Unity questioned
July 30, 2011
Libyan rebels revealed on Saturday that their military chief was shot dead by fighters allied in the fight to oust leader Moammar Gadhafi.
General Abdel Fattah Younes was found dead on Thursday along with two bodyguards after he was called back from the battlefield by rebel forces.
It was initially unclear who was responsible for the murder, but after 24 hours of speculation a member of the Libyan militia accepted responsibility.
Rebel minister Ali Tarhouni said a militia leader believed to belong to the Obaida Ibn Jarrah Brigade had been detained. The minister said that the arrested man had confessed that his subordinates, who were still at large, carried out the killing.
"It was not him. His lieutenants did it," Tarhouni said.
The Obaida Ibn Jarrah Brigade, named after one of the companions of Islam's Prophet Mohammed, is believed to have Islamist leanings.
Speculation rife
Younes had served as Gadhafi's interior minister before defecting to the rebels in February. He had participated in the 1969 coup which first brought Gadhafi to power.
His assassination has raised questions about the credibility of the opposition government, the National Transitional Council (NTC), who have recently won the official recognition of some 30 countries.
The motives of the killing remain uncertain. But Reuters news agency reported rebel sources on Saturday claiming that General Younes had been recalled from the front over suspicions that he or his family were secretly in contact with Gadhafi.
NATO raid condemned
Meanwhile, NATO carried out an air strike on Libyan state television (LBC) on Saturday which killed three journalists and injured 15 others.
NATO said it had bombed three satellite dishes in Tripoli to stop "terror broadcasts" by Gadhafi. But Libyan state television branded the strike "an act of international terrorism and in violation of UN Security Council resolutions."
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"We are not a military target, we are not commanders in the army and we do not pose a threat to civilians," said Khalid Bazelya, an LBC official, reading the statement to reporters.
"The fact that we work for the Libyan government or represent anti-NATO, anti-armed gangs views does not make us a legitimate target for NATO rockets," he added.
NATO, which has been bombing Libyan targets since March, justified the attack, saying it was in line with the UN mandate to protect civilians.
"NATO conducted a precision air strike... with the intent of degrading Gadhafi's use of satellite television as a means to intimidate the Libyan people and incite acts of violence against them," the alliance said.
"In light of our (UN) mandate to protect civilian lives, we had to act. After due consideration and careful planning to minimize the risks of casualties or long-term damage to television transmission capabilities, NATO performed the strike."
Libyan State television remains on air, despite the bombings.
Author: Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Kyle James