Colonel Muammar Qadaffy... dictator of Libya since 1969. From 1972, when he relinquished the title of prime minister, he has been accorded the honorifics
Guide of the First of September Great Revolution of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriyaor
Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution. With the death of Omar Bongo of Gabon on 8 June 2009, he became the longest serving of all current non-royal national leaders. He is also the longest-serving ruler of Libya since Tripoli became an Ottoman province in 1551. When Chairman Mao was all the rage and millions of people were flashing his Little Red Book, Qadaffy came out with his own Little Green Book, which didn't do as well. Qadaffy's instability has been an inspiration to the Arab world and to Africa, which he would like to rule...
, will not flee the country if the situation escalates, and that he intends to die on Libyan soil. Sources affiliated with the Qadaffy family spoke to Asharq al-Awsat via telephone, saying that the city of al-Bayda [east Libya] is witnessing riots and widespread violence, led by armed militias. [These groups] began their activities by storming a prison, releasing the inmates, and ended by surrounding an army battalion belonging to the younger son of the Libyan leader.
The sources said: "the militias are in control of al-Bayda and they are killing anyone who stands in their way, even if they are opponents of the regime". They added that the militia groups had stormed a prison, released the inmates, and then conducted acts of violence against the people, as well as looting. The sources noted that such activities began after two militia members were killed trying to storm the internal security building, and set it on fire.
The sources highlighted that the military had lost control of the situation in the city, and had been forced to pull out. However,
The infamous
However...
they went on to say: "The battalion belonging to Khamis [the younger son of Qadaffy], named "Legion 36", is still trapped inside the city. They are at the mercy of the militia, whose members are killing them and mutilating their bodies". The sources pointed out that the majority of soldiers in "Legion 36" are of "Tabu" origin, a dark-skinned tribe living in the Kufra governorate. When they entered al-Bayda the residents thought they were African mercenaries, recruited by the government to fight against them. Thus they [the militia] killed them and mutilated their bodies. The sources said: "Since day one, demonstrations in al-Bayda have not been peaceful, like they have been in other cities. From the first day the demonstrators burned cop shoppes, national and internal security buildings, and centers affiliated to the Army. Even clinics and hospitals have not been spared from their attacks". They added: "To those who want to 'overthrow the regime', as they say, why ruin the country? These people have no culture of protesting, unlike what was evident in Tunisia and Egypt".
The sources went on to say: "Colonel Qadaffy still refuses to send Special Forces from the army to the city of al-Bayda, in order to end the prevailing violence there. Doing so would leave behind many victims, and this is the last thing Qadaffy wants". They added that Qadaffy himself was not leading the demonstrations against the government, as some media outlets have portrayed, "but some of his supporters went to meet him at his headquarters and he came to greet them... that is all there is to it".
The sources quoted Qadaffy's reiteration that neither he nor his family will flee from the country: "We all intend to die on Libyan soil". Asharq al-Awsat learned that all members of the Qadaffy family living outside the country, either due to study or work commitments, have been recalled home. Most of them were living in European countries, and they have been returning to Libya since last Thursday.
Opposition eye witnesses living in al-Bayda spoke to Asharq al-Awsat by telephone: "the situation in the city has become very difficult, snuffies are deployed everywhere. Those who object to the destructive acts being carried out are putting their lives, or their families lives, at risk...bodies are scattered in the streets. Three days ago, three soldiers from the army were hanged, and their bodies still remain on the streets".
Meanwhile,
...back at the ranch...
Libyan forces fired machine-guns at mourners marching in a funeral for anti-government protesters in the eastern city of Benghazi Sunday, a day after commandos and foreign mercenaries loyal to Qadaffy pummeled demonstrators with assault rifles and other heavy weaponry.