Fighting continues.
| "المجلس الإنتقالي" يشيد بانشقاق وزير النفط الليبي: على الآخرين السير على خطاه |
أشاد المجلس الوطني الإنتقالي الذي يسيطر على شرق ليبيا، اليوم بانشقاق وزير النفط الليبي شكري غانم أحد رموز نظام العقيد معمر القذافي. وجاء في بيان للمجلس تلقت وكالة "فرانس برس" نسخة منه إن "لقد شهدنا في الأيام والأسابيع الأخيرة تسارعاً في عمليات الإنشقاق عن نظام (الزعيم الليبي معمّر) القذافي الذي لم تعد له شرعيّة ومصداقيّة ومستقبل".
وأشار البيان إلى أن "ليبيا بأسرها تشيد بانشقاق غانم وتدعو الباقين إلى أن يتحلّوا بالشجاعة وأن يسيروا على خطاه"، مضيفاً: "لقد أظهر غانم أن الوقوف بوجه القذافي ممكن وأنه من واجبنا كليبيين أن نتحدّ لإنهاء حكم القذافي الهمجي".
وأشار البيان إلى أن "ليبيا بأسرها تشيد بانشقاق غانم وتدعو الباقين إلى أن يتحلّوا بالشجاعة وأن يسيروا على خطاه"، مضيفاً: "لقد أظهر غانم أن الوقوف بوجه القذافي ممكن وأنه من واجبنا كليبيين أن نتحدّ لإنهاء حكم القذافي الهمجي".
| مالطا تعترف بالمجلس الوطني الانتقالي "ممثلاً شرعياً وحيداً" للشعب الليبي |
أعلنت الحكومة المالطية في بيان رسمي أنها تعتبر المجلس الوطني الانتقالي، "ممثلاً شرعيا وحيداً" للشعب الليبي.
وجاء في البيان أن رئيس الوزراء المالطي لورانس غونزي اتصل أول من أمس الثلاثاء برئيس المجلس الوطني الانتقالي مصطفى عبد الجليل لإبلاغه بهذا القرار الذي اتخذه مجلس الوزراء المالطي الاثنين الماضي.
وأضاف البيان أن جبريل رحب بقرار فاليتا معتبراً إياه "خطوة إلى الامام بالغة الاهمية لن ينساها الشعب الليبي أبداً"، ومعرباً عن أمله في أن "تقرر الحكومة المالطية الذهاب حتى الاعتراف الكامل" بالمجلس الوطني اللانتقالي
وجاء في البيان أن رئيس الوزراء المالطي لورانس غونزي اتصل أول من أمس الثلاثاء برئيس المجلس الوطني الانتقالي مصطفى عبد الجليل لإبلاغه بهذا القرار الذي اتخذه مجلس الوزراء المالطي الاثنين الماضي.
وأضاف البيان أن جبريل رحب بقرار فاليتا معتبراً إياه "خطوة إلى الامام بالغة الاهمية لن ينساها الشعب الليبي أبداً"، ومعرباً عن أمله في أن "تقرر الحكومة المالطية الذهاب حتى الاعتراف الكامل" بالمجلس الوطني اللانتقالي
Huge Explosion near Hotel in Benghazi.
عاينون موقع انفجار ضخم في مرآب أحد الفنادق شرق بنغازي.
Blast rocks hotel in Benghazi
Published 02 June 2011 04:27 296 Views
A car bomb exploded in the opposition-held city of Benghazi, just outside a hotel used as a base by foreign diplomats and journalists. Explosions have also been heard in Tripoli where NATO bombers have carried out more airstrikes on Libya's capital. Meanwhile a UN report has accused both sides of war crimes. Al jazeera's Sue Turton reports from Benghazi.
Shokri Ghanem is the highest ranking official to defect since top diplomat Moussa Koussa defected in March
Libya's oil minister has confirmed his defection from Muammar Gaddafi's government, citing the "daily spilling of blood" in the country as reason for his departure.
Shokri Ghanem, head of the National Oil Corporation, said at a news conference in Rome, Italy on Wednesday that he supported the "Libyan youth fighting for a constitutional state", but was still undecided about joining the anti-Gaddafi regime rebels.
"I can't work in this situation so I have left my country and my job to join the choice made by young Libyans to fight for a democratic country," he said at the conference organised by the Libyan ambassador who has also defected, according to ANSA, the Italian news agency.
But Ghanem added that he was not working with the National Transitional Council (NTC) in Benghazi, the main rebel administration in eastern Libya.
Ghanem is one of the most high-profile and senior Libyan officials to have defected after Moussa Koussa, Gaddafi's foreign minister who defected in March.
'Major blow'
Al Jazeera's Cal Perry said Ghanem's announcement would be "a major blow to Gaddafi" as he was close to him.
His whereabouts had been unknown, save for a border guard's confirmation to Al Jazeera of Ghanem crossing into Tunisia alone, without his family.
The 79-year-old oil chief said he would not be representing Libya at the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a role he has primarily filled as leader of the country's delegation.
