For the second time this month, NATO warplanes have accidentally bombed the Libyan rebel forces that were mistaken for Gadhafi regime troops. Today’s strike came in Misrata, and saw the warplane kill 12 rebels and wound five others.
The rebel commander said the strike came on a coastal salt factory, which rebels had seized and fortified as a defensive position. They insisted they told NATO about taken over the factory yesterday. NATO has yet to comment.
The previous incident came on April 7 in the Eastern city of Ajdabiyah, when NATO troops bombed tanks belonging to the rebel forces and killed at least 13. NATO was initially said to have apologized but later denied this, saying they had no idea the rebels even had tanks.
Misrata is the last western city under the control of the rebels, and has been contested by regime forces for weeks. The regime had stopped its attack for a day or so, and launched a surprise strike again yesterday, sparking a new battle.
Enough with the airstrikes.
Let the locals do all the killing, that way we don't get blamed.
Agreed for one: get the hell out. 'Our' credibility can go to hell, though. Concern over 'our' image was what Jonathon Landay and Juan Cole thought of as 'our' reason to get into this -that Humanitarian Bombing schtick works on some people, and that hardly credits 'us' at all…
Antiwar people should be supporting Gaddafi. Libya was attacked because Gaddafi, crazy though he may or may not be, was proposing that African and Muslim nations drop the dollar and create their own currency, the gold dinar. Very similar to what got Hussein attacked and killed.
This is per John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, a guy Scott should really interview soon. See the article here – http://www.veteranstoday.com/2011/04/27/banking-a…