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Salah ElDarragi, owner of Telesis Geophysical Services in Lafayette. (Photo: LEE CELANO/THE ADVERTISER) (Photo: (Photo: LEE CELANO/THE ADVERTISER))

LAFAYETTE, La. -- "You're looking at a guy who embodies the American dream. I had $1,000 and a suitcase and a whole bunch of dreams.

"That's all I had."

Salah ElDarragi, 60, stresses this point again and again.

The Lafayette businessman supports President Donald Trump's executive order to ban immigration from seven countries including Libya, the one he immigrated from in 1975.

"I really, truly believe I have a very unique perspective on this whole immigration issue," ElDarragi says. "I kind of have mixed emotions about it."

ElDarragi managed to escape his hometown of Benghazi, Libya, just before things got bad.

Friends he left behind were arrested, tortured and hung publicly for speaking out against the government.

It could have been him.

He, too, had participated in anti-government demonstrations before leaving Libya for Louisiana.

ElDarragi sympathizes with refugees and immigrants who see opportunity in America the way he did so many years ago.

He also believes anybody joining a new society should do so legally, assimilate quickly and work hard. If that means waiting until the ban is lifted, so be it.

"You're speaking to the absolute example of the American dream," ElDarragi says. "If my story can help someone else, why shouldn't I share it?"

SalahElDarragiis pictured as a child in Benghazi, Libya, in this photo from 1960. (Photo: Submitted)

ElDarragi is the first-born of three children.

His father worked for the state department in Libya, and his mother cared for him and his younger brother in their Benghazi home. She was pregnant with his youngest brother the day the dreaded news came.

His father died in an airplane crash on his way to a training mission in the United States.

"I was suddenly pushed into the forefront," ElDarragi recalls. "'Salah, you're now the man of the house at the age of four.' And I don't remember really having much of a childhood because I was just all of a sudden consumed by this intense desire to protect my brothers and my mother."

That was in 1960.

Although his uncles and grandfather helped the family stay afloat, ElDarragi struggled with the loss of his father.

He did everything he could to ensure his younger brothers didn't feel the void as much.

"I was a pretty good soccer player," ElDarragi says. "And I would score a really good goal, and I wouldn't even bother looking to the sidelines like the other kids because I knew there wouldn't be anybody there watching me.

"That void caused me to start skipping school. And I would walk the equivalent of 4 miles to my two brothers' school, and I would stand on the side for them."

ElDarragi was just 11 at the time.

On the sidelines, the other men because only fathers, uncles and grandfathers watched soccer in this male-dominated culture eyed him with suspicion.

His grandfather eventually learned that he was skipping school. Even when his grandfather accused him of "going with the bad kids" to smoke cigarettes, ElDarragi didn't tell his grandfather why he'd been skipping school.

"He was trying to do so much for us, and I didn't want him to get the feeling he was missing something," ElDarragi says.

"I knew in my heart I wasn't going to quit doing it because I saw how much it meant to my brothers that I was there on the sidelines for them."

One day on the sidelines, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was his youngest uncle, who told his grandfather why ElDarragi had been skipping school.

That was the only time he saw his grandfather cry.

"You don't see grown men cry in that culture," ElDarragi says. "It's frowned upon. It means you're not man enough. I appreciated it because it showed me that he was a human being after all."

SalahElDarragi, left, is pictured with his mom,MariamElDarragi, in 2006. (Photo: Submitted)

ElDarragi applied for a student visa to live in the United States in 1974.

The process included writing to and obtaining documentation from American colleges and universities, getting a background check, filling out paperwork and paying fees at the embassy in Libya's capital, Tripoli.

About six months later, ElDarragi was on his way to Baton Rouge to attend LSU.

"I was completely unaware of the differences between states in America," ElDarragi says with a laugh. "If you had asked me at that time 'What's the difference between Florida and North Dakota?' I wouldn't have been able to tell you."

LSU accepted him, and that was good enough.

But ElDarragi soon felt overwhelmed by the large campus and his new city. He spoke with his counselor, who recommended that he look into the University of Southwestern Louisiana, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

ElDarragi visited, fell in love with the college and community and made the move to Lafayette in 1975 after just one semester at LSU.

