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Diasporian News of Friday, 20 January 2017

Source: dailyguideafrica.com

File photo: Some Ghanaians and other Africans are being tortured in Libya.

Ghanaians, especially those in Berekum, Dormaa Ahenkro, Nkoranza and other towns in the Brong Ahafo Region, whose relatives have travelled to Libya in search of greener pastures, are extremely worried about the safety of their relations in that country.

Gory pictures of dead in that country are currently circulating.

Sadique, a Ghanaian in Tripoli, last Friday said some Ghanaians and other people of African descent had been arrested, beheaded, adding that hundreds were chained and transported to unknown places.

He said some Libyans were searching for black people in ghettoes to be tortured and killed.

He, therefore, pleaded with Ghanaians, who intend to travel to Libya for greener pastures to rescind their decisions, saying they can use their monies to trade at home rather than risk their lives.

The heads were severed with cutlasses. Others were severely beaten. The situation is dire and I am speaking from my hideout. I ask Ghanaians back home who have not heard from their brothers, sisters in Libya to call them to see if they are still alive.

Since the news broke out about the development, some local radio stations, including Moonlight Fm in Sunyani have been playing the voices, thereby sending shivers down spines of relatives in the region.

Some callers to the radio station therefore pleaded with President Nana Addo to intervene in matter.

Read more:
Ghanaians die in Libya - GhanaWeb

Why, if they know they could die at sea, are they still coming? Thats the question being asked by many Europeans about the continuing flood of migrants trying to cross from Africa to Italy, Greece and other parts of Europe in crowded, often unseaworthy boats, many dying in the attempt. I wanted to show what is happening on the other side of the Mediterranean, in Libya.

Working in Libya is difficult and dangerous, even with a good knowledge of the country and good connections. We didnt know what to expect.

What we discovered were hundreds of people being held in camps, waiting, hoping for a better life. Some were so thin that bones were sticking out of their backs. One woman told us: What will happen next, we dont know. Migrants are keen to speak to the camera, desperately trying to call for help, to say: We are here and we are human beings, we exist. In some way they believe that if only the world outside could know, something would happen to change things. They cannot believe they are just left to their fate.

These desperate refugees who have fled from terror in their own country (Sudan, Eritrea and Somalia) are housed in huge hangars. They are forced to live there, often with little water or food, and at risk of being beaten. Living in a halfway zone between home and the freedom they seek, they have no knowledge of whether they will ever leave Libya.

As part of the research for the story I needed access to government-manned centres, and authorisation from the ministry of interior. This often requires clearances signed by the police or other bodies, and includes days spent in waiting rooms and multiple telephone calls to different offices.

Sometimes even that preparation was not enough, for instance on one occasion visiting the officially government-controlled Abu Slim centre, despite the visit being arranged by the ministry and an officer accompanying me, the militiamen, who werent consulted beforehand, blocked our visit. As we crossed the gate a number of young guys wearing flip flops and carrying pistols threatened the director and the officers.

Of course, as there is no press freedom in Libya, we just scrape the surface and try to get as deep as possible, bearing in mind that what we can see is never the whole reality.

During my work, all the militias I met were keen to show how good they were at controlling the migrants and, astonishingly, they were not worried at all about hiding every kind of abuse they were perpetrating. In some way they seemed to believe that in Europe nobody cares about that, as long as they can prevent migrants arriving on our shores. In some cases the only reason I was allowed to work in one camp was because the militia thought that visibility of the media could have been useful to put pressure on the government.

The most scary thing is that what we were seeing and documenting was just the good part: what is shown is considered acceptable or even something to be proud of. Despite this, the living conditions I saw were really harsh and abuses are part of normal life. What happens out of sight may be even more terrible.

European public opinion was shaken when on 18 April 2015 more than 800 men, women and children drowned in the Mediterranean. Following this, the European Union expressed a willingness to bomb boats and ports used to smuggle migrants across the sea. The Tripoli government, supported by Islamist coalition Libya Dawn, declared its intention to engage in the struggle against human trafficking, and started a campaign aiming to show it was serious about stemming the flow of migrants. The Libyan government is also receiving support from the EU to help control Mediterranean crossings.

Migrants have become a valuable commodity in the fight for power, as Libyan militias, who are widely believed to have a major role in the human trafficking business, stepped into migration policy to try and gain influence on the government.

Government officials told me they did not have enough resources to carry out any of the operations the government had announced so they had hired rough militias to secure the shores and stop illegal crossing to Europe.

The migrant stories are gruesome, they cannot speak freely and what we can hear from them is not the whole reality. The mi- grants I met with again when some of them managed to reach Europe told me about torture and killings as a day-to-day routine.

I thought it was important to cover this story to show what happens out of the sight of European people. While the public were demanding a bigger effort to save the lives of migrants in the Mediterranean sea, the actions undertaken by the Tripoli government to show itself as a reliable partner for the EU in the control of the migration flow were in effect worsening living conditions and in- creasing the danger for migrants in Libya.

