This is an absolutely incredible video of desert combat in Libya. From the page: “URGENT battle erupted in a region near the city of Brega Ajdabiya and the despotic regime that uses aircraft and heavy weapons” (translated from the Arabic by Google Translate).
March 2, 2011
Videos Posted by uprising of February 17, 2011 - to make it a day of anger in Libya: the events of Brega 02/03/2011
March 1, 2011
"There is an operations room in Tel Aviv with the aim of destabilizing the Arab world. (It is) run by the White House"
—
Ali Abdullah Saleh, President of Yemen (source: NPR).
This guy, I swear…
(via darling80m)This is where all Arab despots eventually go.
March 1, 2011
"Tuesday’s decision will allow al-Nahda (The Awakening), a moderate Islamist movement that had been banned for two decades under toppled President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s rule, to participate in upcoming elections."
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Tunisia’s Islamists to form party - Africa - Al Jazeera English
Democracy in action. It’s messy, but it works more often than it doesn’t.
March 1, 2011
"What Gorbachev and de Klerk did was not always pretty, and neither man is much celebrated in his own country these days. But each relinquished the power of an abusive elite without subjecting his country to a civil bloodbath. Afterward, they did not flee to the comfort of Swiss bank accounts. On the contrary, they managed a feat that is almost unthinkable in most of today’s erupting autocracies: after succumbing to democracy, they contributed to its legitimacy by becoming candidates for high office — and losing, fair and square."
—
How to Lose a Country Gracefully - NYTimes.com
This is a brilliant article.
March 1, 2011
"Cameron said he had asked the ministry of defence to work with its allies over plans for a no-fly zone over Libya, a move that would see fighter jets used to patrol and shoot down Libyan aircraft ordered to attack protesters."
— Britain considers Libya no-fly zone - Europe - Al Jazeera English
March 1, 2011
"David Cameron, the British prime minister, has said the international community cannot let Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi “murder” his own people, as he justified considerations for a no-fly zone over the riot-torn country."
—
Britain considers Libya no-fly zone - Europe - Al Jazeera English
Cameron was waiting for British citizens and subjects to leave Libya before endorsing a no-fly zone. The US is taking the same approach. If Qadaffi continues along his current path there will be a NATO-enforced no-fly zone.
March 1, 2011
The Arab revolts have been bad for Al Qaeda, too
Arab autocrats aren’t the only losers in the uprisings that have, so far, toppled the leaders of Tunisia and Egypt. According to several analysts and counter-terrorism officials, the pro-democracy revolts have been just as bad for Al Qaeda and other militant Islamist groups. Though Al Qaeda leaders are publicly embracing the revolutions, they’ve essentially stood by and watched others achieve their goal of overthrowing secular regimes. Has Islamist terrorism become marginalized?
- Al Qaeda can’t compete against freedom: The “exhilarating” revolutions upsetting regimes across the Arab world may bring the “end of the ‘war on terror,’” says Peter Beinart in The Daily Beast. As democratically elected governments take over, Osama bin Laden’s “worst nightmare” is coming true: Without “corrupt flunkies for the U.S. and Israel” to rally Arabs against, Al Qaeda has no appeal.
But at the opposite end of the spectrum, the terrorism risks could also be greater than ever. Read the rest of the opinion.
February 28, 2011
February 28, 2011
"For many specialists on terrorism and the Middle East, though not all, the past few weeks have the makings of an epochal disaster for Al Qaeda, making the jihadists look like ineffectual bystanders to history while offering young Muslims an appealing alternative to terrorism."
— Al Qaeda Finds Itself at a Crossroads - News Analysis - NYTimes.com
February 28, 2011
As Regimes Fall in Arab World, Al Qaeda Sees History Fly By
For nearly two decades, the leaders of Al Qaeda have denounced the Arab world’s dictators as heretics and puppets of the West and called for their downfall. Now, people in country after country have risen to topple their leaders — and Al Qaeda has played absolutely no role.
In fact, the motley opposition movements that have appeared so suddenly and proved so powerful have shunned the two central tenets of the Qaeda credo: murderous violence and religious fanaticism. The demonstrators have used force defensively, treated Islam as an afterthought and embraced democracy, which is anathema to Osama bin Laden and his followers.
So for Al Qaeda — and perhaps no less for the American policies that have been built around the threat it poses — the democratic revolutions that have gripped the world’s attention present a crossroads. Will the terrorist network shrivel slowly to irrelevance? Or will it find a way to exploit the chaos produced by political upheaval and the disappointment that will inevitably follow hopes now raised so high?
Read the rest at the New York Times
A beautiful thing.
