[Libya Herald] The leader of the Libyan Revolutionaries Operation Room (LROR), Shaaban Hadia Al-Zawi, better known as Abu Obeida, has been captured during fighting near 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...
and two of his commanders killed, Warshefana military sources have claimed.
A deputy commander of Warshefana's Khaled Al-Abeid Martyrs' Brigade told the Libya Herald that Zawi was currently receiving treatment in Zahra following his capture. The LROR leader is said to be in a critical condition, having lost one arm in the fighting and sustained a blow to the head.
There have been unconfirmed reports from the LROR denying the capture, with some claiming Zawi left Libya two months ago. Others have said that Zawi was taken prisoner and then summarily executed by the Warfeshana forces.
Two of Zawi's commanders, Muhamed Luwai Al-Bishti and Salah Wadi were also reportedly killed in the fighting over the past two days. The Warshefana source claimed Bishti had been killed while fighting, with Wadi, who had been from Warshefana but was also a leader within the LROR's Brigade 27, dying from grave injuries in hospital.
Zawi was implicated in the kidnapping of former Prime Minister Ali Zeidan
... served as a diplomat for Libya during the 1970s, serving in India under Ambassador Mohammed Magariaf. Both men defected in 1980 and went on to form the National Front for the Salvation of Libya. Zeidan spent nearly three decades in exile in Geneva after the defection. During the revolution Zeidan served as the National Transitional Council's Europe envoy, and is credited as having played a key role in persuading French President Nicolas Sarkozy to support the anti-Qadaffy forces...
in October. His own arrest over alleged links to Al-Qaeda by Egyptian officials in January led to the kidnapping of five Egyptian diplomatic staff who were then exchanged for Zawi. Officials later denied they had caved in to pressure from the LROR saying its commander was nabbed
You have the right to remain silent...
on false pretences and released in accordance with proper procedure.
Washefana where the LROR has been fighting alongside its Libya Dawn
...aka Fajr Libya, the Islamist operation launched to counter that of General Khalifa Haftar (Operation Dignity). It is made up of the Libya Shield militia (Misrata and Moslem Brotherhood), Libya Revolutionaries Operations Room (Moslem Brotherhood), and Tripoli Brigade (close to Abdul Hakim Belhaj, head of Al-Watan party). Financing and moral support come from Turkey and Qatar...
allies has had some of the worst violence in the west of the country visited on it recent weeks.
One man was killed and seven injured last night following rocket attacks which hit the town of Zawia just west of Tripoli. The missiles were reportedly fired from Libyan Dawn positions. Last week hundreds of missiles were reported to have rained down on both the Zawia and Washefana areas.
In response to the continuing violence the House of Representatives has allocated a budget for the region to tackle its humanitarian crisis. The Ministries of Health, Economics and Social Affairs in particular have been asksed to make provisions for displaced people from the area and to make ready whatever food and medical supplies available.
The National Council for Civil Liberties and Human Rights called on Saturday for a ceasefire in Warfeshana to allow for relief to reach the civilian population. It said civilians were being targeted without discrimination and that gangs within the area were committing various human rights
...which are usually entirely different from personal
liberty...
violations including torture, kidnap and the destruction of property and homes.