Marco Salustro made the Vice News special Europe or Die, Libyas Migrant Trade and is the winner of the Rory Peck 2016 news feature award. To read more fromIndex on Censorship's latest issue, click here.

See more here:
Living in limbo: documenting life as a migrant in Libya - The Independent

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-10 Extender crews from five bases on three continents provided aerial refueling support during the B-2 bomber mission which struck two Daesh training camps in Libya Jan. 18, 2017.

Two B-2 Spirit bombers dropped 500-pound GPS-guided bombs on the camps, which were being used to plan and train for attacks against U.S. and allied interests in North Africa and Europe.

A total of 15 tankers participated in the operation, enabling the B-2s to fly the more than 30 hours round-trip to the target from their home base at Whiteman AFB, Missouri. Planners at 18th Air Force and the 618th Air Operations Center at Scott AFB coordinated the tanker mission, ensuring the refueling aircraft were at the right place at the right time to get the bombers to and from the Daesh training camps.

Our goal was to find the aircraft to do the mission, said Lt. Col. James Hadley, 18th Air Force operations planner. The mobility enterprise flexed to put tankers from the U.S., U.S. European and U.S. Central Commands toward this effort. Everybody had a part in making this work, and it was very successful.

The 305th Air Mobility Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, was one of the units that contributed tankers to the refueling mission. Col. Darren Cole, the 305th AMW commander, said several units had to come together from different locations and commands and function together as a team to make this mission happen.

Its a big team that has to execute things on time to make it work right, he said. Its pretty impressive to be able to hit a target globally at a moments notice with so many people participating.

Making sure the tankers and bombers meet at the right place and time is like choreographing a Broadway production, Hadley said.

When you get the request, you have to look at the whole enterprise, he said. Some tankers may already be in the right spot, some may have to be moved. The speed of the aircraft are completely different, so they wont all take off at the same time, and it takes several mid-air refuelings to make an air bridge. If one person is off, the whole mission can go awry.

Col. Clint Zumbrunnen, 305th Operations Group commander, said the 305th AMW keeps two aircraft on continuous alert just in case such a mission should come up. He said that, coupled with an efficient operations team, made sure the 305th would fly on time.

The crews grow up here being conditioned for short-notice missions, to show up, plan and get the fuel to the fight, Zumbrunnen explained. Our Current Operations team is also particularly skilled at making operations happen on short notice. It makes us particularly well-equipped to do this sort of mission.

Hadley said the stakes can be high.

If a tanker fell out you might have seen on the news how a couple of bombers had to land somewhere in Europe, he said. Or even worse, you might have seen a news report about two bombers lost in the North Atlantic. Our tanker fleet enables them to do what they do.

Using tankers sends a message to friend and foe alike, said Hadley.

They affect things on a global scale, he said. They tell our forces that we can support them where ever they are, and it tells our adversaries that we can find you and touch you on a moments notice.

Cole said hes proud of the role his Airmen played in this mission.

As always, they do an outstanding job when their nation calls upon them to do the tough tasks, he said. And it came off extremely well. Its air refueling that puts the global in global strike.

The Libya strike is just one example of how the command facilitates the tanker war against Daesh, said Brig. Gen. Lenny Richoux, 18th AF vice commander.

"The air bridge our planners and tanker crews create enable U.S. and allied strike aircraft to continuously hit Daesh, or any enemy, no matter where they hide," Richoux said.

"Missions like this one are merely one of many executed every day, he added. The mobility enterprise conducts a massive amount of planning every single day, and we coordinate with customers around the globe for each mission. America's air refueling tanker capability are one of the key missions that set us apart from every other Air Force in the world. Everyone needs air refueling and we deliver it."

Go here to read the rest:
Air Force refuelers enable B-2 strike against Daesh in Libya - 62nd Airlift Wing

JOHN EDENS

Last updated20:52, January 19 2017

SUPPLIED

Gaddafi's 42-year rule ended in bloodshed in 2011.

North Africa is a long way from New Zealand.

But back in the 1980s, Libya leader Muammar Gaddafi was making overtures in the South Pacific and the Central Intelligence Agency believed the dictator was trying to build a network.

Adeclassified CIA report gives a snapshot of the political intrigueand international interest as the Libyan leader sought to undermine the West.

Col Muammar Gaddafi. The CIA was concerned about the leader's overtures in the South Pacific during the 1980s.

In the 1980s, Gaddafi - who was brutallykilled on the streets of a Libyan townin 2011 as his 42-year ruleended in bloodshed - was an international pariah and vocal critic of the west.

READ MORE: * CIA files: Political intrigue, Australian 'dismay' * CIA files: UFOs, telepathy, and Kaikoura * Trump on Gaddafi: 'I made a lot of money' * Gaddafi dead, who pulled the trigger?

