الثلاثاء، 11 مارس 2014

Libya reportedly paid some €2.8 billion for Saadi Gaddafi*

Libya has been named as the primary source of the illegal weapons trade that is fueling conflicts in at least 14 countries around the world, a final report from the UN’s independent panel on Libya’s sanctions announced.
In a briefing to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Monday, the Libya sanctions committee chair, Rwandan Ambassador Eugene Gasana, noted that the post-Gaddafi government is struggling to secure the country in which a number of armed tribal militias denounce Tripoli’s authority.
“The panel noted that the control of non-state armed actors over the majority of stockpiles in Libya as well as ineffective border control systems remained primary obstacles to countering proliferation and that Libya had become a primary source of illicit weapons, including MANPADs [portable air defense systems],” Gasana told the Council, as quoted by Reuters.
Unable to secure its borders, Libya has let weapons fall into the hands of radical elements on several continents, Gasana said.
“Transfers to 14 countries reflected a highly diversified range of trafficking dynamics; and that trafficking from Libya was fueling conflict and insecurity – including terrorism – on several continents,” he said.
As of now, three ports in the country are under full control of rebel groups. A special force has been ordered by the country’s parliament to be sent next week to “liberate” all rebel-held ports, which is crucial to sustaining Libya’s oil-rich export economy that has been struggling to survive after the NATO invasion and regime change.
The UN arms embargo was enacted on Libya at the start of the unrest which eventually ousted former leader Muammar Gaddafi. Last year, non-lethal equipment was allowed to enter Libya when the UNSC eased its sanctions as the UN cautioned Tripoli against the spread of weapons to nearby states.
The UNSC insisted that Libyan authorities improve their monitoring record of arms supplied, sold, or transferred to the government with the approval of the UN sanctions committee. The panel found a number of violations of the arms embargo, such as “non-notified” transfers of arms to government security forces and transfers of weapons to the private market, Gasana said.
Gasana also pointed out that UN experts discovered that some countries need better legislative capacity to induce sanctions and implement asset freezes of the UNSC-generated list of individuals.“One instance resulted in the dissipation of almost $2 million in funds that should have been frozen,” Gasana said.
Meanwhile, Libya’s UN envoy noted that exporting parties should bear responsibility when supplying Libyan authorities with arms.
“Any request for approval for exporting weapons to Libya that is not done via the Libyan mission at the UN or with the knowledge of this mission would be considered a request from a party that does not belong to the Libyan government,” Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi told the Security Council.
“The exporting party shall bear the responsibility for that before the Security Council,” he added.
In the meantime, the head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) warned the 15-member body that Libya faces increased violence.
“Libya faces the risk of embarking on a new trajectory of unprecedented violence,” as security and political divisions deteriorate, Tarek Mitri told the UNSC.
Mitri pointed to the surge of attacks in Sabha, located in the south of the country, which resulted in over 100 civilian deaths – including children – and the displacement of hundreds of families as well as shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies. In the east, targeted assassinations, bombings, and kidnappings around Benghazi have reached “intolerable” levels.
“Intense efforts to resolve differences and negotiate an agreement on the management of the transitional period, including the future of the General National Congress and the Government, have not succeeded in bringing an end to the divisions that have paralyzed the political process,” noted Mitri.
An “alarming” rise in attacks on journalists has also been witnessed in recent months, Mitri told the Council, with TV stations in Tripoli and Benghazi vandalized and a number of journalists abducted.
- See more at: http://praag.org/?p=13317#sthash.G10NH2aa.dpufThe Libyan government is thought to have paid up to €2.8 billion for Muammar Gaddafi’s son, Saadi, who was this week extradited from Niger.

The son of the ousted despot, is best known for a brief career in Italian football as well as his playboy lifestyle, however the Libyan government led by Ali Zeidan suspects that Saadi was behind the deadly clashes in the southern city Sabha in January.

The 40-year-old, who is now in custody in Tripoli, fled to Niger after the 2011 uprising, which brought to an end his father’s 42-year reign.

Libya’s southern neighbour kept Saadi Gaddafi under house arrest in the capital Niamey, under the pretence that he would not interfere held in Libya’s internal affairs.

However, the Libyan government’s patience ran out after hundreds died in fierce clashes in southern Libya between tribes, government forces and Gaddafi loyalists.

Having evidence of Saadi’s hand behind these uprisings, the Libyan government asked for his extradition on the pretext that the agreement with Niger had been breached.

Rumours doing the rounds in Tripoli and social networks over the past few weeks, have it that Libya paid up to 5 billion Libyan dinars (€2.8 billion) after having pleaded for his extradition for months.

These demands were steadily rebuffed by Niger, who argued that it was harbouring Saadi Gaddafi on humanitarian grounds. However this week, Niger suddenly extradited Gaddafi, who was pictured in Tripoli in a blue prison jumpsuit.

The Libyan government has not announced any deal with Niger, as it had done on previous occasions, however it is thought that the €2.8 billion deal includes cash payments, investments and other forms of aid.

