Gadhafi bid for vote to end Libya war revived
Source: Agencies |
June 27, 2011, Monday
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THE Libyan government yesterday renewed its offer to hold a vote on whether Moammar Gadhafi should stay in power, a proposal unlikely to interest Gadhafi's opponents but which could widen differences inside NATO.
Pressure is growing from some quarters within the alliance to find a political solution, three months into a military campaign which is costing NATO members billions of dollars, has killed civilians, and has so far failed to topple Gadhafi.
Moussa Ibrahim, a spokesman for Gadhafi's administration, told reporters in Tripoli the government was proposing a period of national dialogue and an election overseen by the United Nations and the African Union.
"If the Libyan people decide Gadhafi should leave he will leave. If the people decide he should stay he will stay," Ibrahim said.
But he said Gadhafi -- who has run the oil-producing country since taking over in a military coup in 1969 - would not go into exile whatever happened. "Gadhafi is not leaving anywhere, he is staying in this country," Ibrahim said.
The idea of holding an election was first raised earlier this month by one of Gadhafi's sons, Saif al-Islam.
The proposal lost momentum when Libyan Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi appeared to dismiss it. At the time, it was also rejected by anti-Gadhafi rebels in the east of Libya, and by Washington.
The election proposal could find a more receptive audience this time around, especially after a NATO bomb landed on a house in Tripoli on June 19, killing several civilians.
After that incident, alliance member Italy said it wanted a political settlement, and also said that the civilian casualties threaten NATO's credibility.
Libyan government forces have been fighting rebels, backed by NATO air power, since February 17, when thousands of people rose up in a rebellion against his rule.
The Libyan leader suffered a propaganda defeat when four members of the national soccer team and 13 other football figures defected to the rebels, the rebel council said.
Libyans are passionate about the sport and the national team was closely aligned with Gadhafi's rule. At one point his son, Saadi, played in the side.
Pressure is growing from some quarters within the alliance to find a political solution, three months into a military campaign which is costing NATO members billions of dollars, has killed civilians, and has so far failed to topple Gadhafi.
Moussa Ibrahim, a spokesman for Gadhafi's administration, told reporters in Tripoli the government was proposing a period of national dialogue and an election overseen by the United Nations and the African Union.
"If the Libyan people decide Gadhafi should leave he will leave. If the people decide he should stay he will stay," Ibrahim said.
But he said Gadhafi -- who has run the oil-producing country since taking over in a military coup in 1969 - would not go into exile whatever happened. "Gadhafi is not leaving anywhere, he is staying in this country," Ibrahim said.
The idea of holding an election was first raised earlier this month by one of Gadhafi's sons, Saif al-Islam.
The proposal lost momentum when Libyan Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi appeared to dismiss it. At the time, it was also rejected by anti-Gadhafi rebels in the east of Libya, and by Washington.
The election proposal could find a more receptive audience this time around, especially after a NATO bomb landed on a house in Tripoli on June 19, killing several civilians.
After that incident, alliance member Italy said it wanted a political settlement, and also said that the civilian casualties threaten NATO's credibility.
Libyan government forces have been fighting rebels, backed by NATO air power, since February 17, when thousands of people rose up in a rebellion against his rule.
The Libyan leader suffered a propaganda defeat when four members of the national soccer team and 13 other football figures defected to the rebels, the rebel council said.
Libyans are passionate about the sport and the national team was closely aligned with Gadhafi's rule. At one point his son, Saadi, played in the side.
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