TerrorismLibya condemns U.S. capture of al-Ruqai
The Libyan government on Sunday harshly criticized what it described as the “kidnapping” of one of its citizens after U.S. Specia Forces captured al Qaeda senior leader Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai. The Libyan military indicated it was not privy to the U.S. operation. Libya does not have a functioning central government, except in name, and U.S. efforts to shore up the weak and demoralized Libyan security services and train them in counterterrorism have yet to bear fruit. Other problems with Libyan security services are corruption, and the fact that many in the security services are more loyal to their clan or tribe than to the government they serve. This is why even Libya’s military leaders, who have received counterterrorism training and funding from the United States, have not been informed of the operation in advance.
The Libyan government on Sunday harshly criticized what it described as the “kidnapping” of one of its citizens after the car of al Qaeda senior leader Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, who goes by the alias Anas al-Libi, was stopped by foreign-looking “commandos” who took him away.
“Since hearing the news, the Libyan government has been in contact with American authorities and has asked them to offer clarification,” the government said, insisting that Libyans who face terrorism charges should be tried at home.
The government noted, though, that it saw its relationship with the United States a “strategic partnership” which would not be imperiled by Saturday’s operation.
The Libyan military indicated it was not privy to the U.S. operation. “We found out from media outlets just like everybody else,” said Aly Sheikhi, a spokesman for the Libyan armed forces chief of staff.
U.S. officials hailed the capture of al-Ruqai, who was the mastermind behind the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, as an intelligence coup which that will seriously disrupt efforts in in North Africa.
The Washington Post notes that the capture of al-Ruqai and his secret removal from Libya was a rare instance of U.S. military conducting a “rendition” operation, long the province of the CIA or the FBI.
“These operations in Libya and Somalia send a strong message to the world that the United States will spare no effort to hold terrorists accountable, no matter where they hide or how long they evade justice,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in a statement. “We will continue to maintain relentless pressure on terrorist groups that threaten our people or our interests, and we will conduct direct action against them, if necessary, that is consistent with our laws and our values.”
“Our personnel in the armed forces conducted two operations in order to continue to hunt down those responsible for acts of terrorism,” Secretary of State John F. Kerry said Sunday in Indonesia, where he is attending a summit. “We hope that this makes clear that the United States of America never stops in its efforts to hold accountable those who conduct acts of terror.”
U.S. officials noted that an operation similar to the capture of al-Ruqai was the April 2011 capture and detention of Ahmed Warsame, a Somali who was the liaison between the Somali branch of al Qaeda and the organization’s Yemeni affiliate. Warsame was seized aboard a fishing vessel in the Gulf of Aden, and in late 2011 pleaded guilty in federal court to providing material support to terrorist organizations.
Warsame was secretly held at sea on a U.S. Navy ship for forty days for questioning before being flown to New York.
The New York Times reports that al-Ruqai, too, is being held in military custody on a Navy ship in the Mediterranean Sea.
Robert Chesney, an expert in national security law at the University of Texas, told the Post that because al-Ruqai’s detention has been immediately disclosed — unlike Warsame’s — the Obama administration will probably come under pressure to bring him before a judge in New York quickly.
“The longer you hold him, the trickier it gets,” Chesney said, noting that a prolonged military detention could become problematic for federal prosecutors in a civilian court.
Since to fall of Col. Qaddafi in November 2011, Libya has been without a functioning central government. The government controls, at best, a few city blocks in central Tripoli, but the rest of the country is lawless, with different regions, cities, and villages controlled by dozens of different militias. Some of the militias in east Libya are Islamist, while others have ethnic, tribal, or clan roots. These militias often fight each other in the open.
The vast network of security services and militias established by Col. Qaddafi during his 42-year reign was dismantled, as were the police and the army. The security services now available to the government are small, weak, and demoralized, with most of the weapons in the country in the hands of the militias.
The United States has been trying to shore up the Libyan security services and train them in counterterrorism, but without much success. A deeper problem is corruption, and the fact that many in the security services are more loyal to their clan or tribe than to the government they serve.
This is why, the Post notes, even Libya’s military leaders, who have received counterterrorism training and funding from the United States, have not been informed of the operation in advance.
U.S. officials declined to say whether the Libyan government had been notified in advance of Saturday’s operation, but did say that Washington regards the Libyan government “a partner in the fight against al-Qaeda.”
