In town seen as pro-Qaddafi, settling of scores shifts into standoff with government
| Tunis, Tunisia
A year to the day after Muammar Qaddafi was killed, a town long tarred as sympathetic to him is under attack by government-aligned militias in what many Libyans describe as settling unfinished business.
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Libya鈥檚 government wants the town of Bani Walid, southeast of Tripoli, to hand over suspects accused of kidnapping a militiaman from the city of Misurata credited with having helped run Qaddafi down last year. In recent days a tense standoff has turned violent.
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For many in Bani Walid, the affair confirms their longstanding complaints of persecution in post-Qaddafi Libya. For the country鈥檚 new leaders, it is yet another test of their ability to assert their authority while managing the militias upon whom Tripoli relies to help keep order.
鈥淭he campaign to liberate the country has not been fully completed,鈥� said Mohamed Magarief, president of Libya鈥檚 congress, speaking late yesterday on Libyan TV and quoted by Reuters. He said delays in integrating militias into state security forces have led to a degree of 鈥渃haos鈥� in Libya.
鈥淎nd the chaos has lured others to kidnappings, stealing, and to create non-legitimate prisons,鈥� Mr. Magarief said. 鈥淲hat has happened in Bani Walid in the last few days falls under this鈥�. it has become a safe haven for a large number of those who are outside of the law.鈥�
One such outlaw, it seems, was Khamis Qaddafi, a son of Muammar Qaddafi thought to have died in last year鈥檚 revolution. He was reportedly killed today during fighting in Bani Walid, according to a statement from the spokesman of Libya鈥檚 congress, Omar Hamdan, cited by Britain鈥檚 The Guardian newspaper. The exact circumstances of his death remain unclear.
Former Qaddafi regime spokesman Moussa Ibrahim may also have been in Bani Walid recently, according to wire services. Known for his unswerving defense of Qaddafi鈥檚 regime to foreign media last year, Ibrahim disappeared as that regime collapsed in August 2011. However, his exact movements remain unclear. According to a statement from the prime minister鈥檚 office quoted by Reuters and Agence France-Presse, Mr. Ibrahim was arrested today in Tarhouna, which lies on a major road between Bani Walid and Tripoli. Also citing the statement, The Associated Press states that Mr. Ibrahim was fleeing Bani Walid.
Doubts about Bani Walid's loyalties
The current trouble in Bani Walid began last month when Omran Shaban, a Misuratan militiaman who reportedly found Qaddafi hiding in a drain culvert last year, died from injuries his family say occurred during two months of captivity in Bani Walid.
For many Libyans, Shaban鈥檚 fate confirmed suspicions that Bani Walid harbors Qaddafi loyalists. The town largely stayed out of last year鈥檚 revolution and fought back against attempts to enter it by rebel forces amid rumors that Saif al-Islam Qaddafi was hiding there.
As talks over surrendering Shaban鈥檚 alleged kidnappers got under way, pro-government brigades mainly from Misurata ringed Bani Walid. Many in the town say it has suffered undue persecution since Qaddafi鈥檚 fall.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not for Qaddafi,鈥� says Meftah Jabbara, a law professor in Bani Walid who took part in the recent talks. 鈥淲e鈥檙e for Libya. We鈥檙e not living in the past.鈥�
According to Mr. Jabbara, talks broke down after Misurata refused to release around 150 Bani Walid residents he said were detained there. A government deadline on surrendering Shaban鈥檚 alleged kidnappers came and went, and skirmishes broke out.
Barring potential last-ditch mediation by leaders from eastern Libya who might be trusted in Bani Walid, further negotiation with Tripoli and Misurata is all but futile, says Jabbara.
鈥淲hen they kill your children and your old men, how is dialogue possible?鈥� he says. 鈥淥ur men are ready to die, and if so they will die as martyrs.鈥�
Meanwhile, it鈥檚 unclear how firmly leaders control pro-government militias meant to act as government muscle. Today, Magarief today condemned the recent escalation in fighting at Bani Walid in a statement cited by Libya鈥檚 Libya Herald newspaper.
At least a dozen people have been reported killed so far, with numbers hard to verify. Greater suffering is feared if fighting continues, says Soaade Messoudi, a spokeswomen in Tripoli for the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The organization has twice visited Bani Walid in the last two weeks to deliver medical aid, she says. 鈥淲e are urging all the parties to act with caution and respect human lives, medical staff, and medical facilities.鈥�
