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SHAHAT, LIBYA (AFP) - The spectacular ruins of the ancient Greek city of Cyrene survived Libya's 2011 revolution and an ensuing decade of lawlessness, but today they face new threats: plunder and bulldozers.

Under balmy spring sunshine, a handful of tourists take advantage of the North African country's months-old ceasefire to wander around the temple of Zeus, perched atop a wind-battered hill near the eastern end of Libya's Mediterranean coast.

There are no queues here.

The scarce visitors - all Libyans - amble through the sanctuary of Apollo and the amphitheatre, before visiting a museum housing faceless busts of Greek divinities and naked statues in marble.

Founded in the seventh century BC, Cyrene "was one of the principal cities in the Hellenic world", according to the UN's cultural agency Unesco, which added the site to its World Heritage List in 1992.

"A thousand years of history is written into its ruins," it said.

Yet beyond the fence marking out the protected part of Cyrene, residents of modern-day Shahat are taking possession of lands held in trust by the state, then selling them on to property developers.

Other areas are being dug up by treasure-seekers hoping to smuggle looted artefacts to sell abroad.

"Some people are coming in and bulldozing areas containing artefacts, dividing them and selling them, then building housing blocks on top of these priceless sites," said Adel Abu Fejra, of the Cyrene department of antiquities.

Abu Fejra said his department "can't even measure" how much has been lost, as the plots "are outside the fenced area under our protection".

Cyrene lies between the Egyptian border and Benghazi, one of the key cities that rose up against longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The country has since fallen into anarchy and violence which sparked fears for its rich ancient heritage.

Unesco in 2016 added Cyrene and four other sites in Libya to its List of World Heritage in Danger.

Men work on maintaining the site of the ruins of Libya's eastern ancient city of Cyrene on March 10, 2021. PHOTO: AFP

The war saw the country splinter into fiefdoms under the control of a kaleidoscope of militias - including the Islamic State group which at one point held a stronghold in Derna, just 70km further east.

Today, despite the signing of a peace deal between Libya's main factions and the creation of a unity government this month, many residents have more immediate concerns than protecting ancient heritage.

"They want us to stop using our land around the ruins, saying there are still artefacts underneath them - but this is our land, and we have the right to exploit it," said Saad Mahmoud, who owns farmland nearby.

"It's up to the state to find solutions and pay landowners compensation that fits with the rising prices of real estate, which have made it hard for us to find alternatives."

Like Mahmoud, many of Shahat's 50,000 residents see the pressing need for housing as a higher priority than preserving old ruins.

A town plan last updated in 1986 has been largely ignored.

Maintenance worker at the site of the ruins on March 10, 2021.PHOTO: AFP

Ismail Dakhil, an official at the museums department of eastern Libya, says as much as 30 per cent of the ancient city may have been built on.

And that is not the only problem.

"There has been graffiti on the ancient ruins, and lots of informal digs, where antiquities are dug up and smuggled out of the country," he said.

Libya does have laws aimed at protecting its ancient heritage, overseeing archaeological digs and sanctioning violators.

Local policemen patrol by a colonnade from the remnants of the Temple of Demeter on March 10, 2021.PHOTO: AFP

But Dakhil says they have little effect, with "derisory fines and prison sentences" of up to a maximum of a year.

Some are now hoping that after a decade of violence the new government will also improve protection of precious historical sites.

"The policies on protecting heritage must be reviewed," says researcher and historian Ahmad Faraj. "I hope this government will come up with a new vision."

Link:
Bulldozers and looting threaten Libya's ancient treasures, Middle East News & Top Stories - The Straits Times

TRIPOLI--Signs of discord between the head of Libyas new Government of National Unity (GNU), Abdel Hamid Dbeibah and the commander-in-chief of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, have raised fears for the peace process and a final settlement of the eight-year civil Libyan conflict.

The recent parliamentary vote of confidence in the new government had raised hopes of an end to divisions in the country.

Dbeibahs conspicuous absence from the Benghazi ceremony during which the interim government headed by Abdullah Thinni handed over power to the GNU was duly noted. It sparked speculation of an emerging rift between new premier and Haftar.

