Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Christopher M. Blanchard
Analyst in Middle Eastern Affairs
August 3, 2009
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RL33142
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Summary
Libyan-U.S. rapprochement has unfolded gradually since 2003, when the Libyan government
accepted responsibility for the actions of its personnel in regard to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am
Flight 103 and announced its decision to eliminate its weapons of mass destruction and long-
range missile programs. In response, U.S. sanctions were gradually removed, and, on May 15,
2006, the Bush Administration announced its intention to restore full diplomatic relations with
Libya and to rescind Libya’s listing as a state sponsor of terrorism. Full diplomatic relations were
restored on May 31, 2006 when the United States upgraded its Liaison Office in Tripoli to an
Embassy. Libya was removed from the lists of state sponsors of terrorism and states not fully
cooperating with U.S. counterterrorism efforts in June 2006.
Until late 2008, U.S.-Libyan re-engagement was hindered by lingering disagreements over
outstanding legal claims related to U.S. citizens killed or injured in past Libyan-sponsored or
supported terrorist attacks. From 2004 onward, Bush Administration officials argued that broader
normalization of U.S.-Libyan relations would provide opportunities for the United States to
address specific issues of concern to Congress, including the outstanding legal claims, political
and economic reform, the development of Libyan energy resources, and human rights. However,
some Members of Congress took steps to limit U.S.-Libyan re-engagement as a means of
encouraging the Libyan government to settle outstanding terrorism cases in good faith prior to
further normalization.
Under the terms of a Claims Settlement Agreement reached between the Libyan and U.S.
governments in August 2008, funds now have been made available to settle specific outstanding
legal claims. Congress supported the final stages of U.S.-Libyan negotiation on the agreement by
passing S. 3370, the Libyan Claims Resolution Act (P.L. 110-301), which authorized the creation
of an entity with legal immunity to receive settlement funds from Libya or other sources and to
distribute them to U.S. plaintiffs. On October 31, the Administration certified the receipt of $1.5
billion in settlement funds, and President Bush signed Executive Order 13477 stating that claims
covered by the agreement were settled. In December 2008, the State Department referred pending
claims to the U.S. Department of Justice Foreign Claims Settlement Commission for
adjudication.
The 111th Congress and the Obama Administration have inherited a U.S.-Libya relationship that is
largely free of longstanding constraints and is relatively undefined after decades of tension and
conflict have come to a close. Libya has experienced a period of significant economic growth in
recent years but remains defined politically by Muammar al Qadhafi’s controlling influence over
a decentralized, opaque, and authoritarian political system. Economic and political reform efforts
are emerging in Libya, with some limitations. Current U.S. policy concerns include ensuring
Libya’s positive contribution to the security and economic prosperity of North Africa and the
Sahel, securing commercial opportunities in Libya for U.S. firms, and addressing persistent
human rights issues.
This report provides background information on Libya and U.S.-Libyan relations; profiles Libyan
leader Muammar al Qadhafi; discusses Libya’s political and economic reform efforts; and
reviews current issues of potential congressional interest.
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Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Contents
Recent Developments.................................................................................................................. 1
Background and Recent History .................................................................................................. 2
The Qadhafi Era.................................................................................................................... 3
The Green Book and Qadhafi’s Ideology......................................................................... 3
Terrorism and Confrontation with the United States......................................................... 4
Qadhafi’s Arab-Israeli Intransigence................................................................................ 4
International Isolation and Signs of Change..................................................................... 5
Current Issues in U.S.-Libyan Relations ...................................................................................... 5
Comprehensive Claims Settlement Agreement ...................................................................... 6
Settlement Details ........................................................................................................... 7
Settlement Eligibility and Adjudication ........................................................................... 8
U.S. Foreign Assistance to Libya........................................................................................... 8
Funding for New U.S. Embassy Construction.................................................................. 9
Counterterrorism Cooperation ............................................................................................. 10
Libyan Foreign Fighters in Iraq..................................................................................... 10
Political and Economic Profile .................................................................................................. 11
Muammar al Qadhafi: A Profile........................................................................................... 11
Political Dynamics .............................................................................................................. 12
Government Structure ......................................................................................................... 12
The “Authority of the People” ....................................................................................... 13
Proposals for the Dissolution of State Ministries and Revenue Distribution ................... 13
Opposition Groups .............................................................................................................. 14
Exiles............................................................................................................................ 14
The Muslim Brotherhood .............................................................................................. 15
Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG).......................................................................... 15
Political Reform and Human Rights .................................................................................... 17
Legal and Institutional Reform ...................................................................................... 18
Human Rights Monitoring............................................................................................. 18