Ghanem also said oil production in Libya is coming to a halt because of the international embargo.
He has headed the oil ministry since 2006 and previously served as prime minister.
The oil ministry generates the biggest income for Libya, which has about 41.5 billion barrels in oil reserves - the largest in Africa.
Rebels have taken Benghazi and the oil-producing east of the North African country, their uprising helped by a NATO bombing campaign sanctioned by the UN to protect civilians.
Benghazi concerns
Al Jazeera's Perry said Ghanem's "indecision" about joining the rebel administration was of concern in Benghazi.
"What [the NTC] certainly would like to hear is that he is defecting, that he is joining the rebels, that he's joining the fights against Colonel Gaddafi's forces, and that he puts his full weight behind NATO and those continued airstrikes."
"People want to see the military action ramped up. They want to see these attack helicopters that we've been hearing about: 4 Apaches, 15 french helicopters, Tigers. They want to see those put in the theatre," Perry added.
"They are worried about the stagnation on the military front. They want to see things pushing forward and those roads really opening up to Tripoli."
FOOD Shortages in the West.
ذكرت وكالة "فرانس برس" أن أربعة انفجارات هزت مساء اليوم وسط العاصمة الليبية طرابلس التي تتعرض لغارات مكثفة من حلف شمال الأطلسي منذ حوالي 10 أيام"، موضحة أنه "سُمع في البداية دوي انفجارين تلاهما بعد نحو عشر دقائق انفجاران آخران".
Zuma says Gaddafi ready for truce | |||||||
Rebels reject offer as visiting South African president says Libyan leader is ready to stop fighting.
Last Modified: 31 May 2011 06:02
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Zuma, who met the Libyan leader at an undisclosed location during a visit to Libya on Monday, also listed conditions set out by the embattled leader that have scuppered previous ceasefire attempts. He said Gaddafi was willing to accept an African Union (AU) initiative for a ceasefire that would stop all hostilities, including NATO air strikes in support of rebel forces. But Zuma said Gaddafi insisted that "all Libyans be given a chance to talk among themselves" to determine the country's future. The rebels, however, quickly rejected the offer.
In April, Zuma led a delegation of the African Union to Libya with an AU proposal for a truce. Gaddafi said he would accept the truce, but quickly ignored it and resumed his attacks. In the rebels' de facto capital of Benghazi, Fathi Baja, the rebel foreign minister, rejected the African Union plan. "We refuse completely; we don't consider it a political initiative, it is only some stuff that Gaddafi wants to announce to stay in power," he told the Associated Press. 'Nothing new' Idris Traina, a member of the Libyan opposition based in Los Angeles, told Al Jazeera that there was nothing new in this visit. "Initially the reports we heard were that president Zuma was there to negotiate an exit strategy for Gaddafi and his family," he said. "Later we heard repeated talk about the truce, but the Transitional National Council and the Libyan people have rejected these [truce offers] before and are rejecting them now."
Eight senior military officers held a press conference in Italy on Monday, saying they were part of a group of as many as 120 military officials and soldiers who defected from Gaddafi's side in recent days. The hastily called news conference was organised by the Italian government for the eight officers - five generals, two colonels and a major. "What is happening to our people has frightened us," said one officer, who identified himself as General Oun Ali Oun. "There is a lot of killing, genocide ... violence against women. No wise, rational person with the minimum of dignity can do what we saw with our eyes and what he asked us to do." Another officer, General Salah Giuma Yahmed, said Gaddafi's army was weakening day by day, with the force reduced to 20 per cent of its original capacity. "Gaddafi's days are numbered," Yahmed said. Abdurrahman Shalgam, the Libyan UN ambassador, who has also defected from Gaddafi, said all 120 military personnel were outside Libya now, but he did not say where they were. Nato bombardment In a statement on the eve of Zuma's visit, his ruling African National Congress in South Africa condemned the NATO bombing of Libya. "We also join the continent and all peace loving people of the world in condemning the continuing aerial bombardments of Libya by Western forces," it said after a two-day meeting of its executive council. The development came as Navi Pillay, the UN rights chief, condemned the brutality of the Libyan government's crackdown on protesters, saying the actions were shocking in their disregard for human rights. "The brutality and magnitude of measures taken by the governments in Libya and now Syria have been particularly shocking in their outright disregard for basic human rights," she said. |
الاثنين 30 أيار (مايو) 2011
روما (رويترز) - ظهر ثمانية ضباط كبار في الجيش الليبي في روما يوم الاثنين وقالوا انهم جزء من مجموعة تضم 120 مسؤولا عسكريا وجنديا فروا من قوات الزعيم معمر القذافي في الايام القليلة الماضية.
وتحدث الضباط الثمانية وهم خمس لواءات وعقيدين ورائد في مؤتمر صحفي نظمته الحكومة الايطالية وهي واحدة من بضع حكومات اعترفت بالمجلس الوطني الانتقالي بوصفه الممثل الشرعي للشعب الليبي.
