Re intervention, I didn’t know what the flip to think when the whole thing kicked off in Libya so I was grateful for Marqusee’s article. At the level of gut feeling (plus empirical evidence) I just feel that NATO/UN consensus is usually wrong.

Anyway, I’m now subscribed and I look forward to our online paths crossing in future.

As for Libya, it’s an ugly situation. I can’t see how it would have been any better without the intervention. I’m against bombing Tripoli – that exceeds the UN mandate and probably galvanises Qaddafi’s supporters. I wish the Arabs were in a position to intervene, but they’re not. I think that having Qaddafi win back in March by slaughtering the Libyans would have been a disaster not only for Libya but for Syria and the rest of the Arab world too. By now, there is I think a good argument for winding down the intervention. The playing field is more even than it was at the start (Misrata has been liberated for a start, and the Western mountains are no longer under siege), and if qaddafi doesn’t go soon there must be negotiations.

I don’t support humanitarian intervention as a principle, and from a British perspective the intervention is probably overall a bad thing. I was thinking from an Arab perspective and I wasn’t thinking on general principle. I make no apologies for that. Every case, and every moment, is different.

It’s funny but I first heard of your site through a zionist blog and when I saw your comment on Atzmon, antisemitism and zionism, I thought I’d pay you a visit. Having read the discussion between yourself and Massoud I now suspect the blogger who linked to you did so because of where you stand on Libya. So, I would be interested to know where you now stand on the western intervention against Libya. I am not a writer like you so I tend to blog other people’s writing. So when I read Mike Marqusee’s take on the Libya affair I blogged it here. Check out this opening piece:

In the Guardian, Jonathan Freedland writes that liberal interventionism is “fine in theory” but goes wrong “in practise”. I’d suggest that it goes wrong in practise because it’s deeply flawed in theory.

In solidarity

Mark Elf

In your essay “Reflections on Libya and the Left” -April 19th- you wrote: “I hope the revolution continues and develops and deepens after Gaddafi.” In the recent days, NATO warplanes by relentless bombardment of the Libyan capital, have terrorized more than 1.7 million people in Tripoli. Do you still believe that the NATO terror bombings and the escalation of the military intervention in Libya by the U.S. and the European military powers still would help the revolution against Gaddafi’s dictatorship? I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Massoud
*FYI: I wrote the below piece right after the U.S. launched the first cruise missiles against Libya. I believe my assessment was correct.

* * *
Only fools support the military intervention against Libya
Massoud Nayeri
Sat 3/19/2011 4:22 PM

According to the Pentagon briefing, a few hours ago, the U.S. launched the first cruise missiles against Libya. This military assault is supported by French and British military powers with the approval of the UN Security Council. The aim supposedly is to “Protect” the Libyan people. But the recent military aggression against Iraq and Afghanistan indicates that the intention of these military interventions are not “Humanitarian”. Despite any claims, this military assault will not be limited only to the so-called “No-Fly Zone” operation and this is just another form of occupation for Libya, a former colonial country. This aggression will not help or boost the Libyan opposition in their struggle for freedom and the fight against the Gaddafi’s dictatorship; on the contrary, it will transform Libya to a war zone which endangers the lives of millions of innocent Libyans.

Only fools would support such a military intervention against Libya, while all the governments of these aggressors – U.S., U.K. and France- are cutting the budgets for social programs, somehow they easily can spend about $200 millions per week to implement the “No-Fly Zone” in Libya alone!

Stop the war against Libya, spend the money on social programs.