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From: Biniam Tekle (biniamt@dehai.org)
Date: Fri Apr 22 2011 - 15:33:54 EDT
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/04/21/let-libya-sort-itself-out Let Libya
sort itself out By Peter Worthington ,QMI Agency
First posted: Thursday, April 21, 2011 6:32:49 EDT PM
It seems that the rebels in Libya have changed their minds, and now want
foreign troops on their soil to help them get rid of Moammar Gadhafi.
The official reason is that the troops are needed “for humanitarian
principles” because more children are being killed than the rebels
anticipated.
The real reason is because the rebels aren’t organized, aren’t trained to
fight, and because Gadhafi’s forces, be they mercenaries or whatever, are
far more lethal.
One of those making the appeal for French or British soldiers is Nuri
Abdullah Abdullati who is a big shot in the defence of Misrata where the
fighting is heavy and the rebels are being clobbered.
Whether the Brits or French will accede to the rebels’ plea is unknown, but
the whole scenario lends substance to U.S. President Barack Obama’s
reluctance and refusal to commit American soldiers.
Rebellion in Libya and throughout the Arab world is not America’s doing, nor
is it Britain’s or France’s responsibility.
The cause for rebellion in Libya is Moammar Gadhafi himself.
So let the people who started it, finish it, or quit.
It’s almost as simple as that, unless the developed world wants to go back
to colonial days of outposts on the fringes of various European empires.
Initially the Libyan rebels only wanted air strikes to take out Gadhafi’s
planes and missiles. Otherwise, they had him on the run.
They were wrong — as were foreign observers who felt Gadhafi was a spent
force. I include myself in that category.
What was overlooked was that Gadhafi is not like other tyrants.
Rather than flee with his sons and Libya’s bank account, Gadhafi turned out
to be a tyrant of the old school who was prepared to fight to the end and
believed in the myth of his own invulnerability.
Even when some pilots fled with their strike aircraft to Malta rather than
bomb their own people, and soldiers shed their uniforms to join the
rebels, Gadhafiwasn’t deterred.
Now there seems a chance that he will prevail, at least for awhile.
In his 30 years of power, Gadhafi has maintained a sort of Praetorian guard,
while short-changing the army which he feared might spawn a revolution like
he himself did when he staged a coup.
Libya is a country of six million people, one would think a combat division
of any western country could mop up Gadhafi’s forces.
Libya is hardly a Vietnam quagmire, especially if foreign troops leave when
the job is done.
Still, Libya is not the business of any foreign power.
Obama was justified not to take charge of ousting Gadhafi but only play a
supporting role.
What about Britain and France, the most hawkish of allied countries eager to
bounce Gadhafi? Their temptation is to supply the rebels with weaponry so
they can do their own fighting.
The problem with that is twofold: Rebels don’t have sufficient know-how to
use modern weaponry effectively, or eventually that weaponry will be used
for purposes that are against the interests of those who supplied it.
Saddam Hussein’s war against Iran had both sides using weaponry supplied by
the U.S., Ethiopia’s war against Eritrea used both U.S. and Soviet-supplied
weapons, Latin American conflicts use American weaponry and in early
Pakistan-India conflicts, weapons were supplied by our side.
Anyway, let Libya sort itself out — and we’ll provide aid to the winner, so
long as it isn’t Gadhafi
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