Mauritania deal

Since the 2011 uprising, Libya’s government has sought the extradition of several Gaddafi family members and henchmen, including that of Gaddafi’s former intelligence chief, Abdullah al-Senussi, in January 2013.

Former Libyan deputy prime minister Mostafa Abu Shagur, who was in office at the time of al-Senussi’s extradition, denied that Libya had paid for it.

Instead he had said that a €150 million payment, made months after the extradition, was made in order to assist the Mauritanian economy.

Similarly, Libyan government officials denied last year that a €1.4 billion loan to Egypt had anything to do with the extradition of former Gaddafi officials days earlier.

However, Gaddafi’s cousin and ex-envoy to Egypt, Ahmad Gaddaf-el-Dam, remains in Egypt despite Tripoli’s attempts to secure his extradition.

Niger also extradited Abdallah Mansur, a former top intelligence official, to Libya in February 2014, however it is thought that no deal was brokered in his case.

Mansur was one of 15 other officials sent back to Libya after Niger accused them of plotting against the Ali Zeidan’s government.

The Gaddafi family

Saadi, one of Muammar Gaddafi’s seven sons, is accused of shooting protesters and other crimes committed during his father’s rule.

However, Libya’s highest-profile prisoner is Gaddafi’s second son Saif al-Islam, who has been held in the mountain town of Zintan since his capture in November 2011.

The rest of the family, including Muammar Gaddafi’s wife Saifa, his daughter Aisha and sons Muhammad and Hannibal, were granted political asylum in Oman in 2012, after moving there from Algeria where they found refuge during the civil war.

Muammar Gaddafi’s other sons, Saif al-Arab and Mutassim, were killed during the revolution, while reports of Gaddafi’s youngest son Khamis’s death have never been confirmed.             The Libyan government is thought to have paid up to €2.8 billion for Muammar Gaddafi’s son, Saadi, who was this week extradited from Niger. 
Malta Today
The son of the ousted despot, is best known for a brief career in Italian football as well as his playboy lifestyle, however the Libyan government led by Ali Zeidan suspects that Saadi was behind the deadly clashes in the southern city Sabha in January.

The 40-year-old, who is now in custody in Tripoli, fled to Niger after the 2011 uprising, which brought to an end his father’s 42-year reign.

Libya’s southern neighbour kept Saadi Gaddafi under house arrest in the capital Niamey, under the pretence that he would not interfere held in Libya’s internal affairs.

However, the Libyan government’s patience ran out after hundreds died in fierce clashes in southern Libya between tribes, government forces and Gaddafi loyalists.

Having evidence of Saadi’s hand behind these uprisings, the Libyan government asked for his extradition on the pretext that the agreement with Niger had been breached.

Rumours doing the rounds in Tripoli and social networks over the past few weeks, have it that Libya paid up to 5 billion Libyan dinars (€2.8 billion) after having pleaded for his extradition for months.

These demands were steadily rebuffed by Niger, who argued that it was harbouring Saadi Gaddafi on humanitarian grounds. However this week, Niger suddenly extradited Gaddafi, who was pictured in Tripoli in a blue prison jumpsuit.

The Libyan government has not announced any deal with Niger, as it had done on previous occasions, however it is thought that the €2.8 billion deal includes cash payments, investments and other forms of aid.

Mauritania deal

Since the 2011 uprising, Libya’s government has sought the extradition of several Gaddafi family members and henchmen, including that of Gaddafi’s former intelligence chief, Abdullah al-Senussi, in January 2013.

Former Libyan deputy prime minister Mostafa Abu Shagur, who was in office at the time of al-Senussi’s extradition, denied that Libya had paid for it.

Instead he had said that a €150 million payment, made months after the extradition, was made in order to assist the Mauritanian economy.

Similarly, Libyan government officials denied last year that a €1.4 billion loan to Egypt had anything to do with the extradition of former Gaddafi officials days earlier.

However, Gaddafi’s cousin and ex-envoy to Egypt, Ahmad Gaddaf-el-Dam, remains in Egypt despite Tripoli’s attempts to secure his extradition.

Niger also extradited Abdallah Mansur, a former top intelligence official, to Libya in February 2014, however it is thought that no deal was brokered in his case.

Mansur was one of 15 other officials sent back to Libya after Niger accused them of plotting against the Ali Zeidan’s government.

The Gaddafi family

Saadi, one of Muammar Gaddafi’s seven sons, is accused of shooting protesters and other crimes committed during his father’s rule.

However, Libya’s highest-profile prisoner is Gaddafi’s second son Saif al-Islam, who has been held in the mountain town of Zintan since his capture in November 2011.

The rest of the family, including Muammar Gaddafi’s wife Saifa, his daughter Aisha and sons Muhammad and Hannibal, were granted political asylum in Oman in 2012, after moving there from Algeria where they found refuge during the civil war.

Muammar Gaddafi’s other sons, Saif al-Arab and Mutassim, were killed during the revolution, while reports of Gaddafi’s youngest son Khamis’s death have never been confirmed.             

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