NOTE: Soon we will rename the liveblog "Witnessing Revolution". There will be a transition name: EoE&R Witnessing Revolution". What started in Egypt has spread rapidly. It's not clear that it will be limited by geography or ethnicity. So, we wanted a name which states what is happening yet allows us to grow with the movement, wherever that will be. EoE&R is an acronym for the previous name, which is also the group name, so it seems redundant. The number sequence will be continuous. The group name will remain the same. Only this particular diary series within the group will have a name change.
You are in the the 134th Child Diary of the Liveblog of the 2011 uprisings throughout North Africa and the Middle East. We stand with our international friends and their courageous struggle for dignity, self-determination and human rights.
PLS REC this diary. PLS UNREC the previous diary.
The liveblog is primarily for witnessing, for other activities see the group stream.
We are in the process of collecting suggested readings for background reference materials in support of the Eyes on Egypt and the Region group. These readings may be either non-fiction or fiction, general to the region or specific to a country or issue. If there are resources which you believe aid our understanding of the events and processes we are witnessing, please either a) post a comment in the Liveblog with the title "Suggested reading:" and a brief description of the reading in the body of the comment, or b) send your suggestions via the dKos internal mailer to angry marmot.
Please place links and info for intervention ideas (humanitarian and beyond) in comments titled "Intervention". We encourage you to provide information without imploring, disrespecting those who might not pursue the intervention, or engaging long debates about the merits. With uniform content labeling, those interested can readily find them and those who want to produce intervention diaries can gather the data efficiently. Please post the link if you do produce an intervention resource diary. We'll include it in the next updated liveblog. Thank you.
LIBYA: Libya was removed from the UN Human Rights Council today. US ships are headed through the Suez Canal and into the Mediterranean. There is international debate about the efficacy of a no-fly zone. Meanwhile, Gaddafi is rambling on again this morning, while his forces attack some of the towns he's lost control of.
Also, the U.S. seems to be generating a "Libya could sink into civil war" meme. Could our government be setting us all up to justify going in militarily? And why are the media supporting this civil war meme by calling the protesters "rebels"? The Libyans standing up to an oppressive regime don't appreciate it:
DinaNegad 5:24am via web
RT @ShababLibya: MEDIA: Stop calling Libyan protesters rebels! We are protesters calling for our freedom that is all. We are not rebels. #libya #feb17
UN kicks Libya off Human Rights Council
THE UN General Assembly on Tuesday suspended Libya from the UN Human Rights Council over leader Muammar Gaddafi's brutal crackdown on opposition protests.
One has to wonder how Libya got on the council in the first place. What's their definition of "human rights" or "council"?
U.S. warships move through Suez, Gaddafi defiant
Two U.S. warships were passing through the Suez Canal on their way to waters off Libya on Wednesday as Western nations exerted diplomatic and military pressure on Muammar Gaddafi to step down.
The United States said Libya could sink into civil war unless the Libyan leader ends his four-decade rule amid fears that the uprising, the bloodiest yet against long-serving rulers in the Middle East, could cause a humanitarian crisis.
On the no-fly zone (which would require hundreds of planes flying 24 hours per day and bombing raids to enforce):
David Cameron defends no-fly zone plan for Libya
Libya: Cameron plan for no-fly zone shunned by world leaders
A No-Fly Zone Over Libya? Ctd
quoting Jim Matthis:
I have been working under the suspicion that most of the good-natured people clamoring for a no-fly zone in Libya have not thought very hard about what, exactly, that might entail. Most of the people insisting the United States DO SOMETHING are either ignorant about the risks and complexities of contemporary military operations or gloss over those risks and complexities. [For more on no-fly zones, read this informative piece by my old colleague Michael Knights.]
I can't bring myself to link to Faux News who seem to be the only ones turning to Mr. Irrelevant #1 (McCain). He is insisting that the US has the money to enforce a no-fly zone in Libya. And should. (I'm sure you all can guess who Mr. Irrelevant #2 is.)
Internal Libyan opinion on a no-fly zone is difficult to get a handle on. It seems that the closer you are to Tripoli, the more you might support it.
More regional tidbits after the fold....bold section names indicate fresh content...
PLS REC THIS DIARY! Will you please do the following to keep our dKos community eyes on our international friends risking their lives for self-determination?
1. Rec this diary. (click that star just under the title)
2. "Follow" " Eyes on Egypt and the Region"by clicking on the link and then scrolling down the group box on the right-hand side and clicking "Follow".
3. Get the word out by putting links in FP threads and telling all your friends.
Thank you!
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