Libyan rebel militias continue to loot enormous stockpiles of weapons left behind by ousted leader Muammar Gadhafi, fueling worries that newly armed gangs could grow violent and that a sprawling illicit arms trade could reach dangerous places.
The looting of weapons depots has been going on ever since rebels took control of the capital Tripoli in August. NATO has issued a number of warnings pressing the Transitional National Council (TNC) to safeguard the weapons, and weapons have reportedly reached militants in Gaza as well as al Qaeda-affiliated groups in Algeria.
The Nigerian government to the south has issued warnings that Nigerian-based terrorist groups may be getting their hands on Libyan weapons from the rebel looting.
But the lack of a national army and the absence of much cohesiveness among rebel groups has raised concerns about the possibility of increased violence within Libya. The massive haul of explosives and ammunition is much larger than the stockpiles left behind by Saddam Hussein that helped fuel the insurgency in Iraq, and it poses risks for independent guerrilla movements and more bloodshed down the road.
The war is far from over, with NATO and rebel forces still battling a number of mostly civilian pro-Gadhafi towns violently resisting rebel authority. In recent clashes in the town of Schwerif regime loyalists set fire to an ammunition dump to keep it out of rebel hands.
The ethnic and tribal cleavages within the various rebel factions are complicating things enough, but the groups of civilians and loyalists clumping together and arming themselves are adding to the widespread disorder in Libya.
We keep hearing stories about the huga stockpiles of weapons the Libyan army had. Among them are nearly 20,000 shoulder fired sam-7s that are ano;ogous to the American stinger. We are told that it is so critical that US/NATO boots on the ground to secure all these weapons fron Al Quaida may be necessary.
Does anybody ask if they had so much weaponry why they didn't use them against the rebels and NATO??? Gadhafi decided to fight to the bitter end but was saving those weapons for what?? This is truly a "bizarro" world we live in when no asks this crucial question.
They make it seem as if these weapons systems are simply fire and forget. That isn't the case. I remember being trained how to use a stinger years ago. We had a huge indoor complex with what amounted to an oversized movie screen. (more like the size of a drive in movie but inside) It took a lot of practice to come even close to hitting a mig. A 747 would be a sitting duck but not any of our modern fighter/bombers. When the war first started I was wondering why we hadn't brought in spector Gun ships (spookey). However if Gadaffi had a bunch of SAMS it would make sense. They would have been an easy target.
I remember invading Panama, Noriega handed out weapons to anyone he thought would fight us and yet we still found hundreds of thousands of weapons. What he hoped to do with them I have not a clue. I do know that a bunch of them were intercepted by Noriega before they could get to the Contras. (that is what really ticked off Bush)
NATO gets what it really wants – a looming civil war to justify even more intensive destruction and possibly even occupation troops – sorry 'trainers' – to be based at the enduring base for AFRICOM
"I love it when a plan comes together"
The Nigerian government to the south has issued warnings that Nigerian-based terrorist groups may be getting their hands on Libyan weapons from the rebel looting.
Shouldn't this read Niger – an entirely different country than Nigeria, although both named re. River Niger.