وقال ضابط عرف نفسه بأنه اللواء عون علي عون ان ما يحدث للشعب الليبي افزع الضباط الفارين. واضاف انه توجد عمليات قتل كثيرة وابادة جماعية وعنف ضد النساء. وتابع انه لا يوجد شخص عاقل وحصيف لديه الحد الادنى من الكرامة يمكن ان يفعل ما راه هؤلاء الضباط بأعينهم وما طلب منهم القذافي ان يفعلوه.
وقال ضابط اخر يدعى اللواء صلاح احمد ان جيش القذافي يضعف يوما بعد يوما حيث تقلصت قوته الى 20 في المئة من حجمها الاصلي.
واضاف احمد ان ايام القذافي أصبحت معدودة.
وقال السفير الليبي في الامم المتحدة عبد الرحمن شلقم الذي انشق ايضا على القذافي ان جميع الافراد العسكريين المئة والعشرين خارج ليبيا الان دون ان يفصح عن مكانهم.
وكانت قناة العربية التلفزيونية ذكرت في وقت سابق يوم الاثنين ان الضباط الليبيين المئة والعشرين وصلوا الى روما. وقال السفير الليبي في روما وهو منشق ايضا ان الثمانية الذين حضروا المؤتمر الصحفي هم الموجودون فقط في العاصمة الايطالية.
وقال المنشقون انهم فروا من ليبيا عبر حدودها الغربية الى تونس من خلال معابر تسيطر عليها المعارضة.
وقال عاشور شميس الناشط الليبي المعارض المقيم في لندن ان الانشقاق سيكتسب قوة دفع كبيرة مما يزيد الضغط على القذافي.
وقال نعمان بن عثمان وهو ناشط معارض اخر يعمل محللا في مؤسسة كويليام البريطانية للابحاث ان كل حالة هروب نابعة من عدة عوامل.
لكنه قال ان احدث مجموعة من الفارين دفعهم الى ذلك التوتر الناشئ من تعيين اصحاب رتب صغيرة في مناصب عليا بأجهزة الامن.
واضاف بن عثمان ان سلوك هؤلاء الرجال وكثير منهم موالون للقذافي في منتصف الثلاثينات اثار الغضب والاستياء بين كبار الضباط الذين اعتبروا افعالهم تنطوي على غطرسة ووحشية.
وتابع ان ضباط الجيش يشعرون انهم تحت المراقبة طوال الوقت ويشعرون بعدم الراحة لانهم يفتقدون الثقة لذلك انتهزوا اول فرصة لاحت لهم للهرب.
وقال ان كثيرا من كبار مسؤولي الامن المعينين حديثا اقارب للقذافي.
| Libyan tribal leaders call for united front | |||||
Country's largest tribe, based in strategic city of Baniwalid, holds key meeting in Turkey with the opposition movement.
Last Modified: 29 May 2011 16:55
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Most of the tribal leaders who gathered in Istanbul on Saturday and Sunday, were from the powerful Warfalla clan based in Baniwalid, a city in western Libya. The delegates were calling for an end to the violence in Libya and the departure of Libyan leader Gaddafi and his sons.
"Fierce clashes broke out between Gaddafi's forces and Warfalla members in Baniwalid, and at least 11 people died, including the brother of a conference delegate," the source said. Al Jazeera's Anita McNaught, reporting from Istanbul, said that the delegates were mostly senior professionals from both inside Libya as well as those who have been in exile for the last few years. "They all stood up together and presented their declaration and sang the old Libyan national anthem - I watched grown men break down in tears and sob all their way through this," our correspondent said. Strategic importance Baniwalid is said to hold a position of vital strategic importance, and was thus being aggressively targeted by Gaddafi, who has focused his security forces there to instill fear. "Warfalla is the largest tribe - over one-sixth of the total population of Libya, numbering more than a million members," our correspondent said. "They are a tribe whose loyalty has been vigorously, and perhaps violently, sought after by Gaddafi and his forces. He has threatened, bribed, jailed and now attacked them." Our correspondent said the attacks occurred because Gaddafi and his supporters did not want to see this meeting "happen in Turkey where people can speak freely". In the final statement of the conference, the delegates called on their "brothers in Zletin, Tarhuna, Khums, Msellata and Sirte to join the revolution and to put a swift end to this tyranny". "We caution all other groups who are still fighting for this regime that continues day in day out to violate all forms of human rights, and we warn everyone involved that they will be accountable for their actions," the statement said. Clear stance At the end of the conference, our correspondent reported that the delegates said to Gaddafi: "Do not leave Libya because we want to bring you to justice, we will have you tried for the 42 years that you have enslaved us."
