TomDispatch writes: A small Libyan mystery: A U.S. special forces operation snatched a terror suspect from the streets of Tripoli and flew him to a U.S. naval ship specially stationed in the Mediterranean to be interrogated. U.S. officials initially indicated that the Libyan government was in-the-know on the raid. That government, extremely weak and in an increasingly chaotic country filled with independent militias, was embarrassed by both the act and Washington’s unasked for offer of “credit,” involving as it did the obvious obliteration of Libyan sovereignty. Its officials then denied all knowledge of the raid, denouncing it as a “kidnapping.” Washington, undoubtedly worried about the government it backs there, could of course have said nothing more, even if – we don’t know – that government was lying to save face. But no, in Washington, it had to be reiterated once again that the Libyans had indeed “tacitly approved” the raid even if they “had not been told in advance when it would happen.” In other words, Washington, for its own reasons and needs, acted to further embarrass and destabilize the Libyan government. I’ve seen no attempts to explain what to make of this in a situation where it should have been obvious to begin with that, for one man charged with an old crime, the payment would be the further destabilization of a key country in North Africa. Curious indeed. Tom nytimes/2013/10/09/world/africa/us-officials-say-libya-approved-commando-raids.html
Posted on: Thu, 10 Oct 2013 13:47:03 +0000
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