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A messenger of Qaddafi lobbies against land invasion in Libya

04 April 2011 / 14:04:13  GRReporter
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Diplomatic fever seized this weekend Athens, which met the Deputy Foreign Minister of Libya Abdul Ati al-Obeidi in late Sunday. He was personally accepted by the Prime Minister George Papandreou. To prepare well for the personal meeting with the envoy of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, the Greek Prime Minister spoke on Saturday with his British counterpart David Cameroon, with the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Thani Al Yabr and Libya's Al- Bangdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi. Still from the outset of the Libyan crisis, Greece and Turkey have called for a diplomatic solution to the situation to be found, and Papandreou and Erdogan offered their services as mediators during the Summit in Paris.

The military operations in Libya show that the rebels are losing positions and are ready for a settlement by compromise which is not accepted by the government forces. The Western powers are aware that the crisis in Libya will not be solved only through air strikes and the dilemma is whether to resort to land invasion or to arm the rebels so that they are able to resist the forces of Qaddafi. Some European countries are not inclined to take part in any of the options and insist on finding a diplomatic solution now. The final word on finding a compromise has not the West, but Muammar Qaddafi, who willingly sent his Deputy Foreign Minister to Athens to serve his personal message to Papandreou.

The arrival of the Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister was preceded by another transport and diplomatic thriller. According to Reuters, Obeidi arrived in Punis by airplane and then flew to Athens again by plane. The Tunisian TAP agency noted that Obeid had arrived by car in Tunisia. Obeidi had no contacts with officials of the Tunisian authorities. He got on a private Greek jet and flew to the Greek capital immediately.   

Although the content of the message was not disclosed to the media, the Greek analysts believe that Qaddafi's idea of ​​compromise is his withdrawal but one of his sons to take his place as a kind of guarantee for the smooth transition of the country from one political regime to another. What was officially announced by the Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas after the meeting was that Obeidi left the impression in his Greek hosts that the Libyan government is seeking a solution. "Greece will continue to support the search for peaceful solution in Libya," said in conclusion the Athenian first diplomat. After Athens, Abdel Ati al-Obeidi traveled to Turkey and Malta. As Deputy Foreign Minister he is responsible for the European Affairs.

The participation of Greece in the operations in Libya is not only diplomatic. The first wounded from the bombing of Libya were brought through Qatar to the military base in Souda on Crete. At first, 14 wounded were brought, and the four most seriously injured are hospitalized in the intensive care unit of the hospital in Chania. Six citizens who were in the same plane, but were not injured have been granted temporary stay in Greece because they are relatives of the victims. There are six Mirage 2000 of Qatar in the base in Souda which take part in the bombing of Libya.

Tags: LibyaMessengerMuammar el-QaddafiDiplomatic compromiseMilitary operationsAbdul Ati al-Obeidi
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