Further indications of such a rift began to emerge after Dbeibah tweeted his plan to open an investigation into the discovery of at least a dozen bodies in Benghazi, which is under Haftars control.

Dbeibah wrote, It is not possible to allow the recurrence of these events or to cover them up. He stressed that he had given direct instructions to the minister of interior to deal with this incident, and I asked the public prosecutor to open an investigation into the matter.

Media outlets close to the LNAs general command criticised the prime ministers decision. Their attacks on the Dbeibah government have checked the momentum which had marked the first days of the GNU taking office. The new prime ministers relations with Haftar appear to have broken down even before they had really began.

Although the developments are unlikely to spark a new outbreak of violence, the emerging discord could very well limit Dbeibahs control over the eastern region.

During the last few months, Benghazi has witnessed a growing climate of insecurity. A number of activists has been assassinated or kidnapped, in addition to the repeated discovery of dead bodies dumped into the streets. This is ironically a grim echo of the anarchy that gripped Benghazi in 2012 when the Islamist group Ansar Sharia murdered scores of police, former army officers and civilians who opposed them. It was in crushing Ansar Sharia in the tortuous Operation Dignity campaign that took more than five years, that Haftar and the LNA came to prominence and a position of power.

Now there are signs of increasing domination in Benghazi of Salafist elements who are are said to be close to the LNA. The murders and seizures have prompted tribal elders to condemn the deteriorating security situation within the city.

Their protest earlier this month coincided with the new government assuming power. They appeared to echo a more general popular discontent with Haftar. This was quickly picked up and used by Dbeibah against the field marshal.

At the same time, a mood of anger lingers in Cyrenaica (the eastern region) after the debacle suffered by the LNA when it attempted last year to advance on and seize the capital Tripoli.

Haftars defeat and the withdrawal of his forces from the west of the country toward Sirte have reduced his political influence.

The military strongman has since seemed to be under some kind of political siege, as his political contacts with foreign actors nearly stopped . He has had to limit himself to local meetings aimed at calming popular unrest in the east.

Observers believe that Dbeibahs decision not to visit Benghazi for the Thinni power handover can be seen as an attempt to ignore Haftar, whom he sees as one of the main obstacles to his complete control of Libya.

This however goes against the tacit understanding between both men, which was reflected in the vote of LNA-affiliated MPs in favour of Dbeibah and for the President of the Presidency Council Muhammad al-Manfi.

Observers suspect that the delay by Aguila Saleh, the speaker of the parliament in convening a session to discuss and vote on a Dbeibahs new budget is linked to the current cold spell between Haftar and the premier.

It is regrettable that the issue of discussing the unified general budget has turned into a tool for political blackmail, said Sulaiman al-Bayoudi, a political activist.

Bayoudi added in a post on his Facebook account, What is happening now does not bode well. Either (members) of parliament meet and carry out their duties, or the presidency council and the GNU should reject blackmail and opt instead for the implementation the financial arrangements according to Paragraph 2 of Article 9 of the Libyan Political Agreement.

He added, If the speaker of the parliament and the deputies do not act with a sense of responsibility and patriotism, they will be the first and only people to blame for the continuing difficult economic conditions, by stalling the budget debate.

The GNU, made up of twenty-six ministers and six state ministers, won the unanimous confidence of the Libyan parliament on March 10.

On Tuesday, the parallel government in eastern Libya handed over its powers to the GNU, a week after the latter officially assumed its duties from the capital, Tripoli.

The handover ceremony took place at the headquarters of the parallel government in Benghazi, the second largest city in Libya, in the presence of its outgoing premier, Abdullah al-Thinni.

The GNU was represented by Deputy Prime Minister Hussein Gatrani, Minister of Interior Khaled Mazen and a number of other ministers.

Gatrani asserted that the stage of division has ended, and said in a press statement, The government of national unity is there to serve all citizens.

The new executive authority is responsible for unifying state institutions and overseeing the transitional phase until the December 24 elections, when their term expires according to the approved roadmap.

