PrintApril 6, 2011
NATO planes nowhere to be found as rebels flee Brega
This is so tragic, it is becoming a black comedy.
Rebel commander on NATO assistance:
Even after a senior rebel leader criticized the NATO-led air campaign for a second straight day, there was still no sign of the air power that two weeks ago seemed to have the loyalist forces reeling toward the Qaddafi stronghold of Surt, more than 100 miles to the west.Who's in charge? A committee comprising NATO, the Arab League, and a few other nations belonging to the coalition. They are the ones making decisions on where to bomb, how to support the rebels. Given that both Turkey and Germany are against air strikes at all, its a wonder any NATO planes get off the ground.Abdul Fattah Younes, the head of the rebel army, lashed out at NATO during a news conference in Benghazi on Tuesday, accusing it of indecision and lengthy delays in carrying out needed airstrikes. "What is NATO doing?" he said "Civilians are dying every day. They use the excuse of collateral damage."
Mr. Younes said that the rebels had fixed some of their planes and could to dispatch them to aid the rebel ground forces in a matter of minutes, but "They said ‘No, don't use your planes,'" he said.
The world without American leadership. How's it look to you?
