Notebook From Senator Collins
Senator John McCain joined me for my fourth meeting, which was with Mahmoud Jibril, the Acting Prime Minister of Libya under the Transitional National Council. This is a pivotal time for Libya, and the report the Prime Minister gave us was very worrisome. He is, to date, unable to gain control of the militias, one of the largest of which is led by an Islamist extremist. He also pointed to unhelpful interference by Qatar. When we asked what he intended to do to gain control of the militias and form a national army, he shocked us by saying that he was going to resign, news that will become public shortly if it hasn't already.
Although Qadhafi needed to be ousted, I have long been concerned about what would happen in Libya post-Qadhafi. Some East Libyan leaders have ties to al Qaeda and have been a source of foreign fighters in Iraq. Tribal tensions make it difficult to unify the country and create openings for alliances with terrorists groups. The PM's inability to exercise control over the militias confirms some of my worst fears.
I expressed my grave concerns about the fate of the MANPADs, shoulder-fired missiles, of which Qadhafi allegedly had more than 20,000 in some 36 weapons depots. PM Jibril confirmed that some of them have "vanished." In the hands of terrorists, these weapon could pose a significant threat to passenger airplanes. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and I have written to administration officials urging them to work with the Libyans to try to locate and secure these weapons. The safe disposal of a recently discovered supply of chemical weapons is also of great concern.
Finally, I also asked the PM about the conflicting reports about how Qadhafi was killed. The PM said that he had seen the body and the coroner maintained that Qadhafi was killed in a crossfire after being found already wounded. I must say that while videos can be doctored and misleading, I find the coroner's explanation unconvincing.
It is going to be a tough, uncertain road ahead for Libya.
Although Qadhafi needed to be ousted, I have long been concerned about what would happen in Libya post-Qadhafi. Some East Libyan leaders have ties to al Qaeda and have been a source of foreign fighters in Iraq. Tribal tensions make it difficult to unify the country and create openings for alliances with terrorists groups. The PM's inability to exercise control over the militias confirms some of my worst fears.
I expressed my grave concerns about the fate of the MANPADs, shoulder-fired missiles, of which Qadhafi allegedly had more than 20,000 in some 36 weapons depots. PM Jibril confirmed that some of them have "vanished." In the hands of terrorists, these weapon could pose a significant threat to passenger airplanes. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and I have written to administration officials urging them to work with the Libyans to try to locate and secure these weapons. The safe disposal of a recently discovered supply of chemical weapons is also of great concern.
Finally, I also asked the PM about the conflicting reports about how Qadhafi was killed. The PM said that he had seen the body and the coroner maintained that Qadhafi was killed in a crossfire after being found already wounded. I must say that while videos can be doctored and misleading, I find the coroner's explanation unconvincing.
It is going to be a tough, uncertain road ahead for Libya.
