When the Arab Spring spread to Libya in February 2011, Penn State Law student Mariam Elhadri ’12 knew she needed to help from the outside in any capacity she could.
Both of Elhadri’s parents were born and raised in Libya. At age 28, her father was exiled for his support of democracy and human rights and his views against Maummar Ghadaffi. “At a very young age, I learned what the price of freedom had cost my parents. My father was never allowed back into Libya and was unable to see his family and friends for 32 years until this past year. Although we were separated from Libya physically, it was always in our hearts through my parents’ stories and memories,” she said.
Fighting in southern town of Sabha has killed more than 70 people as African tribe says it is facing a “massacre”.
Three days of clashes between tribes in the southern Libyan town of Sabha have killed more than 70 people, a Libyan government spokesman has said.
“It is regrettable that more than 70 people have been killed and more than 150 have been wounded” since Monday in the desert town of Sabha, Nasser al-Manaa told a news conference in Tripoli on Wednesday.
Local officials said the fighting pitting the African Toubou tribe against Arab tribes in Sabha had eased and efforts to secure a truce were underway, although the Toubou claimed they were facing a “massacre.”
“There are still clashes but not as intense,” in Sabha, said Abdelmajid Seif al-Nasser, a town official who quit his post on Tuesday from the ruling National Transitional Council in protest over the violence.
“The national army and a committee of elders have entered the town in a bid to secure a truce,” Nasser, who represented the NTC in Sabha, told AFP news agency.
But Toubou tribesmen said Arab tribesmen from Sabha were “surrounding” them in the Tayuri and Al-Hijara neighbourhoods and shelling them since the early hours of the morning.
“Al-Hijara is surrounded from all sides. All the Arab (tribes) are against us. They are bombarding us using all sorts of rockets indiscriminately. It is a real massacre,” said Karima Jaber, a Sabha airport employee.
Pictured: Toubou tribesmen said rival Arab tribesmen were “surrounding” them in Tayuri and Al-Hijara neighbourhoods [Reuters]
But what was it that prompted Sarkozy to receive Gaddafi in France like an old friend and then take the reigns in the NATO military effort to bring the Gaddafi regime to its knees, which it had cozied up to just four years earlier? Two things: Oil and elections.
For those who are still under the impression that everyone in Libya was rich under Gaddaffi you just have to go spend an afternoon with these charismatic young boys who live and work in the old medina. Using wheel barrows alone these young boys collect the rubbish from the old city and dump it here. It is a temporary solution to an issue that will need greater attention under the new Government.
Libya has a big refuse problem, which many people are trying to address, one initiative is the fantastic NGO ‘clean up Tripoli’.
MSF teams began working in Misrata’s detention centers in August, 2011, to treat war-wounded detainees. Since then, MSF doctors had been increasingly confronted with patients who suffered injuries caused by torture during interrogation sessions. The interrogations were held outside the detention centers. In total, MSF treated 115 people who had torture-related wounds.
The organization reported all the cases to the relevant authorities in Misrata. Since January, several of the patients returned to interrogation centers were again tortured. MSF medical teams were also asked to treat patients inside the interrogation centers, which the organization categorically refused.
The most alarming case occurred on January 3, when MSF doctors treated a group of 14 detainees who returned to a detention facility from an interrogation center. Despite previous MSF demands for the immediate end of torture, 9 of the 14 detainees had suffered numerous injuries and displayed obvious signs of torture.
The MSF team informed the National Army Security Service—the agency responsible for interrogations—that a number of patients needed to be transferred to hospitals for urgent and specialized care. All but one of the detainees were again deprived of essential medical care and were subjected to renewed interrogations and torture outside the detention centers.
An awareness blog about the Feb 17 uprising in Libya. Since the aim of the revolution is to get rid of Gadafi, hence the name: DeGadaffi-nated (Free Libya)
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Scores killed in Libya tribal clashes
Fighting in southern town of Sabha has killed more than 70 people as African tribe says it is facing a “massacre”.
Three days of clashes between tribes in the southern Libyan town of Sabha have killed more than 70 people, a Libyan government spokesman has said.
“It is regrettable that more than 70 people have been killed and more than 150 have been wounded” since Monday in the desert town of Sabha, Nasser al-Manaa told a news conference in Tripoli on Wednesday.
Local officials said the fighting pitting the African Toubou tribe against Arab tribes in Sabha had eased and efforts to secure a truce were underway, although the Toubou claimed they were facing a “massacre.”
“There are still clashes but not as intense,” in Sabha, said Abdelmajid Seif al-Nasser, a town official who quit his post on Tuesday from the ruling National Transitional Council in protest over the violence.
“The national army and a committee of elders have entered the town in a bid to secure a truce,” Nasser, who represented the NTC in Sabha, told AFP news agency.
But Toubou tribesmen said Arab tribesmen from Sabha were “surrounding” them in the Tayuri and Al-Hijara neighbourhoods and shelling them since the early hours of the morning.
“Al-Hijara is surrounded from all sides. All the Arab (tribes) are against us. They are bombarding us using all sorts of rockets indiscriminately. It is a real massacre,” said Karima Jaber, a Sabha airport employee.
Pictured: Toubou tribesmen said rival Arab tribesmen were “surrounding” them in Tayuri and Al-Hijara neighbourhoods [Reuters]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m1msefOxby1r165eko1_500.jpg)
