São Paulo – This Monday (22nd), the secretary general of the Arab League, Nabil Al Arabi, stated that the organization “fully supports” the Libyan National Transitional Council (LNTC) that took over Tripoli, the Libyan capital, last Sunday. He called for the return of peace and safety in the North African country.
Several Arab countries, among them Egypt and Tunisia, have also recognized the rebels as the leaders of Libya. The LNTC prime-minister, Mahmoud Jibril, stated that the trials of Colonel Muamar Kadafi’s supporters will be “fair.” The rebels have also claimed that they will transfer their operations from Benghazi to Tripoli in order to prevent a “power vacuum” from forming. Over 30 nations have already recognized the rebels, among them Qatar, the United States, Italy, France, Great Britain and Turkey.
The Ministry of Foreign Relations of Tunisia, the country that overthrew dictator Zine Al-Abidine Ben Ali last January, said: “The Tunisian government has decided to recognize the Libyan National Transitional Council as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people.” The Egyptian minister of Foreign Relations, Mohammed Kamel Amr, also stated that the country recognizes the rebels as leaders of the Libyan people.
In a statement, the president of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, claimed that he now hopes the Libyan people will be able to resume their normal life “quickly.” According to the Petra news agency, the Jordanian minister of Foreign Relations, Nasser Judeh, said the country is watching the situation in the North African nation and expects a swift and peaceful power transition.
The Moroccan news agency MAP stated that the country’s Foreign Relations minister Taib Fassi Fihri should go to Benghazi on Tuesday (23rd) to give the rebels a message from the king Mohamed VI regarding the LNTC’s decisive role in writing a new chapter in Libyan history, to fulfil the Libyan people’s legitimate aspirations for freedom, democracy and progress.
The crown prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, called Jibril and congratulated him on the victory of the rebels, according to the Emirates News Agency. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Relations has also recognized the Council and stated that it may support the rebels during the transition period.
According to international news agencies, the rebels claim that Kadafi is hiding in one of a few areas in Tripoli that he still controls: the headquarters in which he lives. The Libyan rebels arrived in Tripoli on Saturday backed by bombings carried out by aircraft of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato). Three of Kadafi’s sons were arrested: Mohammed, Saad and Saif. Mohammed, however, was released from house arrest this morning. According to Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim, more than 3,000 people have died in the country in the last few days.
The population rebelled against Kadafi’s regime this year, after the Tunisian and Egyptian governments were overthrown. Ever since, the rebels settled in Benghazi and began heading for Tripoli, fighting their way against Kadafi’s forces. The UN established an air exclusion zone over Libyan territory in early March, and towards the end of that month France, England and the United States started bombing Libyan regime targets to prevent attacks on the rebels. After six months, members of the National Transitional Council conquered the capital. The Colonel took over in 1969.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
