Stig Östlund

tisdag, februari 22, 2011

Gadhafi’s grip on Libya weakens as protests grow

Deep rifts opened in Moammar Gadhafi’s regime, with Libyan government officials at home and abroad resigning, air force pilots defecting and a bloody crackdown on protest in the capital of Tripoli, where cars and buildings were burned. Gadhafi went on state TV early Tuesday to attempt to show he was still in charge.

World leaders expressed outrage Monday at the “vicious forms of repression” used against the demonstrators.
The longest serving Arab leader appeared briefly on TV to dispel rumors that he had fled. Sitting in a car in front of what appeared to be his residence and holding an umbrella out of the passenger side door, he told an interviewer that he had wanted to go to the capital’s Green Square to talk to his supporters, but the rain stopped him.
“I am here to show that I am in Tripoli and not in Venezuela. Don’t believe those misleading dog stations,” Gadhafi said, referring to the media reports that he had left the country. The video clip and comments lasted less than a minute — unusual for the mercurial leader, who is known for rambling speeches that often last hours.


Home Page:  http://www.registerguard.com/web/news/index.csp
The Register-Guard is the main daily   newspaper for Eugene, Springfield, and Lane County, Oregon.

Bloggarkiv