Rival militias in Libya fought an extended gun battle in the capital Tripoli on Wednesday, in yet another sign of how unstable the NATO mission that removed former leader Muammar Gadhafi has left the country.
Both heavy and light weapons were heard from the battle as ambulances rushed to the area and plumes of smoke rose from buildings after the 40 minute long fight.
An Interior Ministry official said the fighting was between militias from the city of Misrata and units from Zintan. Both groups were supported by the NATO mission and fought to oust Gadhafi and now use their weapons and relative autonomy to gain influence in Libya’s fledgling government.
Libya’s interim government has still not been able to assert control over the country and continuing unrest among the militias as well as growing distaste for the rule of the National Transitional Council is leading to concerns about a burgeoning civil war.
Aid groups recently suspended operations in Libya after finding evidence of widespread torture and human rights violations by both the NTC and the militias. Although the Obama administration tried to take credit for the regime change in Libya back when “democracy” was still believed to take place, but they refuse to take place for it now that chaos and crimes are taking place.
This was bound to happen? This should also be an example to Syria and others. They MUST resist by all means the west's intervention whatever form it takes.
And will the Western powers now take responsibility for this? How about Hillary's famous "We came, we saw, he is dead" victory dance? Now that innocents are being killed in thousands, nobody really cares about Libyan civilians. Groups are fighting for loot, "transition council" has no power over the country, rape, murders and kidnappings are rampant. Torture in all forms of "detentions" by all groups and the idiotic "council" recognized hastily by Western governments — is commonplace. But then, how is this different from Kosovo. The goons in power all come from crime families, all engaged and continue to engage in gruesome busines of slave trade and organ harvesting. Even when a full fledged report was published by the former Swiss prosecutor Dick Marty, and evidence provided by former Hague prosecutor — it was ignored. So it is in Libya. It does not matter what horrors are now imposed on innocents — for as long as gas and oil go into right hands, and all the Libya's wealth in foreign accounts looted. What era we live in!