The Lybian Crisis of 2011

Protestants in Libya were attacked by security forces, reportedly snipers, under the orders of former leader of Libya Gaddafi and his circle including intelligence chief Abdullah Al-Senussi and son Saif al-Islam. The events left thousands of civilians including women and children, dead and gravely injured which caught the attention of the ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo. Although these crimes were judicially the responsibility of the Libyan government, it had failed in stopping and preventing these crimes from being committed which ultimately made them responsible in the eyes of Justice. Although before the ICC could get their hands on Gaddafi and his sons Libyan authorities in Tripoli arrested them and sentenced his sons and eight other

Just a few years ago, Libya had one of the highest standards of living of any African country. Now Libya is in political turmoil with multiple groups and governments trying to gain power. In 1969, Muammar Gaddafi seized power of Libya by a military coup. The authoritarian ruler stayed in power for four decades until 2011 when he was killed in an armed rebellion assisted by Western military intervention. The UN intervened in Libya for human rights reasons, not to facilitate a regime change. Shortly after Gaddafi was killed, foreign assistance disappeared leaving Libya fragile and hostile. The Libyan civil war began as a part of the Arab uprising, with two main opposing forces, the government and rebel militias. The military groups that had once fought to topple Gaddafi began to turn on each other in an attempt to gain power and oil wealth. Libya is now more ideologically divided than ever and in need of a plan to revive its nation.

In February 2011, intense fighting broke out when a revolution hit Libya. This revolution led to the removal of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi who was the leader of Libya from 1969 through to 2011 and erupted into an on-going civil war since 2014 causing security instability (Bruce St John, 2008).

Libya is a country east of Egypt with just over 6,000,000 people. Libya’s first ruler was King Idris I, he was elected after World War II when the people were looking for a new leader. He was Libya's only King. He established embassies with many large countries such as the U.S. and also allowed U.S. military to come in to restore and maintain the rights of the Libyan people in his first decade as a king. After King Idris I died in 1969, Libya fell apart. A new ruler, Gaddafi, began destroying Libya and its government. In 1972 tensions increased so much between the American and Libyan governments the American ambassador was removed from the embassy in Tripoli. In 1979 all American embassy workers were removed after an attack. In 2011 the people

NATO has impacted human rights around the world by enforcing existing laws, forging alliances between countries, and being a trailblazer in protecting human rights. During the Libyan Civil War of 2011, protestors that wanted democracy were brutally subdued and slaughtered by the special forces of the Libyan government (Haglund). Since they are the ones perpetrating the atrocities, it is natural that they would not want the international community to interfere. However, NATO successfully invoked the Responsibility to Protect, which is an idea adopted by the UN in 2005 that when a country is either unable or unwilling to protect its citizens from war crimes, ethnic cleansing, or in this case, crimes against humanity, then others can step

In 1994, Libya proposed to have a trial in a neutral country, with international judges. This plan was rejected by the United States and the United Kingdom. In 1998, the U.S. and U.K. offered a trial in a neutral country, with Scottish judges. Libya accepted the terms of the agreement in 1999. Intelligence led policing must recognize that “most members of virtually all terrorist

consulate were linked. According to demonstrators participating in the protests and ousting of the militias, Libyans have had enough of extremists a year after ousting long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi, especially after the recent attacks. On the other side, those who are pro-Ansar al-Sharia protested in support of the extremist group, justifying the killing of the Americans with the offense the U.S. had committed against Islam with the release of the now notorious film.

Libya’s has gone under foreign rule for many centuries until it obtained its independence in 1951 from Italy. After Libya has acquired its independence from Italy, they have established the United Kingdom of Libya under the King Muhammad Idris. After Libya has gained its independence, Libya was one of the weak states around the globe. Libya was the biggest recipient of foreign aid from other countries such as the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

U.S. diplomatic ties with Libya were fated to fall apart ever since 1969, when Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi “overthrew the unpopular pro-Western monarchy of King Idris.” Less than one year in 1970, after assuming power in Libya, Qaddafi started to put Libya onto a path of independence from Western aid and control by putting the country’s resources “under state control and alliances forged with nearby Arab nations.” It was during this year that Qaddafi also “expelled US oil firms that had invested in the country and banned US military vessels from Libyan waters. The US responded in kind by “freezing Libyan assets in US banks” and by getting the UN Security Council nations to impose economic sanctions and trade embargos on Libya for its involvement in a 1991 terrorist attack on a passenger jet over Scotland, leaving

The United States (U.S.) has strategic interests in a stable Libya. The U.S. established diplomatic relations with Libya following the United Nations (UN) supported declaration of independence in 1951. A stable Libya requires the U.S. to continue endorsing support for a free, democratic nation due to Libya being an active member of the international community (Libya, n.d.). Furthermore, building democratic institutions, protecting the universal rights of all Libyans, promoting accountable and honest government, rebuilding its economy, and establishing security throughout the country are challenges Libya faces. This study will discuss the significance of U.S. involvement in stabilizing Libya, regional impacts of potential economic fallout, security and U.S. national security (Affairs, 2013). The U.S focus in Libya supports capacity building efforts within the government institutions, developing civil society and facilitating free and fair elections since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 (Libya, n.d.). Instability in Libya will affect the world’s U.S. based major oil companies invested and operating within Libya. Furthermore, the U.S. has a trade and investment framework agreement with Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (a free trade area with twenty member states stretching from Libya to Swaziland) to consider if sanctions are once more placed upon Libya (Libya, n.d.). To counter this instability, the U.S. coordinates projects with the United Nations

Over the past three months, Libya has witnessed unparalleled change. The civil unrest in the country was sparked in late 2010 when a young Tunisian man by the name of Mohamed Bouazizi, lit himself on fire out of frustration of the corruption and exploitation in the country. This act was motivated by an underlying exasperation for the political, social and economic depravity throughout the Middle East and North

On September 1,1969 Muammar Gaddafi, leader of the Revolutionary Command Council, overthrew King Idris and took control of Libyan government. Gaddafi’s actions were fueled by his want of independence from western civilization and to obtain power over the majority of the oil supply in Libya (Okechukwu, 2012). During his 42 year reign of power, Gaddafi made many

The months following the Arab Spring were a turbulent time in across North Africa, but especially in Libya. In November 2011, a month after the death

The UN has policies in place to moniter the cease fire agreement and protect the city of Kigali, after the Rwandan situation deteriorated further the security council expanded the origanal resolution to secure and protect the refugees and civilians at risk. I believe, that the UN did as much as they could with the information they had; however, I believe that the UN has had previous problems with the interventions of countries that have decended into chaos.

Much recent discourse surrounding humanitarian intervention has focused on the responsibility to protect (R2P). Prevention is a key component for good international relations and few would say it is not important, but as evidence to date would show prevention is very ineffective, the legality of military intervention still needs to be debated, as to date there is no consensus. For any intervention to be legitimate, whether unilateral or multilateral, it must comply with international law. So as not to cause any confusion, any situation in which an “intervention” is done with the permission or by request of the state being intervened, should be considered humanitarian assistance as state sovereignty is not breached. This paper will