However, the UN-demanded departure of the Syrian mercenaries and elements of the Russian Wagner Group from the west and east of the country remains one of the thorniest issues confronting Dbeibah. Achieving it will close coordination between all parties to the conflict, including Haftar.

Continue reading here:
Signs of discord between Dbeibah and Haftar dim prospects of Libyan reunification | | AW - The Arab Weekly

By Sami Zaptia.

Libya and Tunisia agree to reactivate the Unified Ras Ajdir Window to improve bilateral trade and travel (Photo: Customs Authority).

London, 25 March 2021:

Libya and Tunisia yesterday agreed to reactivate the Ras Ajdir Unified Customs Window agreement as part of the further strengthening of bilateral Tunisian-Libyan cooperation in the customs field.

The agreement was reactivated at a meeting was held in Djerba between the Libyan Customs Authority, their Tunisian counterparts, and the Tunisian ambassador to Tripoli.

The agreement aims to find solutions to many problems related to the flow of goods and passengers between the two countries and the facilitation of bilateral procedures at the border crossing.

At the meeting it was confirmed that due to the accumulation of goods in the Port of Ras Ajdir and the importance of facilitating the movement of trade between the two countries and the flow of goods procedures, starting from the first of April, the border crossing will be working seven days a week to facilitate customs procedures in both directions.

It was also agreed that the meeting of the Joint Customs Technical Committee would be held during the second half of May 2021.

Read the rest here:
Libya and Tunisia reactivate Ras Ajdir unified customs window agreement to strengthen bilateral trade and flow of travellers | - Libya Herald

In response to Richard Stallman returning to the Free Software Foundation (FSF) as a board member, more than a thousand software developers and free software advocates have signed an open letter asking for the removal of the entire board. According to the open letter, Stallman is a dangerous force in the free software community and the FSF board has enabled and empowered him for too long.

They demonstrate this again by permitting him to rejoin the FSF Board. It is time for RMS to step back from the free software, tech ethics, digital rights, and tech communities, for he cannot provide the leadership we need, the letter stated.

The group is also calling for Stallman to be removed from the GNU Project and other leadership positions he currently holds.

The letter goes on to say that in order for the promise of software freedom to become reality, the community must radically change.

We believe in a present and a future where all technology empowers not oppresses people. We know that this is only possible in a world where technology is built to pay respect to our rights at its most foundational levels. While these ideas have been popularized in some form by Richard M. Stallman, he does not speak for us. We do not condone his actions and opinions. We do not acknowledge his leadership or the leadership of the Free Software Foundation as it stands today, the letter stated.

Organizations that have signed the letter include: Mozilla, Tor Project, X.org Foundation, Open Source Diversity, and Open Life Science. Signatures also include members from the GNU community, Open Source Initiative, and a former member of the FSF board.

Go here to see the original:
The free software community calls for the removal of entire FSF board - SDTimes.com

We at EFF are profoundly disappointed to hear of the re-election of Richard Stallman to a leadership position at the Free Software Foundation, after a series of seriousaccusations of misconduct led to his resignation as president and board member of the FSF in 2019. We are also disappointed that this was done despite no discernible steps taken by him to be accountable for, much less make amends for, his past actions or those who have been harmed by them. Finally, we are also disturbed by the secretive process of his re-election, and how it was belatedly conveyed to FSFs staff and supporters.

Stallmans re-election sends a wrong and hurtful message to free software movement, as well as those who have left that movement because of Stallmans previous behavior.

Free software is a vital component of an open and just technological society: its key institutions and individuals cannot place misguided feelings of loyalty above their commitment to that cause. The movement for digital freedom is larger than any one individual contributor, regardless of their role. Indeed, we hope that this moment can be an opportunity to bring in new leaders and new ideas to the free software movement.

We urge the voting membersof the FSF to call a special meeting to reconsider this decision, and we also call on Stallman to step down: for the benefit of the organization, the values it represents, and the diversity and long-term viability of the free software movement as a whole.

More here:
Statement on the Re-election of Richard Stallman to the FSF Board - EFF