Libya Unrest: Ex-Afghan fighter’s presence amongst rebels raises fears

Former militant fighter in Afghanistan trains and deploys 500 rebels fighting to topple Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi.

DARNA: Abdel Hakim al Hasady, a former militant fighter in Afghanistan, now recruits, trains and deploys 500 rebels fighting to topple Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi.

He says he was once questioned for two months by US agents in Pakistan for suspected ties with al Qaeda – which he denies – and was later imprisoned in Libya for three years. The presence of Hasady and other militants among the rebels raises difficult questions for the US and other Western powers who want Qaddafi’s overthrow but worry that al Qaeda may establish a stronghold on the Mediterranean coast.

Qaddafi has accused al Qaeda of playing a direct role in Libya’s unrest in a plot to destabilise the country and set up a regional base. He has named several insurgency leaders, including Hasady, as either being al Qaeda members or sympathisers. 



Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2011.