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View Full Version : Qaddafi's Weapons Show Up in Mali



Conley
02-06-2012, 11:10 AM
In life, he delighted in fomenting insurgencies in the African nations to the south. And in death, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi is doing it all over again.

Hundreds of Tuareg rebels, heavily armed courtesy of Colonel Qaddafi’s extensive arsenal, have stormed towns in Mali’s northern desert in recent weeks, in one of the most significant regional shock waves to emanate directly from the colonel’s fall.

After fighting for Colonel Qaddafi as he struggled to stay in power, the Tuaregs helped themselves to a considerable quantity of sophisticated weaponry before returning to Mali. When they got here, they reinvigorated a longstanding rebellion and blossomed into a major challenge for this impoverished desert nation, an important American ally against the regional Al Qaeda franchise.

The Tuaregs hoisted their rebel flag in the sandy northern towns, shelled military installations, announced the “liberation” of the area and shouted “Allahu akbar,” or “God is great,” according to local officials. Their sudden strength has deeply surprised a Malian Army accustomed to fighting wispy turbaned fighters wielding only Kalashnikov rifles.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/world/africa/tuaregs-use-qaddafis-arms-for-rebellion-in-mali.html

The first I've read of Qaddafi's unguarded weapons being used in other states. I'm sure there will be more. There were some that could threaten U.S. military if I remember correctly. Stingers maybe?

Mister D
02-06-2012, 11:16 AM
Still wanna jog through the Sahara? :grin:

Hopefully, they don't have huge stockpiles of ammo.

Conley
02-06-2012, 11:33 AM
Still wanna jog through the Sahara? :grin:

Hopefully, they don't have huge stockpiles of ammo.

:rofl: I already thought that was a very bad idea to begin with. Even jogging across the U.S. something bad is likely to happen to you (unless you're Forrest Gump).

waltky
10-23-2012, 11:32 PM
Granny says, "Dat's right, Obama goin' after dem terrorists wherever dey may be - where's Mali?
:embarrassed:
Pentagon Weighs US Military Options in Mali
October 23, 2012 — Pentagon officials on Tuesday neither confirmed nor denied reports that secret talks are under way between the United States and France on plans to bring northern Mali back under the control of the country's central government.


U.S. efforts to wrest control of much of northern Mali from Islamist militants have centered on enabling Washington’s partners in the region to win back control of the territory - and not by sending in U.S. troops to do the job. News reports this week say France is sending in drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, to do surveillance missions - something Pentagon officials say the United States has been doing for several months. Their targets are militants, including some with the al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb group, who have taken over large areas of northern Mali and sparked violence that U.S. officials are concerned might spread to other countries.

Thomas Dempsey, an analyst with the U.S. Defense Department’s Africa Center for Strategic Studies, says the violence has been partly a result of turmoil in Libya earlier this year. “There have been several rebellions in the north and that all came to a head earlier this spring, partly because of large numbers of former fighters from the Moammar Gadhafi regime in Libya returning to northern Mali and bringing with them significant numbers of arms,” Dempsay said.

Complicating efforts to regain control of the north is a humanitarian crisis brought on by a drought, and political turmoil in the capital, Bamako, in the south. Mali’s weak central government is under the control of a group of junior military officers who led a coup in March that prompted the United States to suspend direct military cooperation.

More http://www.voanews.com/content/mali-us-military/1532074.html

See also:

More Islamist Fighters Deploy in Northern Mali
October 22, 2012 - Hundreds of additional Islamist fighters have deployed in northern Mali, as neighboring countries make plans to send troops to the troubled nation.


According to witnesses, the fighters began deploying last week, after the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution asking West African bloc ECOWAS to submit its plans for a Mali force. Residents report seeing hundreds of Tunisian and Egyptian militants in the city of Gao, while many other militants went to the central town of Douentza, close to Malian army positions in Mopti.

Mali's interim government has called for help to oust Islamist militants who seized control of the north after a March military coup in the capital, Bamako. In an interview with VOA Monday, a spokesman for Islamist group Ansar Dine said he could not confirm an influx of foreign fighters.

But the spokesman, Sanda Ould Bouamama, said Muslims have an obligation to help the militants in what he called an unjust and illegal war against Islam. On Friday, Mali's interim president called for swift foreign intervention to retake the north.

