| ...(D-NJ) and for a few years assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights, and labour under the Obama administration. He was born in Poland, but eventually made his way to the U.S... |
...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...for war crimes he and his subordinates committed in Libya since Haftar is a US citizen.
The remarks came in a hearing at the committee with witnesses analyzing the Libyan situation, including Benjamin Fishman, Megan Doherty, Frederic Wehrey, and Thomas Hill.
Just as soon as we get to the bottom of the US Benghazi deaths, bitches
The Chairman of the hearing, Theodore Deutch, reiterated that Khalifa Haftar's attack on 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...
is undermining the political process in the country, urging the US administration to adopt a clearer policy toward Libya and call for an unconditional ceasefire.
Deutch added that US President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
called Haftar, but he did not ask him to cease fire and that was considered by many states in the region as a support for his war in Tripoli, thus creating the current crisis in the country which would affect many neighboring and regional states.
The witnesses and the members of the committee all were in agreement with the fact that Haftar's claims of fighting terrorism were false, calling him out for his war on Misrata forces, which the committee and witnesses clarified as the ones who coordinated with the US in defeating ISIS in Libya in 2016.
They also called for a US pressure on its allies, especially the ones supporting Haftar's war on Tripoli; La Belle France, UAE, Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
and Egypt, into pushing for a political solution under the UN auspices, urging for a ceasefire as a first step to avoid more humanitarian crises.
Witnesses reiterated that Haftar took three years to calm control in Benghazi, so his Tripoli takeover won't be easy or short in time, adding that he might have lied to his supporters about his true capabilities in this fighting.
Witnesses also told the committee that Haftar has proven to be the one fueling the conflict in Libya and his supporters in eastern Libya are with him out of despair. He has no army, but only some former soldiers and tribal militias paid to fight.