Ghaith Abdul-Ahad released from Libyan prison after Turkish government and foreign ministry joined negotiations
The Turkish government played a role in helping free the Guardian journalist Ghaith Abdul-Ahad from prison in Libya, it has been disclosed.
Guardian journalist Ghaith Abdul-Ahad had been detained by the Libyan authorities for a fortnight.
Abdul-Ahad had been detained by the Libyan authorities for a fortnight after being picked up from the coastal town of Sabratha on 2 March, along with a Brazilian correspondent.
He was freed on Wednesday after the editor-in-chief of the Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, flew to Tripoli to help organise his release.
Rusbridger revealed on Thursday that the Turkish government, which is handling UK interests in Libya after the closure of the British embassy, had been actively involved in the negotiations to free Abdul-Ahad. It is believed the prime minister and president’s offices were involved in behind-the-scenes talks since the weekend, along with the foreign ministry.
“We’re very grateful for the efforts of many people, including the Turkish government, for their role in helping Ghaith be freed,” said Rusbridger. He added that Abdul-Ahad had been held in solitary confinement, but had not been physically harmed.
Abdul-Ahad entered Libya from Tunisia and was last in touch with the paper on the day of his capture.
The journalist, an Iraqi national, is a highly respected staff correspondent who has written for the Guardian since 2004. He has reported from Somalia, Sudan, Iraq and Afghanistan, telling the stories of ordinary people in times of conflict.
News of Abdul-Ahad’s release came as the New York Times said four of its journalists were missing in Libya. They are: Anthony Shadid, the Beirut bureau chief; two photographers, Tyler Hicks and Lynsey Addario, who have worked extensively in the Middle East and Africa; and Stephen Farrell, a reporter and videographer who was kidnapped by the Taliban in 2009 and rescued by British commandos.
The newspaper said it had last been in contact with the journalists on Tuesday morning, New York time. It said it had received reports the four might have been detained by government forces in the eastern town of Ajdabiya.
via Turkey helps free Guardian journalist in Libya | World news | guardian.co.uk.
Members of Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi’s security forces hauled a team of BBC reporters into custody, beat them up and subjected them to mock executions before releasing the trio 21 hours later, the broadcaster said on Thursday.
The crew’s ordeal began on the outskirts of the strife-torn West Libyan city of Zawiya on Monday, where they were stopped at an army checkpoint.
The men — all working for the BBC’s Arabic service — showed their identification documents and say there were subsequently detained and driven off to a massive military barracks in Tripoli.
Upon arrival there, the men claim they were blindfolded, handcuffed, and beaten with fists, knees and guns by Kadafi’s security force. Then the mock executions began.
“We were lined up against the wall,” the BBC quoted one of the three, British Chris Cobb-Smith, as saying. I was the last in line — facing the wall. I looked and I saw a plainclothes guy with a small submachine gun….Then he walked up to me, put the gun to my neck and pulled the trigger twice. The bullets whisked past my ear. The soldiers just laughed.”
Another member of the team, Feras Killani, a reporter of Palestinian origin who holds a Syrian passport, says he was beaten and accused by his captors of being a spy.
“They hit me with a stick, they used their army boots on me, and their knees,” he was quoted as saying in a transcript from the BBC. “It made it worse that I was a Palestinian…. and they said you’re all spies.”
The cameraman Goktay Koraltan — a Turkish citizen — said they all were convinced they were going to die in the end.
Peter Connors of the BBC World Service’s press office told Babylon & Beyond in an e-mail that the men have left Libya and that they’re not giving interviews.
The BBC has denounced the attack on its reporters in a statement.
“The safety of our staff is our primary concern especially when they are working in such difficult circumstances and it is essential that journalists working for the BBC, or any media organisation, are allowed to report on the situation in Libya without fear of attack,” Liliane Landor, languages controller of BBC Global News, was quoted as saying in the statement.
According to the broadcaster, a senior Libyan government official later apologized about the BBC crew’s ordeal.
Media reports also surfaced on Thursday about an alleged Iraqi national disappearing in Zawiya along with a Brazilian journalist.
–Alexandra Sandels in Beirut
Photo: The BBC’s Goktay Koraltan and Feras Killani were reportedly detained and beaten by Kadafi forces earlier this week. Credit: BBC
Pro-government forces in Libya are escalating their attacks on rebel forces. The increasing violence is fueling talk for tough sanctions and the enforcement of a no-fly zone against Libya and its leader, Moammar Gadhafi, both in the European Union and the United States. But Turkey, an EU applicant and NATO member, is voicing strong opposition to such moves.