He remembers joking with his mother about why he loved Cajun Country so much.

"Son, how do you like it there?" she would ask him.

"Mom, it's perfect," he would reply.

"It's perfect? The weather's great or what? What is it?" she'd ask.

"No, it's not that. I can't speak good English, and they can't either," he'd quip, referring to the prevalence of Cajun French in Acadiana at the time.

ElDarragi spoke decent English when he arrived in Louisiana.

Even though he'd studied the language in school as a teenager, it was his high school girlfriend who helped him master it.

She spoke Greek, and he spoke Arabic. English was their common language.

In fact, ElDarragi said he didn't learn anything new in college until his junior year because his high school curriculum in Benghazi was so rigorous.

What ElDarragi did learn in his first two years was more about Cajun culture. He vividly remembers his first encounter with mudbugs at UL's Lagniappe Day.

"I remember grabbing the plate and sitting down and looking at it full of crawfish, and that was the very first time I ever laid eyes on crawfish and I said, 'You've got to be kidding me.' I just handed it over to the next guy and said, 'No, I don't think so.'"

Now, 42 years later, ElDarragi can easily eat 5 pounds of "very spiced up" crawfish.

SalahElDarragi, right, is pictured with his wife, LaurieElDarragi, and child,ShabreElDarragi, in 1980. (Photo: Submitted)

ElDarragi never intended to become an American citizen. He planned to return to Libya.

But he likes to say that fate intervened when he met his wife, Laurie, a New Orleans native who was living in Lafayette.

The two were married in 1979, and ElDarragi became a nationalized citizen a year later.

"The reality is that none of this was planned," he says. "I came here to go to school with the understanding that I was going back home after. But looking back, it really is amazing how fate got me to this point.

"It has occurred to me that if I returned to Libya, I'd be dangling from the end of a rope because I was classified as 'one of them.'"

ElDarragi is referring to those who opposed the terrorism happening under Libya's former leader, Muammar Qaddafi.

His priorities evolved over the years as he completed a geology degree at UL, had children and started a marine survey company, Telesis Geophysical Service.

"I came here with the understanding that I would some day go back home and rebuild that place," he says.

"At the tender age of 60, that window is closing rapidly, but it is my dream that some day Libya can join the rank of free democratic nations and allow me the opportunity to travel there safely, to bring my family there."

ElDarragi has only visited his hometown four times since he immigrated to America. His wife and five grown children have never seen the place where he grew up.

Now, it's too late.

His childhood home and neighborhood were recently leveled in the civil war, but it's not something ElDarragi dwells on.

He's an American and honorary Cajun who now speaks English more fluently than Arabic.

"I passionately love this country. I passionately love this city and this culture," ElDarragi says. "And that's because I achieved full assimilation to this society.

"I didn't keep myself surrounded by four walls and practice things that are foreign to this place. I wore what they wear. I ate what they eat. I didn't ask for a button on the telephone that says, 'If you speak Arabic, push number three.'"

A scripture which appeared onSalahElDarragi'sscreen one night. (Photo: LEECELANO/THE ADVERTISER) (Photo: (Photo: LEE CELANO/THE ADVERTISER))

ElDarragi, who is a practicing Christian today, would not have been allowed to immigrate to America if the current restrictions applied when he immigrated.

He was a Muslim at the age of 18 when he left Libya, even though he wasn't actively practicing Islam.

This is the part of Trump's executive order that ElDarragi takes issue with.

"The federal law is clear that the president has the authority to limit or restrict immigration from anybody in any country that he deems to be a threat to the United States," ElDarragi says.

"Having said that, I think that to select a particular group of people or in this case, a particular religion is contrary to our values as Americans."

Still, ElDarragi supports most of Trump's initiatives, including his plan to build a wall at the Mexican-American border.

"How can a sovereign country not secure its borders?" he asks.

When ElDarragi speaks about his own immigration, he stresses how lucky he is to have landed in Cajun Country.

The humid climate took time to adjust to, but so many things about Acadiana remind him of the good parts of the home he left behind.

"I came to a place where unlike many parts of the country family values are truly important and food and company and companionship are still strong. These are the values that I grew up with," ElDarragi says.

