The interim Prime Minister of Libya was reported to have declared that Moammar Khadhafi has been killed. The outcome was expected for some time now since rebel forces had gained ascendancy in the conflict months back.
Khadhafi was leader of Libya almost as long as I have been alive and certainly as long as I could have been aware of any political leader. His rule was known for many years as one that defined state-sponsored terrorism. From terrorist training camps to airline bombings, Libya seemed to always be involved at some level. The punitive attacks/ attempted assassinations against him that were launched by the US during the Reagan administration were a source of a resurgence in US pride and communicated that the enervated days of the 70s US were over.
It is interesting that his decline occurred some time after he renounced terrorism and agreed to compensation for the families of the Lockerbie bombing. It is also noteworthy that leftists were fond of speaking about him in the late 80s - early 90s as being good for his country and Libyan people. That opinion apparently was missed by the actual Libyan people.
The news articles, from several sources, also mentioned what many had expected - that the various groups that united to form the resistance will now be jockeying for their piece of the pie from this point.
Khadhafi's government was a product of the days of Arab nationalism that paid lip service to pan-Arabism but preferred in practice to stick with a Socialist-leaning economy and a refusal to surrender national sovereignty to any confederate body. With restrictions such as nationalism likely to be brushed aside as radical Islamic groups work with each other, it seems probable that these will find a way to keep any well-intentioned moderates from having any appreciable influence in the future affairs of Libya.
Once that is accomplished, how far way will be a unification, in part or total, of those countries that have overthrown the long-reigning autocracies that have been around since the 60s and 70s? Those who put Islam first literally have nothing to hold them back from enthusiastically embracing a united Arab-Islamic union.
Is this a step towards the restoration of the Caliphate?
And NATO of course helped.
The Hot Gates - 480BC. An event that was to determine what path much of the Western World would follow occurred as the Persian army threatened to overwhelm Greece in 480BC. The West today again faces both external and internal threats to its identity and existence.
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