Despite the increasing numbers of casualties in Libya, the Turkish government is robustly opposing sanctions and any kind of military intervention into the deepening the crisis, including a no-fly zone. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu claims such intervention would be counterproductive.
He says his government does not think outside intervention would be right, based on recent developments. He says there is no such demand from within Libya nor from the active groups there.
Davutoglu says Turkey would enforce all U.N. sanctions against Libya, but that does not include any E.U. or U.S. measures.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Western countries calling for intervention of being motivated by Libya’s huge oil reserves. But with the U.N. Security Council unanimously supporting sanctions against Libya, and the deepening crisis in Libya fueling growing calls for even tougher action, diplomatic correspondent Semih Idiz says Turkey is finding itself increasingly isolated.
“It seems to be rowing against (the) current,” Idiz said. “Erdogan was among the first to support the demonstrators in Egypt and call for democracy and all that, and call for Mubarak to go. But we do not see the same kind of approach in relation to Libya. Erdogan said he was strongly against sanctions (against) Libya and seems a little like leaning towards Gadhafi, even though the end of Gadhafi appears imminent.”
Turkey’s main opposition party has seized on the apparent inconsistency of the government towards Libya, and has accused the prime minister of having close ties with the beleaguered Libyan leader. But Turkish Ambassador Selim Yenel, deputy undersecretary for bilateral affairs and public diplomacy, argues the chaos in Libya means it is important to remain neutral.
“Who are we (to) decide is right or wrong, can we be that arrogant to decide that one of them is wrong or right,” Yenel said. “Right now, we have to take a different approach to Libya because the man is fighting (and) there could be more casualties. Taking sides or pushing for certain things could actually make things more harmful.”
Yenel acknowledged that Turkey’s business interests are a factor in determining its policy towards Libya. Chief economist Emre Yigit, of the Turkish trading house Global Securities, says such interests are considerable.
“We do a fair amount of construction and contracting between $10- and $15 billion, so Turkish construction companies are exposed and the workers and so on, and there is a knock-on effect on the rest of the economy,” said Yigit.
Observers warn that with Ankara already at odds with both the European Union and the United States over Iranian sanctions, its stance on Libya can only add to growing concerns about its reliability as an ally. But diplomatic correspondent Idiz says Turkey’s strong economic and political relations with Libya and the wider region mean it is better placed than its Western allies to play a role in resolving the crisis.
“Well, Turkey has bridges to these people and these nations they do not have,” Idiz added. “Turkey can say things to these countries that other people can not. And, therefore, given that Turkey’s special relationship, the fact that it is an Islamic country. So I think Turkey is in (a) unique position here, and I think the West itself does not really know what to do.”
The Turkish Foreign Ministry has said it is willing to mediate if all sides ask. But for now, observers say Ankara’s stance on Libya is likely to be seen as another example of its being out of line with its Western allies.
An eight-man SAS team was being held by Libyan rebel forces last night after being captured as they accompanied a junior British diplomat on an undercover mission which ended in embarrassment.
The elite troops had been escorting the diplomat through rebel-held territory in the east of Libya as he tried to make contact with opponents of Colonel Gaddafi.
The diplomat had intended to pave the way for a more senior British official to establish diplomatic relations with rebel forces.
Joy: A rebel with a rocket-propelled grenade at Ras Lanouf yesterday
But last night the young Foreign Office employee and his armed SAS escorts were locked up inside a military base in Benghazi, the largest city held by opponents of Col Gaddafi.
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It is understood the SAS incursion into rebel-held territory infuriated opposition politicians, one of whom told them to warn David Cameron’s Government that it should recognise the opposition as Libya’s legitimate leaders before attempting to open negotiations.
Sources admitted last night that there was huge embarrassment in Whitehall that the SAS mission had backfired.
But there was confidence that the SAS team and the diplomat would be released unharmed within 24 hours after the rebels had made their point. There were no plans last night for a second SAS team to be sent in to secure the release of their colleagues.
www.dailymail.co.uk, 6th March 2011
SAS unit, diplomat ‘held’ by Libya rebels
(AFP) – 6 March 2011
LONDON — A Special Air Service (SAS) unit and a junior diplomat were being held by rebels in eastern Libya following a bungled mission to put the envoy in touch with them, The Sunday Times said.