In the South Pacific, Libyaintensified its efforts to expand contacts and influence, according to the1987 CIA report.

The CIA writer said the effort by Gaddafi (also spelt Qadhafi) was part of his desire to usurp the west, lead a revolution against its imperialist powers, and promote a third world revolution.

Tripoli used its bureau in Canberra and KualaLumpur to contact pro-independence movements in Vanuatu and New Caledonia.

"Libya is supporting elements in French New Caledonia, expanding diplomatic relations with Vanuatu ... and sponsoring the travel of South Pacific and Southeast Asian delegates to Libya's annual liberation conference.

"In ourjudgement Tripoli will also carefully scrutinise the new government in Fiji as yet another opportunity to gain influence, because the recently elected coalition says it is intent on adopting a non-aligned foreign policy."

The CIA believed these overtures were part of the Libyan leader's plan to contact leftist groups, guerrillas, and terrorist organisations in Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe.

Libya was bombed by the US in 1986, as the Reagan administration accused Gaddafi of direct involvement in international terrorism.

The CIA believed the Libyans were trying to build a network in the South Pacific.

"Qadhafi has grandiose plans for this network. He has stated publicly that he is trying to forge a united front of 'revolutionary forces' to engage in a 'collective struggle against imperialism.

"In our judgment he has more immediate aims - to promote his radical ideology and burnish his revolutionary credentials ... to cultivate indigenous radicals and identify potential surrogates to carry out violent activities."

The policy in the Pacific appeared to have originated in a Libyan organisation known as the Anti-Imperialism Centre, which worked to help resistance groups and expand Libya's foreign reach.

Australian prime minister Bob Hawke, at the time, cancelled diplomatic visas for Libyan officials due to unspecified clandestine activity in the region, a 1987 New York Times report said.

New Caledonia was one target.

"Libyan officials have publicly stressedthat they share the view of the South Pacific island nations that this French territory should be independent. We believe that Qadhafi'spublic proposal of a campaign to 'liberate' French colonies, including New Caledonia, is partly a reaction to French support for pro-Western governments in Africa."

Libya would likely seek to identify with any local grievances against the west and old colonial powers to establish, or attempt to establish, ties with resistance groups or pro-independence movements in New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Fiji.

However, efforts in secret were likely to be made difficult by Australia and New Zealand.

"Libyan arrogance and unpredictability also are likely to hinder Tripoli's search for clients. Libyan insistence that 'armed struggle' is the only means of Third World liberation offends many groups and small democracies."

In the "sanitised" report several pages were redacted.

The file was released as part of the CIA's new online 25-year-old archive release of "non exempt" declassified material.

-Stuff

Excerpt from:
CIA files: Libyan efforts to build a South Pacific united revolutionary front - Stuff.co.nz

Click image to enlarge.

U.S.-backed Libyan partners are prioritizing the protection of their interests in Libyas ongoing civil war over the fight against Salafi-jihadi groups. Misratan militias aligned with the UN-brokered Government of National Accord (GNA) and supported by U.S. air power seized Sirte from the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) in December 2016. The fall of Sirte re-activated the ground conflict between the Misratans and Libyas other most powerful faction, the Libyan National Army (LNA), over military, political, and economic dominance in Libyas post-revolution power vacuum. The protraction of Libyas civil war preserves the conditions that allowed ISIS and al Qaeda to take root and expand in Libya.

Libyas rival factions are jockeying for power in oil-rich central and southern Libya. Misratan militias used the Sirte campaign to both fight ISIS and extend their influence into central Libya. The Misratans eastward movement brought them into direct competition with the LNA, which similarly expanded into central Libya in September 2016. The Misratans and the LNA have since deployed forces to potential frontlines in contested regions, limiting the resources that they can apply to counter ISIS and al Qaeda-linked militants in western Libya and Benghazi. Continued escalation is likely, following an LNA airstrike on a Misratan plane in al Jufra and clashes over military sites near Sebha.

The growing LNA-Misratan conflict plays in favor of ISIS and al Qaeda as LNA and Misratan militias divert resources from the fight against them. Both groups are benefitting from the time and space created by the current conflict to reset and prepare for future attacks.

ISIS and al Qaeda should be able to recover from recent losses in the current environment. They are also able to initiate new operations that will strengthen both groups in the long term. ISIS and al Qaeda use Libya as a key regional hub and a base on the Mediterranean. These groups will use the freedom of movement provided by Libyas civil war to pursue core objectives that include breaking North African states, expanding safe havens and governance, and attacking Europe. The resurgence of ISIS in Libya would undermine U.S. counterterrorism policy, which relies on containing ISISs regional affiliates while defeating the group in its core terrain.

Excerpt from:
Fighting Forces in Libya: January 2017 - Critical Threats Project