Their position has not been clear throughout the conflict in Libya, but this meeting seems to have shed some light on their position. In their statement, the delegates addressed their "families in our beloved Baniwalid" asking them not to "create rift between you and your fellow Libyans". "The National Transitional Council (NTC) is a keeper of the safety and security for our great nation during the transitional period," their statement said, "after the fall of this brutal dictatorship, and encompasses several members of our great city." Led by Mustafa Abdul Jalil, who won the respect of the opposition for criticising Gaddafi while he was the justice minister, the NTC is Libya's only interlocutor with the West, led by France, Britain and the US. 'Crimes against humanity' Meanwhile, on Monday, two French lawyers said they planned to bring legal proceedings against French President Nicolas Sarkozy for crimes against humanity over the NATO-led military campaign in Libya. Ibrahim Boukhzam, a Libyan justice ministry official in Tripoli said Jacques Verges and Roland Dumas had offered to represent families he said were victims of the NATO bombing campaign. Dumas said the NATO mission, which was meant to protect civilians, was killing them. He denounced what he described as "a brutal assault against a sovereign country" and said he was ready to defend Gaddafi should he ever be brought before the International Criminal Court in the Hague. |
Benghazi, Libya (CNN) -- In a room padded with foam and spray-painted with graffiti, the new sounds of rebellion in Libya are being broadcast online.
The guys running Tribute FM are amateurs who dug into their own pockets to fund Libya's first English-language online broadcaster targeting a worldwide audience.
So far it has received a few e-mails and Skype calls from listeners from as far away as Denmark, the United States and Italy.
"It is a people's movement right, but started by youth and powered by youth, OK," one of the DJs says into his mike as the show begins.
He wants to be heard, not seen or identified by name because, he says, it will put his family at risk. They still live in areas controlled by forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
He, meanwhile, is in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and using his microphone as a weapon against the regime.
"This is our gift to all martyrs, to the people who actually died and suffered throughout this revolution," explains his colleague Aiman, who also asks that only his first name be used.
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They are both Libyans who recently returned to the North African country from Britain. They have teamed with two of their countrymen in Benghazi and they're all looking to play a part in the history of their country -- a country they hope is in the midst of major change.
"We had 42 years of suffering," Aiman says. "We want to show the people that this regime hurt Libya very much. Hopefully it will be over very soon. We just want to prove to the world that Gadhafi is no longer wanted in this land."
The station format swings wildly from news and information to all kinds of music, from hardcore revolutionary rap to ballads. The show begins with the sounds of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" and its chorus: "Redemption song/These songs of Freedom, songs of freedom."
Then the team starts a talk segment, joking about how their co-founder had been sleeping while their website was hacked and knocked offline. They have no proof but they suspect it was an effort by the government because they have already been talked about on government-run TV.
"They actually did mention us four or five times on the state [TV]," says Aiman. "They said we've been brought up by foreign countries to spread Christianity."
The station founders dismiss this as a ridiculous allegation: yes, they are trying to spread a message, but it is not about religion, it's about revolution, they say. Even the language choice is a slap at Gadhafi's regime: from 1986 to 1997 the government banned the teaching of English in Libya.
The team is on air from 8 p.m. to about 4 a.m. local time. They want to be able to broadcast for as long as possible, so they are recruiting and auditioning volunteers. Applicants have to be able to speak English if they want to be an announcer: many can because they have lived abroad.
"My dad, a couple of years ago, he wrote an article criticizing Gadhafi's regime," recalls Hamida Baja. "You know, here you are not allowed to do that so we were targeted. Moammar [Gadhafi] saw the article and he wasn't too happy about it."
She and her family fled in fear. Her brothers still live abroad. "I also fear that he might kill my dad or he might come threaten me and my mom."
Baja is willing to help out at the station in any way that she can. She says it is also a venue that can give women a voice. "It's a new beginning. We can say how we feel and what we feel whenever we like. We shouldn't be afraid because we have certain opinions."
But Tribute FM is not immune to criticism from its listeners. It found itself facing a clash of cultures when it played rap music from the west, complete with curse words. "We apologized to our listeners," Aiman says. "We try to keep with the culture and our tradition. We try to keep everything here very clean, very moderate."
But what they won't apologize for is slamming the Gadhafi regime at will. "I believe we are in the frontline but with a voice, not with a gun," Aiman says.
They are both Libyans who recently returned to the North African country from Britain. They have teamed with two of their countrymen in Benghazi and they're all looking to play a part in the history of their country -- a country they hope is in the midst of major change.
"We had 42 years of suffering," Aiman says. "We want to show the people that this regime hurt Libya very much. Hopefully it will be over very soon. We just want to prove to the world that Gadhafi is no longer wanted in this land."
The station format swings wildly from news and information to all kinds of music, from hardcore revolutionary rap to ballads. The show begins with the sounds of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" and its chorus: "Redemption song/These songs of Freedom, songs of freedom."
Then the team starts a talk segment, joking about how their co-founder had been sleeping while their website was hacked and knocked offline. They have no proof but they suspect it was an effort by the government because they have already been talked about on government-run TV.
"They actually did mention us four or five times on the state [TV]," says Aiman. "They said we've been brought up by foreign countries to spread Christianity."
The station founders dismiss this as a ridiculous allegation: yes, they are trying to spread a message, but it is not about religion, it's about revolution, they say. Even the language choice is a slap at Gadhafi's regime: from 1986 to 1997 the government banned the teaching of English in Libya.