The broadsheet, citing sources, said the SAS unit, thought to be up to eight men, were captured along with the diplomat they were escorting through the rebel-held east.
“We can neither confirm nor deny the report,” a Foreign Office spokeswoman told AFP.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said: “We neither confirm nor deny the story and we do not comment on the special forces.”
The uninvited appearance of the SAS alongside the diplomat “angered Libyan opposition figures who ordered the soldiers to be locked up in a military base,” the weekly said.
Opponents of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi “fear he could use any evidence of Western military interference to rally patriotic support for his regime,” it said.
The newspaper said that according to Libyan sources, the SAS soldiers were taken by rebels to Libya’s second city Benghazi, held by the opposition, and hauled up before a senior figure.
The Sunday Times said a British source, who confirmed the men had been detained, said the diplomat they were protecting had wanted to make contact with the rebels.
It cited a source close to the opposition leadership as saying rebel officials were worried that Libyan people might think from the escort party that “foreign troops have started to interfere by landing in Libya”.
British service personnel have already been involved in the rescue of British nationals working on oil installations in remote desert camps.
The MoD said Saturday that about 200 troops had been placed on standby to help with evacuation and humanitarian operations in Libya.
The troops from the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, are ready for deployment at 24 hours’ notice, a spokeswoman said.
A YouGov poll of 2,413 adults conducted on Thursday and Friday for The Sunday Times found low support for using troops in Libya.
It found that 69 percent supported economic sanctions on the Kadhafi regime and 56 percent favoured the imposition of a no-fly zone.
However, only 12 percent backed providing arms to rebel forces and 11 percent agreed with sending in allied troops.
Some 48 percent thought Prime Minister David Cameron has handled the Libyan uprising badly and 32 percent said he had handled it well.
—
SAS unit ‘held by Libyan rebels’
Defence secretary Liam Fox has confirmed that a British diplomatic team is in Libya talking to rebel forces.
But he declined to comment on reports that the SAS unit guarding the team had been detained by forces opposed to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.
Interviewed on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, Dr Fox said there was a “small diplomatic team” in the eastern city of Benghazi.
“We are in touch with them but it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on that for reasons I am sure you will understand,” he added.
Asked if the UK team was in danger, Dr Fox replied: “We are in touch with them but I’m not going to be giving further comment on that.”
He added: “It is a very difficult situation to be able to understand in detail. There are a number of different opposition groups to Colonel Gaddafi in Libya who do seem relatively disparate. We want to clearly understand what the dynamic is here because we want to be able to work with them to ensure the demise of the Gaddafi regime, to see a transition to greater stability in Libya and ultimately to more representative government.
“So getting a picture of that is relatively difficult as is widely reported. Communications are being interrupted, there are difficulties with mobile phones, with the internet potentially being interfered with.”
According to the Sunday Times, up to eight British soldiers are believed to have been captured as they escorted the diplomatic mission through rebel-held territory in the east of the country.
The mission is thought to have been an initial attempt to contact Gaddafi’s opponents ahead of a visit by a senior colleague to establish diplomatic relations, but the SAS intervention apparently angered the rebels.
The situation came to light as the battle for control of the country continued to rage and fears grew over the impact of instability in the region on oil prices.
Turkey has pursued a policy over the popular uprising in Libya reflecting the unique ties it had developed with this country. More importantly, Turkey’s position in the ongoing debate concerning the involvement of the international community in the form of sanctions or possible military intervention increasingly sets Turkey apart from Western policy.
Turkish construction firms have penetrated the Libyan market, signing major contracts in the country since the 1970’s. With the lifting of international sanctions against Libya in the early 2000’s, the construction industry experienced a new boom, as well as creating fresh business opportunities. During his visit to Libya in 2009, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made an effort to further improve economic ties with Libya, as part of Turkey’s proactive foreign trade strategy of gaining new markets for businesses abroad. Indeed, Turkish contractors received a good share of the new business opportunities. Turkish firms undertook projects worth over $15 billion in recent years, and over 20,000 Turkish people were living in Libya, mostly employed in the construction sector. Moreover, in recent years, Turkey’s exports to this country also increased, reaching $2 billion in 2010 (www.cnnturk.com, February 21).
