Henry Srebrnik: Arab Awakening Arrives in Libya
[Henry Srebrnik is a professor of political studies at UPEI.]
By any measure, the North African state of Libya is one of the more bizarre countries in the world.
For the past 42 years, it has been governed by the mercurial and eccentric Moammar Gadhafi. The longest-serving ruler in the Middle East, Qaddafi has until now ruled this oil-rich desert state with little in the way of opposition.
However, the revolts sweeping the Arab world – including those in his neighbours Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia – have now caught up to him. His absolute authority is under assault.
Formally under the rule of Ottoman Turkey, Libya entered the twentieth century ridden with tribal conflicts and lacking strong central authority....
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By any measure, the North African state of Libya is one of the more bizarre countries in the world.
For the past 42 years, it has been governed by the mercurial and eccentric Moammar Gadhafi. The longest-serving ruler in the Middle East, Qaddafi has until now ruled this oil-rich desert state with little in the way of opposition.
However, the revolts sweeping the Arab world – including those in his neighbours Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia – have now caught up to him. His absolute authority is under assault.
Formally under the rule of Ottoman Turkey, Libya entered the twentieth century ridden with tribal conflicts and lacking strong central authority....