News you may have missed #541

Libyan rebels

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
►►Western-aided Libyan rebels use child soldiers as young as seven, loot towns and abuse civilians. Few in the West would argue that Libyan strongman Muammar al-Gaddafi is a humanitarian leader who deserves international support. It is way too often the case, however, that the Libyan rebels, who have been doggedly fighting Gaddafi for months, are portrayed in the West as angels in military fatigues. Two recent underreported articles from Libya may be worth noting in this respect. In one of them, a British war correspondent supplies substantial photographic evidence to show that anti-government rebels routinely use child solders as young as seven to fight in the civil war, which is both unethical and illegal. In another report, the New York-based group Human Rights Watch, tells Reuters news agency that Libyan rebel fighters who captured villages from forces loyal to Gaddafi have looted shops, burned homes and beaten civilians suspected of supporting the Libyan leader. This raises the question of what will happen to the masses of pro-Gaddafi supporters if the rebels capture the entire country? Should neighboring nations (including Libyan opposition supporters France and Italy) be preparing for an unprecedented exodus of pro-Gaddafi supporters? ►►UK politicians demand extra powers to hold spies to account. In Britain, meanwhile, a group of parliamentarians calling themselves The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC), have called for immediate measures to improve the transparency and accountability of the country’s intelligence services. Read more of this post