Fathi al Jahmi ............................................................................................................... 19
Libyan Foreign Policy......................................................................................................... 19
Energy and the Libyan Economy......................................................................................... 20
Oil Reserves and Production Capacity........................................................................... 21
Natural Gas................................................................................................................... 21
Military Profile and WMD Disarmament................................................................................... 22
The Libyan Military............................................................................................................ 22
Structure, Training, and Equipment ............................................................................... 22
Arms Sales.................................................................................................................... 23
WMD Programs and Disarmament ...................................................................................... 24
Nuclear, Chemical, and Ballistic Missile Programs........................................................ 24
Termination of WMD and Missile Programs ................................................................. 25
Motives for Disarmament.............................................................................................. 25
International Controls and Inspections........................................................................... 26
Further Reading and Historical Resources ................................................................................. 27
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Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Figures
Figure 1. Map of Libya ............................................................................................................... 2
Tables
Table 1. Recent U.S. Foreign Assistance to Libya ........................................................................ 9
Table 2. Libyan Military Personnel............................................................................................ 22
Appendixes
Appendix A. Libya’s Pre-Qadhafi History ................................................................................. 29
Appendix B. Normalization of Relations, Terrorism, and Related Claims .................................. 32
Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 37
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Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Recent Developments
The Obama Administration is requesting the following FY2010 foreign assistance funds for
Libya: $250,000 in Foreign Military Financing (FMF), $350,000 for International Military
Education and Training (IMET), $500,000 for counter terrorism and border security assistance
(NADR), and as yet unspecified Nonproliferation Disarmament Fund (NDF) and Global Threat
Reduction (GTR) funding to continue nonproliferation activities involving Libyan scientists. The
State Department estimates that the United States will provide at least $3.9 million in FY2009
foreign assistance to Libya, including $2 million in Economic Support Fund (ESF) assistance.
On May 21, 2009, prominent Libyan political activist Fathi el Jahmi died in Jordan shortly after
being released from years of detention in Libya. On March 17, 2009, U.S. State Department
spokesman Robert Wood stated that the Obama Administration continued to call for Al Jahmi’s
“unconditional release, as well as his ability to travel and seek medical care where he wishes.” In
response to the news of his death, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, “we had
welcomed his release to Jordan. We regret that his poor state of health, however, did not allow
him to fully recover upon transfer.” The Bush Administration repeatedly called for Libya to
release Al Jahmi and allow him to receive proper medical treatment.
Mutassim al Qadhafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar al Qadhafi, visited Washington in April
2009 in his official capacity as Libya’s national security adviser. He appeared publicly with U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, with whom he reportedly discussed security cooperation,
among other issues. His elder brother Sayf al Islam had visited Washington, DC, during the week
of November 17, 2008, for private consultations with U.S. officials and others. Sayf al Islam has
been associated with several economic and political reform proposals in Libya in recent years,
and recently has been the subject of speculation among outside observers regarding claims that he
has fallen out of favor among his father’s more conservative supporters and perhaps with his
father. In June 2009, the General People’s Committee (cabinet-equivalent) announced the
nationalization of Al Ghad, a private media company founded by Sayf al Islam, and declared that
a National Center for Media Services would take over the company’s media outlets, operate them
under the same names, and control their decision making.
At the conclusion of its annual meeting in March 2009, Libya’s General People’s Congress
announced changes to the General People’s Committee, which serves as Libya’s cabinet. In a
significant change, Mousa Kousa, Libya’s longtime intelligence director, was named foreign
minister. The People’s Congress also decided to delay a final decision on a plan proposed by
Libyan leader Muammar al Qadhafi to distribute oil revenues and public funds directly to the
people. In February 2009, Qadhafi was elected as the chairman of the 53-member African Union,
giving him a new platform to pursue his active foreign policy toward Africa.
In December 2008, the Senate confirmed Ambassador Gene Cretz, a career Foreign Service
officer, as the first U.S. Ambassador to Libya since 1972.
On October 31, 2008, the Bush Administration certified receipt of $1.5 billion in legal claim
settlement funds related to the U.S.-Libya Claims Settlement Agreement, making several U.S.
terrorism liability provisions no longer applicable to Libya. Executive Order 13477, signed
October 31, 2008, states that all claims covered by the agreement have been settled. The State
Department has referred qualified pending claims cases to the U.S. Department of Justice Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission for final adjudication.
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Libya: Background and U.S. Relations
Background and Recent History
The north African territory that now composes the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab
Jamahirriya1 has a long cultural history as a center of Phoenician, Carthaginian, Roman, Berber,
and Arab civilizations. Modern Libya’s distinct regions and tribally-influenced society create a
complex political environment that is made up of diverse constituencies from northwestern
Tripolitania, northeastern Cyrenaica, and the more remote southwestern Fezzan (see Figure 1).