"Had I ended up in Seattle, Washington, God knows what would have happened."

( 2017 WWL)

Go here to see the original:
Libya to Louisiana: An immigrant's story - WWLTV.com

Five people remained missing on Sunday after scores of migrants in an inflatable boat were rescued in turbulent waters off the coast of Libya overnight.

About 122 of the migrants were saved after being spotted by the Golfo Azzuro, run by the Spanish Proactiva Open Arms group.

We saw the lights, the rescue boat, but we were very far, Farses, a migrant from Ghana, told AFP aboard the Golfo Azzuro.

He had earlier been playing draughts, also called checkers, with another Ghanaian; both had won a game, so they agreed to play the tiebreaker once they were in Italy.

But the friend fell asleep, and was among seven who fell into the sea when a strong wind buffeted the boat. Only two people were recovered.

He was swimming very fast. But we couldnt wait for him, because the wind was very strong, Farses said.

The one who was driving the boat wouldnt stop, (saying) We have to move on, move on.

The Spanish boat brought the migrants to the Italian island of Lampedusa, the latest in a wave of some 1,200 migrants that have been rescued on the Mediterranean and brought to Italy in recent days.

On Friday, the Italian coastguard said the number of migrants saved in rescue operations this year had surpassed 15,000.

Aid groups say the exodus is being driven by worsening living conditions for migrants in Libya and by fears the sea route to Europe could soon be closed to traffickers.

The United Nations refugee agency estimates that 440 people have lost their lives trying to make the crossing from Libya to Italy since the start of 2017.

See original here:
Five missing after 122 migrants rescued off Libya - Vanguard

Seeking Alpha A new set of geopolitical conflicts buoyed oil prices higher today after yesterdays sell-off pushed WTI below its 50-day moving average. Conflicts in Iraq and Libya were the main reason for the rise in oil (NYSEARCA:USO) prices today, while consensus continue to overwhelmingly focus their attention on US shale production and rig counts.

Oil markets are prone to geopolitical risk factors that are hard to forecast. Namely, Iraq is having issues again with Kurdish factions.

Since the OPEC production cut deal started, secondary sources peg Iraq as the least compliant member out of OPEC. Our estimate and secondary sources put Iraqs production cut at only 80k to 100k b/d, which is far less than what it promised to cut.

Iraq is unlikely to cut the full amount promised from the OPEC agreement due to the nature of its production. Conflicts erupted with Kurdistan as Iraqs current oil revenue sharing deal is coming under scrutiny with the locals. Reuters reported that forces loyal to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) seized the Kirkuk facilities and briefly suspended oil flows. PUK is seeking to cancel the oil sharing deal with Iraq within a week or else it threatens further action.

The implication of this conflict can impact up to 150k b/d which is exported through Turkey.

Libya on the other hand is seeing geopolitical issues flare up again with the Eastern ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf under attack today by Benghazi Defence Brigades (BDB), an armed faction group comprised of fighters that were ousted from the Libyan National Army (LNA).

So far, there have been no official statements from the Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) stating the impact the attacks had on oil flows.

The continued conflict in Libya however highlights the sensitive geopolitical situation its in with a split government ruling body and constant conflicts from armed militant groups. Libyas oil production has recently topped out around 680k b/d and falling according to the latest February estimates. Without additional capital investments, Libyas existing producing fields will likely start seeing accelerating production decline rates as a lack of field maintenance from the last five years start to deplete existing fields. We see Libyas oil production heading lower for the rest of 2017.

Geopolitical conflicts from Iraq and Libya will continue, and the likely impact will be supportive of oil prices. Our fundamental analysis of the oil markets also point to the supply and demand balance becoming more bullish over the next several months. We expect to see much higher oil prices in the next six months.

Read the original here:
Oil prices increase as conflicts in Libya, Iraq intensify - Libyan Express

Dabiri-Erewa disclosed this when she received the Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons Commission, Alhaja Sadiya Farouk in Abuja on Friday.This set will be the third batch of Nigerians to return from Libya to the country in one month.

One hundred and sixty one Nigerians returned from Libya on Feb.14 and another set of 171 returned on Feb. 16.

The presidential aide said the Federal Government was expecting more migrants back in the country and attributed the development to the current happenings around the world.