More http://www.voanews.com/content/mail-fighters-deploy/1531035.html

shaarona
10-29-2012, 05:48 AM
In life, he delighted in fomenting insurgencies in the African nations to the south. And in death, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi is doing it all over again.

Hundreds of Tuareg rebels, heavily armed courtesy of Colonel Qaddafi’s extensive arsenal, have stormed towns in Mali’s northern desert in recent weeks, in one of the most significant regional shock waves to emanate directly from the colonel’s fall.

After fighting for Colonel Qaddafi as he struggled to stay in power, the Tuaregs helped themselves to a considerable quantity of sophisticated weaponry before returning to Mali. When they got here, they reinvigorated a longstanding rebellion and blossomed into a major challenge for this impoverished desert nation, an important American ally against the regional Al Qaeda franchise.

The Tuaregs hoisted their rebel flag in the sandy northern towns, shelled military installations, announced the “liberation” of the area and shouted “Allahu akbar,” or “God is great,” according to local officials. Their sudden strength has deeply surprised a Malian Army accustomed to fighting wispy turbaned fighters wielding only Kalashnikov rifles.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/world/africa/tuaregs-use-qaddafis-arms-for-rebellion-in-mali.html

The first I've read of Qaddafi's unguarded weapons being used in other states. I'm sure there will be more. There were some that could threaten U.S. military if I remember correctly. Stingers maybe?

I think those weapons will be showing up everywhere...

Peter1469
10-29-2012, 09:08 AM
Good job Obama....

shaarona
10-30-2012, 03:54 AM
Good job Obama....

This would have happened no matter who was US president.

Peter1469
10-30-2012, 09:58 AM
This would have happened no matter who was US president.

Not true. It is likely that without US military support, Gaddafi would have held onto power.

shaarona
10-30-2012, 10:07 AM
Not true. It is likely that without US military support, Gaddafi would have held onto power.

I doubt it because Libya imports 95% of their food and the 7 oil majors pulled their people out.

Ghadafi needed the oil revenue. His assets were frozen and he had to pay his African mercenaries.

He would simply have killed the Libyans who opposed him until Libya turned into Somalia.

He was NOT a smart guy.. No education at all.

Peter1469
10-30-2012, 11:07 AM
I doubt it because Libya imports 95% of their food and the 7 oil majors pulled their people out.

Ghadafi needed the oil revenue. His assets were frozen and he had to pay his African mercenaries.

He would simply have killed the Libyans who opposed him until Libya turned into Somalia.

He was NOT a smart guy.. No education at all.

The oil companies would not have pulled out had NATO not be bombing Libya.

shaarona
10-30-2012, 11:13 AM
The oil companies would not have pulled out had NATO not be bombing Libya.

Oh for God's sake.. they pulled out before NATO..

Libya's oil production plunged from 1.3 million barrels per day to 300,000 barrels per day.. and everyone, including the Chinese pulled their personnel.

Plus, Libyan refugees were flooding into Europe.. mostly Italy.

Peter1469
10-30-2012, 11:28 AM
Oh for God's sake.. they pulled out before NATO..

Libya's oil production plunged from 1.3 million barrels per day to 300,000 barrels per day.. and everyone, including the Chinese pulled their personnel.

Plus, Libyan refugees were flooding into Europe.. mostly Italy.

If NATO assured the oil companies that they were not going to bomb, the oil companies would not have left.

shaarona
10-30-2012, 05:39 PM
If NATO assured the oil companies that they were not going to bomb, the oil companies would not have left.

They left weeks before the decision by NATO and the Arab League. First, the wives and kids leave.. then non-essential personnel, then the rest bug out.. That's what oil people do..

And , oil companies don't like hazard pay or increased insurance..

Peter1469
10-30-2012, 06:15 PM
They left weeks before the decision by NATO and the Arab League. First, the wives and kids leave.. then non-essential personnel, then the rest bug out.. That's what oil people do..

And , oil companies don't like hazard pay or increased insurance..

Oil companies have veto power over these sorts of decisions.....

shaarona
10-30-2012, 06:40 PM
Oil companies have veto power over these sorts of decisions.....

Trust me they don't..

Its too risky in a war zone.. refineries and GOSPS and pipelines are too vulnerable to attack and sabotge.

Peter1469
10-30-2012, 07:31 PM
Trust me they do. They have run Western foreign policy for decades.