UK Explains Bungled Mission to Libya

UK Explains Bungled Mission to Libya

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March 07, 2011
Associated Press
LONDON --- Britain is blaming a misunderstanding for a bungled mission to contact Libya's opposition that ended with eight people detained and the U.K. ambassador's humbling apology broadcast on Libyan state television.

Foreign Secretary William Hague - who authorized the operation - told lawmakers the diplomatic team and their military escorts had been briefly held by rebel forces after they were seized last week.

"They were withdrawn yesterday after a serious misunderstanding about their role leading to their temporary detention," Hague told legisl

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Well it appears after a couple uneasy days of detention and a public televised appology by the UK's Ambassador to Libya, the shadowy SAS team captured by 'rebels' in Libya is now free.

The Brits aren't disclosing many details about the teams makeup, but it appears that their entreaties to the 'rebels' were soundly rebuffed?

Or were they? In a game where misinformation and posturing is the norm, are the Libyans opposed to Gadaffi's rule determined to go it alone for what ever reasons, or determined to keep Gadaffi guessing as to how much help they have and from where?

Or to keep the rest of us guessing, as many of us are increasingly alarmed yet another regime change war for oil is in the offing.



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reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler


I will personally say that I felt this was all smoke and mirrors from day one, Benghazi has seen Royal Navy ships pass in and out of the port all the time (they had to get permission some how)

HMS Cumberland, HMS York and now HMS Westminster all have delivered aid to Benghazi, evacuated personnel and what not so they have been in close touch with the Libyan opposition all along.

I would assume that BOTH sides need to be seen to not be engaging with each other, thus all the smoke and mirrors.. compared to other nations drilling for Libyan oil, naughty BP arrived very very late to the scene.

Tho it does bother me the UK is getting involved as we don't have the level of investment in Libya that Italy and other European nations have..

By extension the UK and the US have far less to lose, and yet they appear to be poking their nose in.. I can not for the life of me work out why we are taking these risks.. Is it to stabilise or destabilise the fuel prices! I have no idea.. hope others can find a decent enough reason..

I have to say , I respect the determination that most of the interviewed activists and freedom fighters have, to see this battle through on thier own terms. I can garun-damn-tee that it would be best for Libya if outside influences can be kept to a minimum by whatever system replaces Gaddafi , should he eventualy be defeated. I would advocate most strongly against any involvement by any western nation, until AFTER the conflict has been resolved. My nations government does not have a history of assisting people militarily without expecting renumeration , and frankly they are such a bunch of horse theives that the Libyans would do well to avoid all contact with the UK government until they have established thier legitimacy and safety independant of assistance from other forces.
When they have built a powerbase in thier own backyard, and have a mandate from the people to negotiate on thier behalf , with other nations , then thats a different matter, and they would be in a much better position to deal with the international community on that basis. Also they will not have to worry about ill intentioned international contractors and private security firms messing the place up even worse than it already is.
Just my two pence.

From the start, the UK govt had been highly critical and vocal about the massacre in Libya, amongst many other nations that had largely kept silent at that time, even the Arab League.

No matter what transpared, the UK govt at least had made the attempt to contact the rebellion, mainly civilians turned armed freedom fighters against the butcher of Libya, to understand what is needed by the then yet to be fully organised united rebellion organisation of Libya.

They had not gone in with an army, but only with one diplomat and comprehensibly, with the best protection that UK can afford - the SAS, sane gentlemen whom yields not to pressure or irrational excitment that may had compromise the mission.

Thus, Kudos to the UK govt for this moment. And may information that they had be enough to help the world community react to better to the tragedy happening to Libya and the Libyan masses daily.

In other words, the SAS was caught with thier pants down, and now the UK Government has egg of thier faces. They will come up with any old excuse, to explain a failed operation.

Very embarrassing do you not think .

reply to post by TrueBrit


The Afghani who used to head the Northern Alliance up until he oddly was assissinated the day before 9/11/2001 was determined to not take money or assistance from the CIA or anyone else.

I think in the eyes of a lot of people you lose a lot of credibility once you let a foreign nation come into your own and buy influence in any fashion.

So I think it's pretty wise of the Libyans to try to keep the Western Powers out.

The Devil as they say is in the details.

Thanks for posting.

reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler


The main thing that they claim to want from foreigners at the moment is a sense of legitimacy and quite rightly they believed that “hopping the fence instead of ringing the doorbell” as one MP put it, was inappropriate, or “illegal”.

I don’t think that the operation went exactly to plan, but they ended up meeting with Mustafa Abdel-Jalil, they established a basis for further contacts and who-knows-what else. It can be assumed that they accomplished pretty much everything that they came to do, the whole affair was embarrassing perhaps but it wasn’t a failure at all.

Additional reading material: Telegraph - The MI6 and SAS mission to Libya was not botched

reply to post by SeekerofTruth101

From the start, the UK govt had been highly critical and vocal about the massacre in Libya, amongst many other nations that had largely kept silent at that time, even the Arab League.

You know what they say, "Fools rush in where wise men fear to tread". So in other words everyone managed to pretty much mind their own business besides the British. Well there is a new one for you.

No matter what transpared, the UK govt at least had made the attempt to contact the rebellion, mainly civilians turned armed freedom fighters against the butcher of Libya, to understand what is needed by the then yet to be fully organised united rebellion organisation of Libya.

Wow sounds just like a Star War movie, Luke you must contact the rebellion!

The butcher of Libya? This is like what from the people who brought us Lawrence of Arabia? Armed freedom fighters, you should be writing for the MSM Propaganda network.

If those same armed freedom fighters where fighting against U.S. or British occupation, they would be called insurgents.

How do you keep it all straight? They must give you a program huh?

They had not gone in with an army, but only with one diplomat and comprehensibly, with the best protection that UK can afford - the SAS, sane gentlemen whom yields not to pressure or irrational excitment that may had compromise the mission.

Dude sane gentlemen are at home minding their own business.

Thus, Kudos to the UK govt for this moment. And may information that they had be enough to help the world community react to better to the tragedy happening to Libya and the Libyan masses daily.

The world community, is no doubt just dying to invade another oil rich Arab/Muslim nation, you are just so right!

In a telephone call to an opposition spokesman, Britain's ambassador to Libya, Richard Northern, pleaded for the group to be released. The conversation was apparently intercepted by Libya's government and broadcast on state television.

why make a "phone call" NOW!!!!

funny how they can contact each other "after the fact" !

"I understand that there has been a misunderstanding," Northern said in an excerpt of the call broadcast on Libyan TV. He asked if there was "anything we can do to help explain who they are and what they were doing," and whether Jalil could intervene to secure their release.

The unnamed opposition spokesman told Northern the group made "a big mistake coming in with a helicopter."

another "brilliant" statement!

Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga, spokesman for the rebels' national council, said eight people with British passports were arrested, including one who claimed to be a British diplomat. He said the group had been detained "because they came into the country

on a "special" mission --- with passports !!!! ????

were their visas "out of order" too?


the whole thing could be staged with a false flag coming up soon.

where is Mossad here?

why is Israel sooooo SILENT lately?