Africa
Contact group urges Libya action
Top-level delegates meeting in Qatar say more pressure must be put on Gaddafi's
regime as rebels demand his ouster.
Last Modified: 13 Apr 2011 10:04
Members of the international contact group on Libya have called for more
pressure to be exerted against Muammar Gaddafi's regime, but they disagreed on
whether to arm the rebels seeking to eject him.
At the start of the fist meeting of the group in the Qatari capital Doha, on
Wednesday, the group was aiming to focus on the future of Libya after an
African Union attempt to broker a peace deal between rebel groups and Gaddafi
collapsed.
"We should ... move forward quickly to ensure that nations wishing to support
the (rebel Libyan) interim National Council in meeting its public sector costs
can do so in a transparent manner," British Foreign Secretary William Hague
said.
On the eve of the meeting, a spokesman for the rebel Transitional National
Council (TNC) said it will accept nothing short of the removal of Gaddafi and
his sons from the country.
Mahmud Shammam, whose group seeks international recognition as the legitimate
government of Libya, also stressed: "We want to move from the de facto
recognition of the council to an internationally-recognised legitimacy."
Opposition officials also hope to convince the international community to lift
sanctions on eastern Libya.
This would free up money in Libyan bank accounts abroad and allow banks in
eastern Libya to obtain foreign currency and transfer payments to banks
overseas, in order to import basic commodities and other goods.
Shammam said the contact group is comprised of high-level international
diplomats, and was set up at a conference in London last month.
Arming the rebels
As allies scramble to finalise a strategy to deal with the crisis, arming the
rebels became a flashpoint.
Italy wants the international community to consider arming Libyan rebels under
the UN resolution authorising the use of all means to defend civilians, the
Italian foreign ministry spokesman said.
"The discussion about arming the rebels is definitely on the table ... to
defend themselves," Italy's Maurizio Massari said on the sidelines of the
meeting in Doha.
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"The UN resolution ... does not forbid arming" the rebels fighting Gaddafi's
forces, he told reporters, while adding that a decision was unlikely to be
taken at the meeting in the Qatari capital.
"We need to provide the rebels all possible defensive means," he said, singling
out communication and intelligence equipment.
However, in an apparent rift between EU partners on Libya, Steven Vanackere,
the Belgian Foreign Minister said his country was opposed to the idea.
"The UN resolution speaks about protecting civilians, not arming them," he
said.
The Libyan government has dismissed the talks and Qatar's role in the ongoing
conflict.
"We are very hopeful that the American people and the American government will
not buy into the Qatari lies and Qatari schemes," a spokesman of the Libyan
regime told reporters in Tripoli on Tuesday.
"Qatar is hardly a partner of any kind. It's more of an oil corporation than a
true nation," the spokesman said.
Among those expected to come to the Doha talks is Moussa Koussa, Libya's former
foreign minister, who fled to Britain last month after he defected. He has
reportedly arrived in Qatar to meet Libyan rebels.
Koussa, a long-time top aide to Gaddafi, will not formally participate in the
meeting but is expected to hold talks on the sidelines, British sources said.
"He's not connected to (the rebel) Transitional National Council in any way or
shape," Mustafa Gheriani, a media liaison official of the rebels, said.
Gheriani added that he was personally surprised to learn that Koussa was
leaving Britain to attend the Qatar talks, and suggested that British officials
should explain why he was going and in what capacity.
'Free individual'
Koussa, the most prominent Libyan government defector, sought refuge in Britain
on March 30. A friend said he quit in protest at attacks on civilians by
Gaddafi''s forces.
The former spy chief was questioned by Scottish police over the 1988 Lockerbie
airliner bombing, which killed 270 people, but the British government said he
was now free to travel.
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"We understand he is travelling today to Doha to meet with the Qatar government
and a range of Libyan representatives to offer insight in advance of the
contact group meeting," a Foreign Office spokesman said.
No Gaddafi representatives are expected to attend.
"Moussa Koussa is a free individual who can travel to and from the United
Kingdom as he wishes," the spokesman said.
British government sources said they expected Koussa to return to Britain after
his talks, although others questioned the wisdom of letting him leave.
"It is very important that our country doesn't become a transit lounge for
alleged war criminals," Robert Halfon, a Conservative member of parliament,
told BBC radio.
"We have to give a signal to the rest of the world that we cannot tolerate
this."
Koussa may be looking to see if he can play a role in the rebel movement
fighting Gaddafi, according to some reports.
Koussa is believed to be no longer under the supervision of British security
agencies who had questioned him at a secret location after his defection to
Britain.
In his first public statement since arriving in Britain, Koussa told the BBC on
Monday his country could become "a new Somalia" unless all sides involved in
the conflict stopped it from descending into civil war.
Source:
Al Jazeera and agencies
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