The team is on air from 8 p.m. to about 4 a.m. local time. They want to be able to broadcast for as long as possible, so they are recruiting and auditioning volunteers. Applicants have to be able to speak English if they want to be an announcer: many can because they have lived abroad.
"My dad, a couple of years ago, he wrote an article criticizing Gadhafi's regime," recalls Hamida Baja. "You know, here you are not allowed to do that so we were targeted. Moammar [Gadhafi] saw the article and he wasn't too happy about it."
She and her family fled in fear. Her brothers still live abroad. "I also fear that he might kill my dad or he might come threaten me and my mom."
Baja is willing to help out at the station in any way that she can. She says it is also a venue that can give women a voice. "It's a new beginning. We can say how we feel and what we feel whenever we like. We shouldn't be afraid because we have certain opinions."
But Tribute FM is not immune to criticism from its listeners. It found itself facing a clash of cultures when it played rap music from the west, complete with curse words. "We apologized to our listeners," Aiman says. "We try to keep with the culture and our tradition. We try to keep everything here very clean, very moderate."
But what they won't apologize for is slamming the Gadhafi regime at will. "I believe we are in the frontline but with a voice, not with a gun," Aiman says.
Tripoli (CNN) -- A woman believed to be Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's wife lashed out at NATO during an exclusive interview Friday with CNN, even as she expressed despair for her family's and her nation's plight -- saying, "Life has no value now."
Safia Farkash Gadhafi, who married Moammar Gadhafi in 1970 a year after he rose to power in the North African nation, is not thought to have ever previously spoken on the record with members of the Libyan or international media.
CNN cannot 100% confirm that the woman who spoke Friday is Moammar Gadhafi's wife, as Libyan authorities barred CNN from using its phone for fear the call might be tracked. But the interview was arranged by someone CNN knows to be Safia Gadhafi's office manager and by officials in Libya's foreign ministry.
In the interview, the woman ripped NATO for the death of one of her children, Saif al-Arab Gadhafi, who Libyan officials reported was killed by an airstrike late last month. The alliance has launched regular attacks in Libya in recent months, in pursuit of its stated mission to halt the killing of innocent civilians by Gadhafi's forces.
Gadhafi's purported wife said four explosive projectiles were fired into one house after the evening Muslim prayer, a timing that she criticized and said was common. She disputed an earlier account, offered by Libyan government spokesman Musa Ibrahim, that both she and her husband were in the building at the time of the strike.
"I was not there, but I wished that I was, so that I may die with (Saif al-Arab)," the woman said.
Several of Moammar Gadhafi's eight surviving children -- six born to Safia, one born to her husband's first wife, plus one adopted child -- are believed to have taken roles in their father's government, including military commander Khamis Gadhafi and high-profile official Saif al-Islam Gadhafi. Yet the woman thought to be Safia Gadhafi said they should be off-limits from NATO strikes, which she claimed were killing innocents around Libya.
"My children are civilians, and they have been targeted. What do they have to do with this?" the woman told CNN.
Less than two weeks ago, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court sought the arrest of Moammar Gadhafi and two relatives -- one of them Saif al-Islam, Safia's eldest son -- linking them to "widespread and systematic" attacks on civilians. But the woman claiming to be Safia Gadhafi said international legal authorities are going after the wrong people.
"I want them to prosecute NATO. They killed my son and the Libyan people," she said.
"They are defaming our reputation.They are committing war crimes, and accusing us of embezzling billions from the Libyan people. My conscience wouldn't allow such things."
The Libyan leader's purported wife expressed exasperation about the situation, with scores of countries allied against her husband's regime. She vowed that "we will live or die alongside the Libyan people," predicting her husband, his government and his forces will be vindicated.
"What would I want with life now? All I want out of life now is that the truth be heard," the woman said. "In the end, history will judge us.
Editor's note: CNN's Frederik Pleitgen has just returned to Germany from Tripoli where he often had to work with Libyan government minders watching -- but he was also able to evade their watchful eyes and exclusively meet in secret with anti-Gadhafi rebels.
Berlin, Germany (CNN) -- The Libyan regime is confining international journalists to a five star hotel in Tripoli called the Rixos.
When reporters want to leave they need to take a government minder and a government translator.
"This is important so that you do not get hurt," one official told CNN when we requested to drive around town on our own. He insisted angry Gadhafi supporters might harm journalists because of the rage caused by NATO's bombing campaign over Libya.
This policy tries to create a sentiment of fear among the reporters and instill in them the notion that Tripoli is a Gadhafi stronghold where any journalist who tries to move on his own and ask questions will be turned in and arrested, and possibly held for weeks like several western reporters who remain in custody in Libya.
The government minders like to take western reporters to raucous pro-Gadhafi demonstrations in Tripoli where loud protesters scream: "Down, down Sarkozy."
They vow to fight to the death for Moammar Gadhafi. The mood is threatening and the people taking part are pumped up and seem emotional.