She said her office would therefore be working with the commission to sensitise Nigerians on the need to avoid irregular migration.

Your visit is timely because we expect more migrants back home.

In fact, 180 Nigerians are expected back from Libya on Tuesday.

With what is going on around the world, it is going to be worse. We will work with your commission to continue to sensitise Nigerians on the need for them to know that some places are not just worth it, she said.

In her remarks, Farouk commended Dabiri-Erewa for her efforts toward ensuring that Nigerians in diaspora were treated with dignity.

She condemned the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa and pledged her commissions commitment to a sustained advocacy to end such unwarranted attacks.

The federal commissioner promised to work with Dabiri-Erewa to educate Nigerians on the dangers of irregular migration.

She said: These programmes will better inform Nigerians on their options, so they can make informed decision and develop realistic expectations when traveling outside the country.

It is important to note that the issue of sensitisation is an offshoot of the National Migration Dialogue.

The dialogue highlighted the need to establish a migration desk in all states and local governments which will provide sensitisation from the grassroots level in order to curb the root causes of irregular migration.

According to her, the commission has also developed return, re-admission and reintegration programme which provides referrals to settlement services for returnees.

Farouk said the commission had also developed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), for the conduct of returnees, readmission and reintegration of Nigerians as part of efforts to further cater for returnees.

What is obtainable is an adhoc approach which is not sustainable.

The SOP when operationalised, will ensure that the returning Nigerian migrants are adequately reintegrated into the society.

The SOP has been validated by the relevant stakeholders but yet to be institutionalised. We therefore seek your partnership to ensure the operationalisation, she said

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Another 180 Nigerians expected home from Libya tomorrow - BusinessDay (satire) (press release) (registration) (blog)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (R) meets with Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj in Moscow, March 2, 2017(photo byREUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin)

Author:Vasily Kuznetsov Posted March 5, 2017

The head of Libyas United Nations-backed government, Fayez al-Sarraj, undertook an official visit to Moscow to meet with top Russian diplomats and officials March 2-3. Russia has been stepping up efforts in Libya, which seems baffling outside the wide regional context. There is a popular opinion that Russian foreign policy, including planning in the Middle East, may sometimes be tactically impeccable but lacks strategic thinking. Some believe that unpredictability has been a hallmark of the Kremlin's foreign policy.

Russias revived interest in the Middle East goes back to Vladimir Putins second presidential term (2004-2008), and for a long while the authorities have focused on economic development and the need for most diversified economic ties. Their attitude has been typified by blunt pragmatism.

The well-known discordin 2011 between Dmitry Medvedev, who was then president, and Putin, who was then prime minister,over UN Security CouncilResolution 1973 on Libya may also be illustrative of Russia's pragmatic stance. Russia then abstained from the vote in the Security Council, thus avoiding the image of being the dictator's benefactor and of being engaged in the conflict. At the same time, Putin called the Western policy "a new crusade" while referring to US damage inflicted on Iraq, which was consistent with the assessments that pervaded Russian society.

Neither the Kremlin reshuffle nor the Arab Spring drove Russia to refrain from its reserved pragmatism. Even the 2012-13 rule in Egypt of Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization declared extremist in Russia, did not stand in the way of stronger bilateral ties, even at the top level.

Following the notorious events in Ukraine, which led to a further escalation of tensions with the West, politics and security began to prevail over the economy for Moscow. Still, it failed to devise any clear foreign policy strategy except its own pivot to the East.Even the start of the military operation in Syria in September 2015 did not clarify whether Moscow aspires to replace the United States as a new Middle East hegemon or just uses the region in its contest with Washington. It was a head-scratcher.

The missing strategy seems to be a conscious choice of the ruling political elite rather than a sign of its confusion. Postmodernity is characterized by the absence of a reliable strategy. The United States and Europe's numerous failures in the Middle East testify to the fact, while the ill-fated, futileand disastrous Libyan venture in 2011 is its graphic illustration.

Therefore, the abolition of strategic objectives requires a new analysis of the values and principles of world politics and Russia's place in the world.

