Juan Cole is Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of Michigan. For three decades, he has sought to put the relationship of the West and the Muslim world in historical context. His most recent book is Engaging the Muslim World (Palgrave Macmillan, March, 2009) and he also recently authored Napoleon’s Egypt: Invading the Middle East (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007).
His thoughts on recent events in Libya here.
There is a lot of tin-foil-hat nonsense floating about. This seems like a level-headed, considered view of the situation.
Showing posts with label Tripoli. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tripoli. Show all posts
Monday, August 22, 2011
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Tripoli Is Hotting Up: France 24
This from France 24, which tends to have a good handle on Middle East news:
Explosions and gunfire rocked Tripoli on Saturday night, after days of battlefield defeats left Muammar Gaddafi’s government and troops penned ever more tightly in the besieged capital.
The scale of the unrest was unclear, but speculation was rife that Gaddafi’s 41-year rule was close to collapse.
Tripoli residents told Reuters they could hear shooting from several locations and there were anti-Gaddafi protesters in the streets. Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim told state television however: “All of Tripoli is safe and stable.”
This week’s rebel advances on Tripoli—Muammar Gaddafi’s last major stronghold—have transformed the war by cutting the capital off from its main road link to the outside world and putting unprecedented pressure on Gaddafi.
Two twitter feeds from appear to be reputable sources are here:
http://twitter.com/#!/JomanaCNN
http://twitter.com/#!/jessradio
Gates of Vienna has been keeping up with the refugee flood making its way from Northern Africa to Southern Europe, which has been generally overlooked in all the tizzy about Europe being, well, broke.
Chinstraps on, ya'll. If you're in the markets, the waters will be choppy. If you're in Tripoli, though, you're likely to get caught in the crossfire. Gadafi and his ilk tend to create as much chaos, and as many refugees and casualties as possible, in order to retain power and/or cover their escape to the airport with the country's gold reserves to keep them warm. Gas up that Gulfstream, Mohamar! don't fergit the bullion. Hugo Chavez may be yer home-boy, but nothing sez 'thank-yew' like about a ton of gold.
BTW, if the rebels capture the Lockerbie Bomber again (who did not, after all, die of cancer) will they ship him back to the Scots for safekeeping? Or will they quietly turn him over to the CIA? Just sayin...
Explosions and gunfire rocked Tripoli on Saturday night, after days of battlefield defeats left Muammar Gaddafi’s government and troops penned ever more tightly in the besieged capital.
The scale of the unrest was unclear, but speculation was rife that Gaddafi’s 41-year rule was close to collapse.
Tripoli residents told Reuters they could hear shooting from several locations and there were anti-Gaddafi protesters in the streets. Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim told state television however: “All of Tripoli is safe and stable.”
This week’s rebel advances on Tripoli—Muammar Gaddafi’s last major stronghold—have transformed the war by cutting the capital off from its main road link to the outside world and putting unprecedented pressure on Gaddafi.
Two twitter feeds from appear to be reputable sources are here:
http://twitter.com/#!/JomanaCNN
http://twitter.com/#!/jessradio
Gates of Vienna has been keeping up with the refugee flood making its way from Northern Africa to Southern Europe, which has been generally overlooked in all the tizzy about Europe being, well, broke.
Chinstraps on, ya'll. If you're in the markets, the waters will be choppy. If you're in Tripoli, though, you're likely to get caught in the crossfire. Gadafi and his ilk tend to create as much chaos, and as many refugees and casualties as possible, in order to retain power and/or cover their escape to the airport with the country's gold reserves to keep them warm. Gas up that Gulfstream, Mohamar! don't fergit the bullion. Hugo Chavez may be yer home-boy, but nothing sez 'thank-yew' like about a ton of gold.
BTW, if the rebels capture the Lockerbie Bomber again (who did not, after all, die of cancer) will they ship him back to the Scots for safekeeping? Or will they quietly turn him over to the CIA? Just sayin...
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