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But we regularly managed to sneak out of the Rixos in recent weeks and discovered that the notion of Tripoli as a bastion of Gadhafi support is little more then a charade.
In one neighborhood we managed to contact the rebels. They brought us to a secret location where the refrain is: "We are the youth of 17th of February in Tripoli. We declare our total support to the free Libyan people. We also declare our full and total support to the Transitional National Council (the de facto rebel government) and believe only it and no one else is the legitimate representative of the Libyan people."
Those simple words can easily land young people in jail if they are caught shouting them in public and certainly if they are talking to international journalists.
So the young men wore masks. They were kind and well-educated and strongly denied the notion of a fanatical anti-Western public in Tripoli.
"Do not fear the Libyan people," a young rebel leader told us. "We want to be friends with the world. Gadhafi is just trying to scare you to think people will fight for him."
Some of the young men are even members of the Libyan security forces, and some say they were arrested in the early days of the uprising in Libya in late-February and tortured by pro-Gadhafi forces. "I did not know where the beating was coming from," one young man said. "I was deprived of sleep and even food and water."
The rebels say they believe that about 75 percent of Tripoli residents are against Gadhafi.
They also say that most are afraid to take to the streets and speak their minds because Gadhafi has put armed gangs into the neighborhoods and established checkpoints to suppress dissent.
It is impossible to verify these claims and, naturally, Libyan government officials strongly deny the assertions.
The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. There is no doubt that Gadhafi has supporters in Tripoli and around Western Libya.
People we have spoken to without government minders around say they have benefited economically from Gadhafi's rule, especially since 2004, when a lot of the international sanctions against Libya were lifted as Gadhafi attempted to align himself with the West.
There are many construction sites in Tripoli and Gadhafi's supporters speak highly of subsidized housing programs and other benefits.
"I think we also have one of the best health care systems in the world," one Gadhafi supporter told us. "I can just go to the hospital anytime and get care and we never have to pay a penny."
The young rebels, however, say to them it is not about money, or political power. They say they want freedom to speak their mind and take their country's destiny into their own hands.
"Gadhafi and his sons have only brought the Libyan people destruction and depression. They have squandered our natural resources and stolen money and killed their people in the past 42 years," the rebel leader told us, reading from a statement when we visited the group in their secret hideout.
They told us they are too weak to start an all out uprising for the time being.
They say they try to distribute pamphlets, spray anti-Gadhafi slogans on walls in town, organize smaller demonstrations and sometimes attack Gadhafi checkpoints.
After government forces opened fire on previous demonstrations the rebels say it is too dangerous to try anything more.
The opposition in Tripoli remains oppressed, but it is alive.
Another sign that people are not so fanatical about the "Brother Leader," comes every time we go out in downtown Tripoli without government minders present.
The mobs of would-be demonstrators vanish and people take very little notice of us, they are friendly and have never harassed us or even criticized NATO or the West.
Deadliest weapons RAPE.
Rebels Holding Zantan
R
بريطانيا تزود مقاتلاتها بقنابل "اختراق التحصينات" لعملياتها في لي
ا
آخر تحديث: الأحد، 29 مايو/ أيار، 2011، 22:02 GMT
The guys running Tribute FM are amateurs who dug into their own pockets to fund Libya's first English-language online broadcaster targeting a worldwide audience.
So far it has received a few e-mails and Skype calls from listeners from as far away as Denmark, the United States and Italy.
"It is a people's movement right, but started by youth and powered by youth, OK," one of the DJs says into his mike as the show begins.
He wants to be heard, not seen or identified by name because, he says, it will put his family at risk. They still live in areas controlled by forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
He, meanwhile, is in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and using his microphone as a weapon against the regime.
"This is our gift to all martyrs, to the people who actually died and suffered throughout this revolution," explains his colleague Aiman, who also asks that only his first name be used.
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They are both Libyans who recently returned to the North African country from Britain. They have teamed with two of their countrymen in Benghazi and they're all looking to play a part in the history of their country -- a country they hope is in the midst of major change.
"We had 42 years of suffering," Aiman says. "We want to show the people that this regime hurt Libya very much. Hopefully it will be over very soon. We just want to prove to the world that Gadhafi is no longer wanted in this land."
The station format swings wildly from news and information to all kinds of music, from hardcore revolutionary rap to ballads. The show begins with the sounds of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" and its chorus: "Redemption song/These songs of Freedom, songs of freedom."
Then the team starts a talk segment, joking about how their co-founder had been sleeping while their website was hacked and knocked offline. They have no proof but they suspect it was an effort by the government because they have already been talked about on government-run TV.
"They actually did mention us four or five times on the state [TV]," says Aiman. "They said we've been brought up by foreign countries to spread Christianity."
The station founders dismiss this as a ridiculous allegation: yes, they are trying to spread a message, but it is not about religion, it's about revolution, they say. Even the language choice is a slap at Gadhafi's regime: from 1986 to 1997 the government banned the teaching of English in Libya.