Since the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, the Russian political establishment has strongly distrusted the West, as the latter has been manipulating human values to its advantage. The mistrust along with the elite's idiosyncrasy to any ideology thatwas bred in the late Soviet era has conjured up an image of a profoundly cynical capitalist world.

However, the ensuing confrontation with the West, whose leaders turned their back on Russia, and the need to identify Russia as an alternative project rather than part of the West have led to deliberations over world politics premisedon Russian historical experience. Theapproach of these deliberations seems to be based on seven principles: Security prevails over development;only stability can provide both security and development as revolutions are always destructive;stability is based on strong state institutions;institutions cannot be imposed from outside, socio-political engineering is inefficient;only a strong sovereign state can deliver security and development;unilateral steps on the world stage are destructive; andinternational law is the only means of creating a sustainable world order.

Looked at in this light, Russia is largely pursuing national security interests in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the events in 2015-17 showed that steps driven by the need to ensure security could produce new interests, with a new stable regional system of international relations being the major one.

This allows for an understanding of both the causes of Russias stepped-up efforts to deal with Libya and Moscows approaches to settling the countrys conflict.

Even though Russias existential interests are not at stake in Libya, one can emphasize four contexts providing rationales for its moves.

First, the list includes Moscows general line aimed at stabilizing the region. Not only does the policy contribute to Russias security, but it also throws into sharp relief its effective and attractive methods.

Second, add to the mixture Russian-Egyptian relations, which requirespecific measures totransform mutual affinity into a solid alliance, with Egypts regional position being strengthened. A weak Egypt, Moscow argues, will further destabilize the Middle East, as historical, geographical and demographic forces have predetermined the countrys key role. Assisting Egypt in handling Libya constitutes a means of bolstering Cairos regime.

Third, the agenda encompasses Russias Mediterranean policy and the countrys ties with European Unionmember states. According to aninformed source, Europe has but once given signals to the Kremlin that the refugee-affected countries are seeking Russias active involvement in Libyas affairs, which in the long run could improve relations between Moscow and Brussels.

At the same time, a friendly or loyal regime in Libya could emerge as part of the Russia-dominated axis of Damascus, Cairo and Tripoli.

Fourth, economic interests of Russian businesses striving to gain a foothold in new markets must also be considered.

All these factors may account for Moscows interest in Libya rather than its marked bias in favor of Gen.Khalifa Hifter. Given the particular episodes in the commanders biography, which should instill mistrust among Russias policymakers, their sympathetic attitude towardHifter is especially awkward.

Yury Barmin, an analyst ofRussias foreign policy in the Middle East,suggests the Kremlin perceives Hifter as a new Col. Moammar Gadhafi. Although Barmin may have a point, the two leaders and the surrounding contexts are strikingly different. Gadhafi hasnever had to forcibly unite the country, with his political system originally resting upon the then most popular ideology in the Arab world. Gadhafi, along with his young supporters, articulated the interests of the most modernized groups of generally traditional society. (Now it is much more modernized.)This does not play into Hifters hands.

Nevertheless, the Libyan marshal may have been chosen as an ally by Cairo rather than Moscow. In this view, it is the dialogue with the former that represents the latters paramount interest. Hifters and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisis ideological affinity, which concentrates on confronting the Muslim Brotherhood, makes them even more attractive to Moscow.

Finally, the Kremlins willingness to act as appropriate, thus refusing to impose its own will, gives another explanation for its focus on Hifter. Indeed, the marshal has objectively proved to be Libyas most powerful figure. Amid the chaos, his personified power makes him more appealing, with individual groups being unreliable and weak. Fierce opposition to Hifter and prioritizing the Government of National Accord mean standing in the way of natural processes and fueling the ongoing war. It is the Wests ideologically driven policies and its reluctance to recognize the imperfect world thatcause Moscows considerable irritation.

However, this does not imply that Russia intends to ignore other Libyan actors. Amid the lack of developed institutions and overmilitarized society, the establishment of a resilient system entails a necessary broad consensus. Given the Syrian experience and Moscows general approaches, one can assume that as a mediator in Libya, the Kremlin will follow a regional track of the conflict resolution involving Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria as the key players.

Read More: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/03/russia-libya-sarraj-foreign-policy-putin-hifter.html

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What is Russia's thinking on Libya? - Al-Monitor