Democratic Palestine : 16 (ص 8)
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- Democratic Palestine : 16 (ص 8)
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Libya’s regional role
Libya’s influence in Africa and the Middle East is exten-
sive, supporting nationalist regimes and liberation movements
in their confrontation of imperialism and reactionary regimes.
Qaddafi's policy of ‘calling a spade a spade’, his political
stands and the element of suprise woven into his tactics have
not won the hearts of his pro-western neighbors, let alone their
masters. His involvement in Chad and embarrasment of
France on more than one occasion, his vehement opposition to
the Camp David alliance and his opposition to the Tunisian
regime have all contributed to his enemies’ perturbance.
Reagan's advisors are highly concerned about Libya’s role in
Africa. «He'll do all he can to get the Sudan to cut ties with us,
condemn Egypt for seeking peace with Israel, and put people
on trial for helping airlift the Falashas to Israel,» fretted one top
Reagan advisor.
While dealing with hostile neighbors, Qaddafi has fortified
Libya by contracting non-aggression pacts with neighboring
states - Algeria, Sudan, Morocco, Malta. Nor does he limit his
concern to the north. Qaddafi is a strong opponent of the apar-
theid regime in South Africa, and of Mobuto Sese Seko’s
regime in Zaire, as well as becoming involved in the ceasefire
agreement between Mali and Bourkina Fasso.
Qaddafi is well known for his bold diplomacy. He has on
several occasions made surprise visits to Arab countries to
propose unity plans. While the media has made Qaddafi's
moves appear as eccentric gestures, they have always
resulted in agreements that were beneficial to Libya, while
offering the other side equal advantage. At other times, such
moves were calculated to embarrass and expose. During a
visit to Saudi Arabia, Qaddafi led a crowd of pilgrims chanting
slogans such as «Down with the US, enemy of Islam» and
others against King Hussein and Husni Mubarak.
The African Triangle
In US intelligence summaries, two key points repeatedly
emerge: (1) During the past ten years, Qaddafi's main attacks
have been aimed almost exclusively at dissident Libyans in
exile or reactionary Arab and African states. (2) Rarely has an
attack been launched directly at US interests. The last such
attack was in December 1979, when the US embassy in Tripoli
was burned. Considering the number of US embassies
attacked all over the world, the Reagan Administration could
hardly rely on that pretext to attack Libya.
The US's best bet seemed to be hitting Libya through
neighboring states to avoid direct involvement. The Egypt-
Tunisia-Chad triangle has been the main focus of US attention,
especially because of the influence the US commands there.
Egypt is of special interest due to its involvement in Camp
David and normalization of relations with the Zionist entity. This
caused Qaddafi to take a principled stand against Sadat and
then Mubarak’s regime, a fact which cause Egypt and its west-
ern allies deep consternation. Since 1977, Egypt has served
as a launching pad for anti-Libyan activities. A brief border war
provoked by Egypt in 1977, served as a pretext for permanent
troop deployment along Egypt's western borders. US AWACS
radar planes have frequently operated over Egyptian territory
to observe activities in Kufra, Libya’s main military staging area
near the borders of Chad, Sudan and Egypt.
Britain is also involved, refurbishing old Soviet-made
tanks and artillery, and contributing intelligence expertise. As
6
Destruction from US attack on Libya.
an example, the Libyan «hitmen» captured in Cairo after the
attempted assassination of a dissident, were interrogated by
Scotland Yard experts flown in especially for the purpose. The
French intelligence service is also working in liaison with the
Egyptian secret service, having wanted to destabilize Libya
since 1974.
US envoys have been in constant contact with Egypt to
discuss possible military options against Libya. However, joint
action by the US and its Middle East allies would be underta-
ken only if Qaddafi attacks a neighboring country. This has not
been the case, despite repeated Egyptian and Tunisian
attempts to goad Libya into such a fight. The US began to see
the futility of such a plan after three attempts to involve Egypt
were abandoned. (Egypt, for its own image purposes, declared
that it had rejected the US overtures.) At the same time, the US
was frustrated by lack of concrete evidence about the Libyan
involvement it had claimed in any of the attacks.
Egypt, through its national security advisor, Osama al
Baz, is exploring the possibility of forming a ‘confrontation
front’ with Tunisia against Libya, but so far nothing has
developed. Egypt is diligently trying to prove Libya’s complicity
in so-called terrorist activities, particularly the hijacking Egypt
itself bungled so badly, killing more passengers than the hijac-
kers. The Egyptian regime, like the US, has been making con-
stant assertations about «irrevocable evidence» and «clear
connections», but the proof is yet to show. In any case, the
Egyptian regime has latched upon a scapegoat which serves
as a convenient ‘exhibit A’ to distract from Mubarak’s domestic
and foreign policy dilemmas. In the Boston Globe, December
1, 1985, some western diplomats had this to say about Egypt's
intentions: «The Egyptians (are) trying to isolate Libya in the
Arab world as a means of preparing public opinion at home and
abroad for some future move.» After the conscripts’ revolt and
subsequent mass uprising in February, the deteriorating
economic situation and the extension of emergency rule,
Egypt does not seem a likely candidate for carrying out the
US's dirty work against Libya at the moment.
Tunisia, Libya’s western neighbor, is no less hostile to
Qaddafi. Being one of the world’s largest recipients of US aid,
the regime is always careful to follow its western masters’
instructions. The US, in return, has repeatedly confirmed its
commitment to Bourguiba and would help any country
‘threatened’ by Libya. This scenario of Tunisia’s anti-Qaddafi
campaign is similar to that in Egypt: The army on alert at the
borders, mudslinging, the expulsion of Libyan diplomats and
closure of the consulate and cultural centers, access for anti- - هو جزء من
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