Nalut- Last night a cool wind came sweeping up from the Sahara and brought the temperature here in the western Jebel Nafusa way down. It also was a miraculous night to observe the brilliant cosmos above. Nalut really wasn’t such…
Category: Libya
Jebel Nafusa Imagery
Nalut- It’s hot as Hades here today but then where is it not that hot? Wilting from the temperatures with the local Nalutis, I am putting up a few snaps from my Blackberry to kill some time and illustrate part…
In Western Libya
Nalut- Spent a very quiet day working in the rebel media center after a long day yesterday. Nalut is a hot, dusty, empty town but in some odd way I feel rather comfortable here. My Amazigh (Berber) hosts are incredibly…
Inside the Other Free Libya
Nalut- Made it from Djerba all the way to Nalut. One long hot day down the coast and into the Sahara. Incredible Berber hospitality here. Lots of questions though. Not quite as stable as I would have hoped or thought.…
Jebel Nafusa or Bust!
Djerba- Heading via a couple of what I expect will be very hot louage (minibus/taxi things) rides to the western Libyan border tomorrow. I’m sure going to miss Djerba. It’s quite a nice place and I’m looking forward to coming…
CNN Crew Under Serious Fire in Nafusa, AJE Had Better Luck
Barcelona- Wow, does this look scary. And I do not say that lightly. Watch:
Gains in Western Libya
New York- I have become increasingly interested in the gradual opening up of large swaths of western Libya in the peaks and valleys of the Nafusa Mountains. Until recently, this Berber populated area was one of the more under reported…
MLM Cracks the Mainstream, Journos Let Go from Libya
New York- I was pleased to see my publication Militant Leadership Monitor, referenced in the endnotes of Bruce Riedel’s new Brookings book Deadly Embrace: Pakistan, America, and the Future of Global Jihad. This is the first citation of MLM in…
Ajdabiya’s Midan ‘Hetherington’
New York- I’ve just read on Al Jazeera English that the staff of the hospital in Ajdabiya have decided to rename a square after fallen English journalist Tim Hetherington. When I read that he had died in Misurata, my first…
Libya-The (New) Most Dangerous Place
Washington D.C.- I gave a presentation today here in DC about my experiences, observations, and analysis of what I witnessed in Libya during a few harrowing weeks in March. I was sure to mention that a colleague of mine, Clare…
The Impact of Arab Uprisings on Regional Stability in the Middle East and North Africa
Washington D.C.- For anyone in the DC area tomorrow, I will be presenting “The Mitsubishi War” about my recent Libya sojourn at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace at 11am near the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and 17th Street.
March Issue of Militant Leadership Monitor Out Now!
Cairo- The new issue of Militant Leadership Monitor (MLM) was released today by the Jamestown Foundation and it is our strongest issue yet. In this issue: • The MILF’s Murad Ebrahim by Zachary Abuza (which is our gratis article this…
The View From Egypt
Alexandria- Nothing too, too much to report here from Alex. Just quietly working away on the next issue of Militant Leadership Monitor which is looking to be my best issue yet. Got a serious trick up my sleeve on this…
Walking Like An Egyptian
Cairo- I’ve been enjoying myself wandering around Cairo’s slightly Islamabad-esque (but way more lively) Zamalek island the last couple of days. Zamalek, the city’s diplomatic enclave, is a breezy oasis squeezed in the middle of the Arab world’s Mumbai. I’m…
“City of the Living!”
Cairo- Took a very leisurely journey from the relative calm of Alexandria’s Midan Saad Zaghloul and a week of regrouping after the previous two in the Libyan insurrection, to Cairo’s posh Zalalek island, a leafy, diplomatic enclave in the center…
Are You Ready To Referendum???
Alexandria- Had an exhausting, thrilling day covering the constitutional/presidential referendum here in Egypt today. It was a bit exhausting as I used the old heel-toe express to get around. It was amazing to see so many people genuinely psyched to…
In Revolutionary North Africa
Alexandria- Well, where to begin. In the big picture, the Western powers and Amr Moussa’s Arab League are finally getting things into gear and the Qaddaf’s keep playing the international community like a fiddle with ploys like this ceasefire announcement…
Not Ice Cold in Alex…
Alexandria- Relaxing away a few days here in this crusty, dusty Mediterranean port city. The curfew here imposed by the Egyptian army from midnight till 6am has everyone a little on edge. Needless to say this is a hard place…
My War Gone By, I Miss It So
Ajdabiya & Alexandria- I did one last trip toward the front on Sunday and it was a near disaster. I joined up with an Englishman working for AFP and an Andaluciana from El Periodico and we tried to make our…
When In Roman Libya…
Cyrene- Took a long, spectacular trip in the opposite direction of the fighting today to “the Athens of Africa,” an ancient Greek-and later Roman-city called Cyrene in the verdant Jebel al-Akhdar region about midway in between Benghazi and Tobruk. The…
The Honeymoon (in Libya) Is Over
Benghazi- Things are looking a bit bleak from here today. The Qaddaf’s are now making a serious push east while Seif is blabbing about never surrendering and never giving up the country. The rebels are backpedaling in high gear out…
Merci Beaucoup!
Benghazi- Well the Sarkozy government is the first to recognize the rebels and the Q man is none to happy about it. Britain is waffling and Hil is going to meet them either in France or one of the neighboring…
To Fly or Not to Fly
Benghazi- Thousands demonstrating in front of the courthouse on the corniche here today calling for an immediate no-fly zone while the Western powers continue to debate and Libyans live in fear of a demented despot. A speaker on a megaphone…
The Bang Bang Club
Ras Lanuf- Went down to Ras today with a veteran USA Today correspondent from D.C. The whole new generation bang bang club was there. Someone who I thought was my friend had a bizarre, irrational meltdown on me. It’s nice…
New Libya Articles
Benghazi- The net has been down for over 48 hours here and I am able to use a satellite connection at a rebel media center in downtown Benghazi across from the tumbledown corniche. Went to the front with some friends/colleagues…
War in Libya
Frontline Libya: Watch Out Q Man, the Rebels Are Gunning For You
Brega- Did a ridiculously exhausting trip to the town of Brega today, criss crossing the Sahara en route. It was a hot, loud, dangerous day. Don’t know how much longer I can go on pure adrenalin. This situation is being…
Into Libya’s Revolutionary Zone
Benghazi- After two ridiculously exhausting days, I made it to Benghazi deep inside Libya’s ‘liberated zone.’ I went from Cairo straight to Alexandria (Iskandariyya in Arabic), crashed two nights (barely) in a hotel in a run down art deco building…
A Day In Alexandria-After the Revolution
Alexandria-Had a very long day getting to Alexandria yesterday. Flying from Queens to Cairo on no sleep wasn’t so hot but then getting in a cramped microbus from Cairo to Alexandria did it. Then walking and haggling with taxis all…
To Shores of Benghazi
New York- Off to Libya tomorrow evening via Cairo and Alexandria. Can’t stop, won’t stop. My colleague at Jamestown, Andrew McGregor appeared on PBS Newshour with Jim Lehrer discussing the possible military strengths and weakness of Libya’s opposing forces.