The Libyan rebels have disbanded their executive committee after acknowledging procedural errrors in the wake of the killing of rebel military chief Abdel Fattah Younes.
No-on within the National Transitional Council (NTC) is affected by the move. “Given the shortcomings in the performance of some members of the executive committee with regard to this crisis and this incident, the Council has decided to form a new committee,” rebel spokesman Abdel-Hafiz Ghoga told Al Jazeera television.
Younes was killed in custody, having been arrested by fellow rebels. The exact circumstances of Younes’s death remain unclear, though senior figures in the rebel movement blamed Gaddafi loyalists.
Younes – a defector from Gaddafi’s regime – Â was at the head of a large tribe in Libya, a country in which tribal allegiances can come before national identity.Â
In other news, the rebels are also determined to extablish dedicated squads to guard oil infrastructure in the east of the country from sabotage by Gaddafi loyalists. Senior rebel figures have already said it will take years, not months, to get the country back to its pre-war production level of 1.6 barrels per day.
The Financial Times has reported that the NTC is in the process of establishing a dedicated force, and has made links with rural southern tribes in areas where facilities and pipelines are located. The NTC has also reportedly approached Turkey for a $6 million loan for patrol equipment, including night vision goggles.
Since the beginning of the UN-mandated NATO operation began on 31 March a total of 18,279 sorties, including 6,946 strike sorties, have been conducted from the air.
