The Freedom Road Socialist Organization pointed out some of the contradictions at work in a statement on March 17, the day of the UN Security Council vote to intervene in Libya: “Since day one of the crisis in Libya, the corporate media has been in motion, preparing public opinion for war with Libya. Likewise, since the beginning of the crisis, the western, imperialist powers have been maneuvering militarily to take advantage of the situation. Meanwhile, it is clear that the rebels in Libya are not of one mind. Some of their leaders are tied to the old CIA-funded National Front for the Salvation of Libya, which would like to see Libya’s oil industry completely privatized, meaning an end to the current free health care and free education programs enjoyed by the Libyan people. Some are monarchists and others who wish to turn back the clock on Libyan social progress. Undoubtedly, war with Libya will mean the most reactionary forces among the rebels coming to power if Gaddafi’s government is defeated by the guns and bombs of the west.” We are now seeing this nightmare approaching reality.

The reasons behind this war are both economic and geostrategic. On the one hand, the Western powers wish to divide among themselves Libya's vast oil wealth, the greatest in Africa. “We don't have a problem with Western countries like the Italians, French and UK companies. But we may have some political issues with Russia, China and Brazil,” Abdeljalil Mayouf, information manager at Libyan rebel oil firm AGOCO, told Reuters. The National Transitional Council led by Mustafa Abdel-Jalil has likewise been clear that it wants very much to align itself with the U.S. and the other Western powers. On the other hand, the Western powers want to strengthen their dominance in the region, which is threatened by the political unrest that has swept North Africa and the Middle East since the beginning of the “Arab Spring”. If US/NATO forces are successful in Libya, they will be in a much better position step up their attempts to topple the government of Syria.

To give cover to this war of aggression and domination, they are cynically manipulating the political discontent of a section of the Libyan people, and utilizing bought and paid for puppets. And yet despite the intense attacks, including thousands of bombing raids, drone attacks, commando operations, and global economic sanctions, the patriotic people alongside Gaddafi's government have resisted heroically and will certainly continue to do so. That they have held on for as long as they have is a tribute to the Libyans’ will to fight, their tenacity in the face of adversity, and the real commitment to maintaining national independence.

This conflict has now sharpened to the utmost degree, and at this point it must be clear that there are but two sides. On one side stand the forces of colonial domination, represented by all the might of the great powers—the U.S., the U.K, France and Italy. On the other side stands all who steadfastly oppose the forces of Empire. Despite whatever strengths of weaknesses the patriotic forces in Libya may have, progressive people everywhere should stand on the side of an independent Libya, for self-determination and against national oppression and domination.

#TripoliLibya #Tripoli #Editorials #NATO #Gadhafi #Libya #LibyaWar #Africa

In a qualitatively different reaction than the one taken toward other governments facing uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East, the Pentagon announced Feb. 28 that the U.S. military is repositioning naval and air forces around Libya, in apparent preparation for military intervention. The Pentagon now has two aircraft carriers in its naval command region that includes the Arabian Sea and Gulf.

Colonel David Lapan, a Pentagon spokesperson, was quoted by Reuters as saying, “We have planners working and various contingency plans and I think it's safe to say as part of that we're repositioning forces to be able to provide for that flexibility once decisions are made ... to be able to provide options and flexibility … We're still in that planning and preparing mode should we be called upon to do any of those types of missions, whether humanitarian and otherwise.”

The U.S. government also announced that it was consulting its allies about military options for dealing with Libya, including possibly declaring a no-fly zone over the Libya. The United States had a no-fly zone over northern Iraq before the U.S. invasion and occupation of that country. U.S. officials stress that all options, including military ones, are on the table.

President Obama is calling on Muammar Gadhafi to step down immediately. White House spokesperson Jay Carney threatened that even if Gadhafi does step down, his government “must be held accountable for their actions,” presumably through international criminal trials.

These verbal threats were backed up by the large scale military maneuvers and a full court press on international bodies to implement strict sanctions against Libya. Under pressure from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who was in Geneva on Feb. 28 to press the U.S. government’s plan, the European Union instituted an arms embargo, visa ban and other sanctions on Libya’s government. Likewise the United Nations Security Council unanimously voted to levy strong sanctions against Libya.

At the same time, powerful U.S. Senators John McCain and Joe Lieberman clamored for the Obama administration to intervene militarily by arming the Libyan opposition, which reportedly has control of the eastern part of the country. The senators also called on the U.S. government to immediately recognize a new provisional government. Secretary of State Clinton confirmed that the U.S. is reaching out to Libyan rebels and is “ready and prepared to offer any type of assistance.”

The U.S. government’s rush to militarily intervene in Libya is driven largely by a desire to gain control over Libya’s oil production and vast oil reserves. Libya is one of the world's top ten oil-producing countries. Oil reserves in Libya are the largest in Africa and the ninth largest in the world. Libya is considered a highly attractive oil area due to its low cost of oil production, high quality oil and proximity to European markets.

According to Steff Yorek, of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, “In the context of continuing U.S. occupation in Iraq and war in Afghanistan, anti-war activists in the U.S. must firmly oppose these U.S. war threats against Libya. U.S. military intervention would only bring suffering and oppression to the Libyan people. We support self-determination in Libya, not having the U.S. or other Western powers impose who they want through massive military force. The U.S. government doesn't care about Libyan people's rights or lives; they're making a power grab for Libya's oil.”

#UnitedStates #MiddleEast #Africa #Libya #Gadhafi