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| Africa North |
| I'm still Chief of Staff declares Obeidi |
| 2014-09-17 |
| [Libya Herald] The former Chief of Staff, Major-General Abdussalam Jadallah Obeidi, who was sacked by the House of Representatives last month, has declared that he is still in post. Speaking on Al-Nabaa TV yesterday, he said that he had not been formally notified of his dismissal. In any event, he added, he was going to appeal to the Supreme Court on the matter. Obeidi was removed after being questioned by the HoR amid allegations that he had supported 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... militiamen. He was replaced by Colonel (now Major-General) Abdul Razzaq Nazhuri, a senior commander in Khalifa Hafter's Operation Dignity. As a result of this it, theoretically, has no separate existence and is now part of the national army. At the time of Obeidi's dismissal, General Staff based in 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... refused to accept it, saying they still supported him. Although he himself was initially reported to have agreed to it, in his TV appearance yesterday he said that no decision concerning national security could be taken while the country did not have a constitution. He also came out firmly in support for Libya Dawn. He said that the Libya Shield ...a conglomerate of pro-Islamist militias deployed across Libya. It reports to the Libyan defense ministry and is organized like a real army unit. Its commander used to head a Benghazi brigade called Free Libya Martyrs... forces (part of Operation Libya Dawn) had participated in the 17 February Revolution and had to be supported. He also stated that any individual or body that took decisions which were against the revolution had no legitimacy -- a direct reference to the HoR. As for the places under Libya Dawn control, everything there was working well, he declared: the situation on the ground in the west, of the country where Libya Dawn operates was "excellent", he stated. Meanwhile yesterday, sources at the Central Bank of Libya in Tripoli said that Saddek Elkaber, sacked as its chairman on Sunday by the HoR, also planned to appeal to the Surpeme Court. The source claimed that Elkaber had a five-year contract and could not be sacked by anyone, including the HoR, unless there was proof of embezzlement or of undermining state security. Elkaber is reported to have taken the view that since he too has not been formally notified of his dismissal, he is not going to comment on it. |
| Posted by:Fred |