When the protests started to spread across Libya, the fate of Turkish investments and workers in the country was the main concern shaping Ankara’s response. Initial reports of looting in some construction sites, and growing concerns about the safety of Turkish workers, forced the government to open a crisis desk. According to Trade Minister, Zafer Caglayan, Turkish investments in the country were guaranteed by the Libyan government and their first priority would be to ensure the physical safety of Turkish citizens (Zaman, February 22). With the rapid deterioration of the situation, the Turkish government launched what it called the largest evacuation operation in history. Through the utilization of aircraft and ferries, Turkey successfully evacuated its citizens and people from many other nations, which received widespread coverage in domestic and international media.
However, as international attention shifted towards the atrocities committed by the Gaddafi regime against the protestors, Turkey’s policy diverged from the US or Western position. The Turkish opposition criticized the government for failing to openly condemn Gaddafi’s brutal use of force and expressing support for the Libyan people (www.ntvmsnbc.com, February 21). Given the presence of large numbers of its citizens, Turkey, perhaps understandably, was timid in its reaction to the Gaddafi regime. However, the government’s subsequent statements on Libya demonstrated that it pursued a different policy based on differing assumptions, compared to its Western partners.
Ahead of the UN Security Council meeting last weekend, where the UN decided to impose a range of sanctions against the Libyan regime, President Barack Obama telephoned Erdogan to discuss the developments. Although the statement released by the White House maintained that the two sides agreed on joint action, representatives from the Turkish government stressed that Turkey would not support any action that could be considered in contravention of the principle of “nonintervention in domestic affairs” and Turkey would prefer that international involvement remained limited to providing humanitarian assistance. Turkish journalists based in Washington started to talk about a “rift” between Ankara and Washington (Zaman, February 28).
Indeed, Erdogan’s subsequent statements clearly revealed those diverging policy perspectives. Addressing the Turkish public over the weekend on the eve of the UN Security Council meeting, Erdogan expressed his strong opposition to sanctions, arguing that sanctions did not work in the past and they would hurt only the people. Interestingly, he called on the international community and Western countries to approach the Libyan issue from a humanitarian perspective, not on the basis of oil interests (Anadolu Ajansi, February 27).
As the discussions gained pace on the imposition of a no fly zone over Libyan airspace to prevent Gaddafi forces from crushing the opposition forces, Turkey’s differences with Western policy also became visible. Meanwhile, having evacuated its citizens from Libya, the US, in line with many Western governments, adopted harsher language critical of the Libyan regime, calling on Gaddafi to step down or face the consequences. While the US boosted its naval presence in the Mediterranean, attention also focused on the role of NATO in possible military action against Libya.
Again, Erdogan took a clear stance against NATO’s involvement in any operation against Libya. While visiting Germany to meet with Turkish people living in the country, Erdogan reacted to the news stories. “All sanctions and interventions that will hurt Libyan people cannot be accepted… What does NATO have to do in Libya? … We are against it,” Erdogan said (Hurriyet, February 28). Those statements made headlines in many newspapers on the following day, which indicated how well Erdogan’s views resonate with Turkish public opinion on the issue. Moreover, Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, also expressed objections to foreign intervention, arguing that the deployment of foreign troops in the country would not be welcome by the local people and foreign involvement would further complicate the situation (Hurriyet, March 2).
Through his recent statements, Erdogan has implied that the West was driven by material interests, rather than genuine humanitarian considerations about the Libyan people. Such rhetoric mirrors the position advocated by the leaders of Iran or Venezuela, who have been arguing that the West is seeking to capitalize on the unrest in the country to re-colonize Libya, or occupy it to extract its oil. Moreover, Erdogan’s statements, for instance, on sanctions reveal that his objection to sanctions is not based on content per se. Although Erdogan has maintained that sanctions would hurt the people, there was in fact nothing in the list of sanctions approved by the UN Security Council to that effect, as they were specifically targeting the Gaddafi regime and called for investigations into human rights violations. In that sense, Erdogan has been presenting a categorical objection to any sanctions or international intervention, which reflects not only policy differences but also ideological dissonance with the international community.
The outbreak of the riots in Libya just after Tunisia and Egypt (Libia is geographically between these two) makes evident that the riots in North Africa has caused domino effect. However, the situation of Libya may slightly be differentiated as compared with Tunisia and Egypt. (more…)