The team is on air from 8 p.m. to about 4 a.m. local time. They want to be able to broadcast for as long as possible, so they are recruiting and auditioning volunteers. Applicants have to be able to speak English if they want to be an announcer: many can because they have lived abroad.
"My dad, a couple of years ago, he wrote an article criticizing Gadhafi's regime," recalls Hamida Baja. "You know, here you are not allowed to do that so we were targeted. Moammar [Gadhafi] saw the article and he wasn't too happy about it."
She and her family fled in fear. Her brothers still live abroad. "I also fear that he might kill my dad or he might come threaten me and my mom."
Baja is willing to help out at the station in any way that she can. She says it is also a venue that can give women a voice. "It's a new beginning. We can say how we feel and what we feel whenever we like. We shouldn't be afraid because we have certain opinions."
But Tribute FM is not immune to criticism from its listeners. It found itself facing a clash of cultures when it played rap music from the west, complete with curse words. "We apologized to our listeners," Aiman says. "We try to keep with the culture and our tradition. We try to keep everything here very clean, very moderate."
But what they won't apologize for is slamming the Gadhafi regime at will. "I believe we are in the frontline but with a voice, not with a gun," Aiman says.
They are both Libyans who recently returned to the North African country from Britain. They have teamed with two of their countrymen in Benghazi and they're all looking to play a part in the history of their country -- a country they hope is in the midst of major change.
"We had 42 years of suffering," Aiman says. "We want to show the people that this regime hurt Libya very much. Hopefully it will be over very soon. We just want to prove to the world that Gadhafi is no longer wanted in this land."
The station format swings wildly from news and information to all kinds of music, from hardcore revolutionary rap to ballads. The show begins with the sounds of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" and its chorus: "Redemption song/These songs of Freedom, songs of freedom."
Then the team starts a talk segment, joking about how their co-founder had been sleeping while their website was hacked and knocked offline. They have no proof but they suspect it was an effort by the government because they have already been talked about on government-run TV.
"They actually did mention us four or five times on the state [TV]," says Aiman. "They said we've been brought up by foreign countries to spread Christianity."
The station founders dismiss this as a ridiculous allegation: yes, they are trying to spread a message, but it is not about religion, it's about revolution, they say. Even the language choice is a slap at Gadhafi's regime: from 1986 to 1997 the government banned the teaching of English in Libya.
The team is on air from 8 p.m. to about 4 a.m. local time. They want to be able to broadcast for as long as possible, so they are recruiting and auditioning volunteers. Applicants have to be able to speak English if they want to be an announcer: many can because they have lived abroad.
"My dad, a couple of years ago, he wrote an article criticizing Gadhafi's regime," recalls Hamida Baja. "You know, here you are not allowed to do that so we were targeted. Moammar [Gadhafi] saw the article and he wasn't too happy about it."
She and her family fled in fear. Her brothers still live abroad. "I also fear that he might kill my dad or he might come threaten me and my mom."
Baja is willing to help out at the station in any way that she can. She says it is also a venue that can give women a voice. "It's a new beginning. We can say how we feel and what we feel whenever we like. We shouldn't be afraid because we have certain opinions."
But Tribute FM is not immune to criticism from its listeners. It found itself facing a clash of cultures when it played rap music from the west, complete with curse words. "We apologized to our listeners," Aiman says. "We try to keep with the culture and our tradition. We try to keep everything here very clean, very moderate."
But what they won't apologize for is slamming the Gadhafi regime at will. "I believe we are in the frontline but with a voice, not with a gun," Aiman says.
Tripoli (CNN) -- A woman believed to be Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's wife lashed out at NATO during an exclusive interview Friday with CNN, even as she expressed despair for her family's and her nation's plight -- saying, "Life has no value now."
Safia Farkash Gadhafi, who married Moammar Gadhafi in 1970 a year after he rose to power in the North African nation, is not thought to have ever previously spoken on the record with members of the Libyan or international media.
CNN cannot 100% confirm that the woman who spoke Friday is Moammar Gadhafi's wife, as Libyan authorities barred CNN from using its phone for fear the call might be tracked. But the interview was arranged by someone CNN knows to be Safia Gadhafi's office manager and by officials in Libya's foreign ministry.
In the interview, the woman ripped NATO for the death of one of her children, Saif al-Arab Gadhafi, who Libyan officials reported was killed by an airstrike late last month. The alliance has launched regular attacks in Libya in recent months, in pursuit of its stated mission to halt the killing of innocent civilians by Gadhafi's forces.
Gadhafi's purported wife said four explosive projectiles were fired into one house after the evening Muslim prayer, a timing that she criticized and said was common. She disputed an earlier account, offered by Libyan government spokesman Musa Ibrahim, that both she and her husband were in the building at the time of the strike.
"I was not there, but I wished that I was, so that I may die with (Saif al-Arab)," the woman said.
Several of Moammar Gadhafi's eight surviving children -- six born to Safia, one born to her husband's first wife, plus one adopted child -- are believed to have taken roles in their father's government, including military commander Khamis Gadhafi and high-profile official Saif al-Islam Gadhafi. Yet the woman thought to be Safia Gadhafi said they should be off-limits from NATO strikes, which she claimed were killing innocents around Libya.
