Posted on 07/15/2014 9:37:14 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
On October, 2011, amid a lethargic economic recovery, President Barack Obama a man who prided himself on ending wars, not starting them touted his foreign policy successes. Beyond the successful raid that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden, Obama noted that he had successfully solved two thorny international puzzles; ending the war in Iraq and successfully prosecuting a brief campaign to stem the violence in Libya.
In a speech in the White House, the president made the case for his own competency within an announcement regarding the beginning of the full withdrawal of American troops from the Mesopotamian theater.
“In Libya, the death of Muammar Gaddafi showed that our role in protecting the Libyan people, and helping them break free from a tyrant, was the right thing to do,” the president said. “In Iraq, we’ve succeeded in our strategy to end the war.
Those concerned about the vacuum the president was leaving in Iraq were ignored, and the chaos in that country has now vindicated Obamas critics. The dream of Islamists going back generations, the founding of a pan-Islamic caliphate, has been achieved in the Sunni regions of Syria and Iraq. Terrorist actors now operate with impunity in that caliphates interior. The Islamic States fighters are brazenly engaged in the pursuit of unconventional weapons while intelligence officials believe they continue to plan sophisticated attacks on Western targets.
But what about Libya where the president, without seeking Congressional approval, committed to military action with the aim of containing that countrys rapidly escalating civil war? The mission was a relative success and, in short order, rebel factions took Tripoli and executed Gaddafi one of the United States preferred, though neither stated nor pursued, mission objectives.
Today, that country is a disaster. The bleak future in store for Libya was glimpsed on the night of September 11, 2012 when four Americans were killed in a coordinated attack on American diplomatic and intelligence assets in Benghazi. Those attackers lived free in a virtually lawless state for the next several years.
Though it escaped front page treatment in the West, the Libyan civil war gradually entered its second stage a stage more closely resembling the situation in Iraq where a fragile and unpopular pro-Western government is failing to provide for its own defense in the face of an Islamist insurgency.
Like Iraq, Libyas Islamist insurgents are highly capable. On Monday, militants battled for control of the capitals airport. The government claims that 90 percent of the aircraft on the ground and several structures, including the customs house, were damaged in the fighting.
Amazing @libyaamazigh101 picture: militias from Zintan & Misrata fighting for control of Tripoli airport. #Libya pic.twitter.com/ESOkXGozQB
— Jon Williams (@WilliamsJon) July 14, 2014
Today, the Associated Press reported, Libyas interim governing authorities authorities which have been unable to organize a legitimate election in the more than three years since Gaddafi was deposed — are sounding the alarm bells.
Libya’s interim government says it is considering requesting the international community to send troops to the country after three days of fighting destroyed large parts of the capital’s airport, the report reads.
The question then becomes: who will take Libya’s call? What international body is today prepared to commit forces to stabilize Libya when the more strategically significant conflicts in Syria and Iraq have been ignored and allowed to metastasize? Libya is alone, and that country may soon more closely resemble a member of the caliphate that is strengthening in the Fertile Crescent.
Obama deserves to be criticized for prematurely declaring victory in these two theaters in the fall of 2011. He won political victories which served a short-term political purpose, but his administration failed to pursue a far-sighted strategy which would have prevented these states from collapsing.
When historians look back on this period through the précising lens of posterity, they will marvel over how rapidly the international landscape changed for the worse. To them, the legacy of peacemaking the president once coveted will appear quite irrational.
Anyone can end a war by giving up / withdrawing - notice he never said we "succeeded in our strategy to win the war".
Winning was never an option with this guy, it goes against the master plan.
The world Obama has created is coming apart at the seams ... thanks for nothing, Obama!
Looks like obama’s caliphate is coming together just fine. Is he going to wait till 2016 to take charge of it? Or is he just going to declare jihad on the US now and get it over with? The southern border is wide open right now, so the time to strike would be now, or in the very near future.
WW3, baby. We will put the monsters in charge and then will be shocked when they act monstrously. Maybe a nice false flag attack on America will serve to convince the American people that we have no choice but to launch a third and final World War.
Why final? This war will be so horrific that we will be told the only way to avoid this kind of horror is to hold hands and sing Kumbayah. In other words, form a functioning, powerful one-world government. Once we are all one people, there will be no need for war. See?
But, then the real darkness descends.
Quick!!! Get Obama another peace prize!!!
0bama destroyed the rigid structure of Gadaffi’s dictatorship and created a giant oil-backed terrorist training camp out of Libya.
Let’s remind ourselves of what happened in Libya ...
After the Arab Spring movements overturned the rulers of Tunisia and Egypt, Libya experienced a full-scale revolt beginning on 17 February 2011.
By 20 February, the unrest had spread to Tripoli. On 27 February 2011, the National Transitional Council was established to administer the areas of Libya under rebel control.
On 10 March 2011, France became the first state to officially recognise the council as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people.
Pro-Gaddafi forces were able to respond militarily to rebel pushes in Western Libya and launched a counterattack along the coast toward Benghazi, the de facto centre of the uprising.
Then of course, our “friends” ( note the quotes ) at the United Nations, including United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the United Nations Human Rights Council, condemned the crackdown as violating international law, with the latter body expelling Libya outright in an unprecedented action urged by Libya’s own delegation to the UN.
Then, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1973 with a 100 vote and five abstentions including Russia and China. The resolution sanctioned the establishment of a no-fly zone and the use of “all means necessary” to protect civilians within Libya.
On 19 March, the first act of NATO allies to secure the no-fly zone by destroying Libyan air defenses began when French military jets entered Libyan airspace on a reconnaissance mission heralding attacks on enemy targets.
NATO? Yep, that would be in effect — THE USA.
In the weeks that followed, American forces were in the forefront of NATO operations against Libya. More than 8,000 American personnel in warships and aircraft were deployed in the area. At least 3,000 targets were struck in 14,202 strike sorties, 716 of them in Tripoli and 492 in Brega.
Obama called that “LEADING FROM BEHIND”.
The American air offensive included flights of B-2 Stealth bombers, each bomber armed with sixteen 2000-pound bombs, flying out of and returning to their base in Missouri on the continental United States.
Clearly the support provided by the NATO air forces (AHEM, read, the AMERICAN AIRFORCE ) was pivotal in the ultimate success of the “revolution”.
But whose revolution? Were we aiding a better alternative to Gaddafi?
Well, we all know the rest of the story...
By 22 August 2011, rebel fighters had entered Tripoli and occupied Green Square, which they renamed Martyrs’ Square in honour of those killed since 17 February 2011.
On 20 October 2011 the last heavy fighting of the uprising came to an end in the city of Sirte, where Gadhafi was captured and killed. The defeat of loyalist forces was celebrated on 23 October 2011, three days after the fall of Sirte.
Since the defeat of Gaddafi’s loyalist forces, Libya has been torn among numerous, rival, armed militias affiliated to regions, cities and tribes, while the central government has been weak and unable to bring its authority over the country.
Competing militias have lined up against each other in a political struggle between Islamist politicians and their opponents.
Which leads us to what we have today...
So yes, we can thank Obama for (ahem) LEADING FROM BEHIND.
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The move is on to consolidate the Muslim world under the Muslim Brotherhood.
People still believe 0bama's foreign policy is simply bumbling and incompetence.
0bama has set Israel up the bomb...
Sept. 11, 2012Netanyahu gets the cold shoulder.
U.S. has no right to block Israel on Iran: Netanyahu
The embassy in Cairo puts out an apology for a movie most of the rioters know nothing about.
Former deputy national security adviser: US response to embassy attack bizarre and unacceptable
0bama sent a letter to Tehran assuring them that the U.S. will do nothing to help Israel. That takes that off of the table removing a big worry for them that might have made them think twice. Iran is good to go now with 0bama's blessing.
We don't support Israeli attack, US tells Iran
The "movie" turns out to be a red herring excuse to cover for the rioters.
CNN: Protests against film a diversion. Attack was planned
Quite a day of unfortunate coincidences. Israel was rebuffed and there were signals being sent to the MB and Iran. 0bama is giving the "go ahead" to the Muslim world to take out Israel.
Obama Admin Transferred 3,000 Detainees to Afghan Gov't Control Day Before 9/11The White House hands Iran's Ahmadinejad a global megaphone
REPORTS: No Live Ammo for Marines
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CNN: Protests against film a diversion. Attack was planned
Egypt intelligence warns (on Sept 4th) of attacks on Israel, US embassies
Congress was warned about Libya last month
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U.S. denies premeditation report
"The Obama administration is flatly denying a blaring British newspaper report that the U.S. diplomats in Libya were killed as a result of a continuing security breach, and that credible information about possible attacks had been ignored. A U.S. official told POLITICO: There's no intelligence indicating that the attack in Benghazi was premeditated."
Is that all incompetence? Or did it take planning to make all that happen?
Cloward & Pliven strategy and community organizing on a global scale?
This isn't just about getting re-elected, that's certainly a side benefit, this is about the big enchilada. No more Israel. The United States of the Muslim Brotherhood in the ME. ie the new Caliphate.
An article about Libya that doesn’t even mention General Hifter, the al-Sisi of Libya, who is fighting the islamists?
We should be supporting General Hifter in his war to annihilate Ansar al-sharia.
My care meter is in the shop.
The mass-murdering terrorist Kadaffy is burning in Hell where ue belongs.
Obama must be some kind of magician, ‘cuz everything he touches turns to crap!
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