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Haftar's general command to punish anti-Tripoli-attack activists
[Libya Observer] Khalifa Haftar ...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all...'s Dignity Operation command has issued a statement threatening to punish all journalists, media figures, activists and political analysts who oppose its offensive against Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... , describing them as "inciting hate and crime against the army forces and supporting terrorism." The statement on Sunday said the command is following closely those who appear on the media of the Moslem Brüderbund Group or those who go on social media for their incitement of crimes and terrorism against the army forces who are fighting "the remnants of gunnies in Tripoli." It says those people will be punished by law after the criminal gangs and gunnies are defeated. "Our forces are legitimate and are appointed by the Libyan House of Representatives to eliminate terrorism and anyone who provokes violence against those forces is liable to punishment by the Libyan law." It further added. Haftar and his forces describe all their opponents as gunnies and say they are against the building of the army and security institutions. Many activists and journalists who oppose Haftar's military operations in Tripoli were targeted by random arrest campaigns in areas under his forces' control, including federalist Osama al-Arebi and head of oil workers' syndicate Saad al-Fakhiri. Posted by: Fred 2019-05-07 |
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