facilities

Forces backing challenged leader Moammar Gadhafi have hit oil facilities along the coast in central Libya. But rebel forces to the east remain defiant.

Al Jazeera – Mar 9/2010

Libyan aircraft bomb Ras Lanuf

Libyan military aircraft piloted by officers loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, the embattled leader of the country, have bombed targets in the rebel-held oil town of Ras Lanuf. The attacks are the latest in a series of counter-offensives by Gaddafi’s military against anti-government forces, which also include members of the military who refuse to recognise Gaddafi’s authority.

Euronews – Mar 9/2011

Oil facilities damaged in fierce Libyan fighting

Fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi appears to be closing in on some of the country’s oil facilities. Around Ras Lanuf government planes and artillery pounded rebels groups who replied with volleys of rockets. In the exchanges an oil storage tank exploded. Each side blamed the other for the damage. Up the road from Ras Lanuf, rebels announced that they had re-entered the town of Bin Jawad, but were facing severe artillery and air bombardments.

Los Angeles Times – some great photographs

http://framework.latimes.com/2011/03/09/strikes-on-ras-lanuf-in-libya-create-an-impasse-on-the-eastern-front

Christian Scientist Monitor

Qaddafi: A Look Back – a photo essay

http://www.csmonitor.com/CSM-Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Qaddafi-A-look-back

Click HERE to read more from William Belle

Article viewed at: Oye! Times at www.oyetimes.com