"My children are civilians, and they have been targeted. What do they have to do with this?" the woman told CNN.
Less than two weeks ago, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court sought the arrest of Moammar Gadhafi and two relatives -- one of them Saif al-Islam, Safia's eldest son -- linking them to "widespread and systematic" attacks on civilians. But the woman claiming to be Safia Gadhafi said international legal authorities are going after the wrong people.
"I want them to prosecute NATO. They killed my son and the Libyan people," she said.
"They are defaming our reputation.They are committing war crimes, and accusing us of embezzling billions from the Libyan people. My conscience wouldn't allow such things."
The Libyan leader's purported wife expressed exasperation about the situation, with scores of countries allied against her husband's regime. She vowed that "we will live or die alongside the Libyan people," predicting her husband, his government and his forces will be vindicated.
"What would I want with life now? All I want out of life now is that the truth be heard," the woman said. "In the end, history will judge us."
Editor's note: CNN's Frederik Pleitgen has just returned to Germany from Tripoli where he often had to work with Libyan government minders watching -- but he was also able to evade their watchful eyes and exclusively meet in secret with anti-Gadhafi rebels.
Berlin, Germany (CNN) -- The Libyan regime is confining international journalists to a five star hotel in Tripoli called the Rixos.
When reporters want to leave they need to take a government minder and a government translator.
"This is important so that you do not get hurt," one official told CNN when we requested to drive around town on our own. He insisted angry Gadhafi supporters might harm journalists because of the rage caused by NATO's bombing campaign over Libya.
This policy tries to create a sentiment of fear among the reporters and instill in them the notion that Tripoli is a Gadhafi stronghold where any journalist who tries to move on his own and ask questions will be turned in and arrested, and possibly held for weeks like several western reporters who remain in custody in Libya.
The government minders like to take western reporters to raucous pro-Gadhafi demonstrations in Tripoli where loud protesters scream: "Down, down Sarkozy."
They vow to fight to the death for Moammar Gadhafi. The mood is threatening and the people taking part are pumped up and seem emotional.
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But we regularly managed to sneak out of the Rixos in recent weeks and discovered that the notion of Tripoli as a bastion of Gadhafi support is little more then a charade.
In one neighborhood we managed to contact the rebels. They brought us to a secret location where the refrain is: "We are the youth of 17th of February in Tripoli. We declare our total support to the free Libyan people. We also declare our full and total support to the Transitional National Council (the de facto rebel government) and believe only it and no one else is the legitimate representative of the Libyan people."
Those simple words can easily land young people in jail if they are caught shouting them in public and certainly if they are talking to international journalists.
So the young men wore masks. They were kind and well-educated and strongly denied the notion of a fanatical anti-Western public in Tripoli.
"Do not fear the Libyan people," a young rebel leader told us. "We want to be friends with the world. Gadhafi is just trying to scare you to think people will fight for him."
Some of the young men are even members of the Libyan security forces, and some say they were arrested in the early days of the uprising in Libya in late-February and tortured by pro-Gadhafi forces. "I did not know where the beating was coming from," one young man said. "I was deprived of sleep and even food and water."
The rebels say they believe that about 75 percent of Tripoli residents are against Gadhafi.
They also say that most are afraid to take to the streets and speak their minds because Gadhafi has put armed gangs into the neighborhoods and established checkpoints to suppress dissent.
It is impossible to verify these claims and, naturally, Libyan government officials strongly deny the assertions.
The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. There is no doubt that Gadhafi has supporters in Tripoli and around Western Libya.
People we have spoken to without government minders around say they have benefited economically from Gadhafi's rule, especially since 2004, when a lot of the international sanctions against Libya were lifted as Gadhafi attempted to align himself with the West.
There are many construction sites in Tripoli and Gadhafi's supporters speak highly of subsidized housing programs and other benefits.
"I think we also have one of the best health care systems in the world," one Gadhafi supporter told us. "I can just go to the hospital anytime and get care and we never have to pay a penny."
The young rebels, however, say to them it is not about money, or political power. They say they want freedom to speak their mind and take their country's destiny into their own hands.
"Gadhafi and his sons have only brought the Libyan people destruction and depression. They have squandered our natural resources and stolen money and killed their people in the past 42 years," the rebel leader told us, reading from a statement when we visited the group in their secret hideout.
They told us they are too weak to start an all out uprising for the time being.
They say they try to distribute pamphlets, spray anti-Gadhafi slogans on walls in town, organize smaller demonstrations and sometimes attack Gadhafi checkpoints.
After government forces opened fire on previous demonstrations the rebels say it is too dangerous to try anything more.
The opposition in Tripoli remains oppressed, but it is alive.
Another sign that people are not so fanatical about the "Brother Leader," comes every time we go out in downtown Tripoli without government minders present.
The mobs of would-be demonstrators vanish and people take very little notice of us, they are friendly and have never harassed us or even criticized NATO or the West.
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