Significant economic and political changes have occurred since Libya became independent in
1951. These changes have been fueled by the country’s emergence from Italian colonization, the
discovery of vast oil and natural gas reserves, and the domination of political life by the
authoritarian government of Muammar Al Qadhafi,2 who overthrew the Libyan monarchy on
September 1, 1969. The legacies of anti-Italian insurgency and World War II combat,
international pressures associated with the Cold War, and complex relationships with Arab and
African neighbors have all shaped Libya’s development. See Appendix A for a discussion of
Libya’s pre-Qadhafi history, other background information, and a list of historical resources.
Figure 1. Map of Libya
Source: Map Resources. Adapted by CRS.
1 The Arabic word jamahirriya means “state of the masses” or “peoples’ authority” and was added to Libya’s official
name in 1978 by Col. Muammar Qadhafi to reflect Libya’s nominally decentralized political system. The adjective
‘great’ was added in 1986.
2 Multiple spellings of Muammar Al Qadhafi’s first and last names are used in the Western press. This report uses a
phonetic spelling; others reflect varying pronunciations.
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The Qadhafi Era
On September 1, 1969, a cabal of Libyan military officers led by army Captain Muammar al
Qadhafi seized important government institutions in the eastern city of Benghazi and abolished
the Libyan monarchy. Facing negligible internal resistance, the leadership of the Movement,
known as the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), established authority and announced that
it would direct the activities of a new cabinet. The RCC also made statements affirming Libya’s
Arab and Islamic identity and its support for the Palestinian people. After renaming the country
the Libyan Arab Republic, the RCC announced the promotion of Captain Qadhafi to Colonel and
named him commander in chief of Libya’s armed forces.3 Like Qadhafi, the other members of the
RCC were pan-Arabist and socialist ideologues from rural and somewhat marginalized
communities. The United States did not oppose the 1969 coup, as the RCC initially presented an
anti-Soviet and reformist platform.
Colonel Qadhafi and the RCC focused intensely in their early years in power on taking steps to
safeguard “national independence” and consolidate their rule through populist and nationalist
political and economic programs. The members of the RCC were determined to secure the
immediate and full withdrawal of British and U.S. forces from military bases in Libya, which
occurred on March 28 and June 11, 1970, respectively. Italian expatriates were expelled and their
assets were confiscated on October 7, 1970. All three dates subsequently were declared national
holidays. The new government also pressured U.S. and other foreign oil companies to renegotiate
oil production contracts and cede a larger share of production revenues. Some British and U.S. oil
operations eventually were nationalized. In the early 1970s, the RCC gradually reversed its stance
on its initially icy relationship with the Soviet Union and extended Libyan support to
revolutionary, anti-Western, and anti-Israeli movements across Africa, Europe, Asia, and the
Middle East. These policies contributed to a rapid souring of U.S.-Libyan political relations,
although economic relations, particularly U.S. oil purchases from Libya, remained steady.
The Green Book and Qadhafi’s Ideology
Beginning in the early-1970s, Muammar al Qadhafi and his regime carried out drastic and
frequent reorganizations of Libyan political and economic life in line with his “Third Universal
Theory.” The theory, which blends pan-Arab, Islamic, and socialist values, is enshrined in
Qadhafi’s three volume Green Book. The redistribution of land and wealth, the allocation of
fluctuating oil revenues, and a near total decentralization of political institutions reshaped Libya’s
social landscape in line with Qadhafi’s principles. These trends also helped Qadhafi and his
supporters maintain political control. Overseas, Qadhafi promoted his political and economic
“Third International Theory” as an alternative to the capitalist and communist systems of the
United States and the Soviet Union for the developing countries of the Third World. Qadhafi’s
confrontation with the United States was both a catalyst for and product of the Libyan
government’s violent and destabilizing activities abroad, Qadhafi’s ideological fervor, and his
regime’s gradual drift into the Soviet sphere of influence.
3 Over time, Qadhafi stopped using his military title and identifying himself with a formal government position.
Although he retains de facto control over Libya’s affairs, he is now commonly referred to as the “Guide of the
Revolution” or “Brother Leader.”
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Terrorism and Confrontation with the United States
In line with his ideological precepts, Muammar al Qadhafi long characterized Libyan backing for
anti-colonial, separatist, and Islamist movements and terrorist groups around the world as
legitimate support for parties seeking self determination. The United States and others
categorically and continuously rejected Libya’s policies as unacceptable sponsorship of
illegitimate terrorism and subversive violence. In the 1970s and 1980s, U.S. officials cited the
existence of training camps in Libya and other Libyan government support for a panoply of
terrorist groups including the Abu Nidal organization, the Red Army Faction, the Popular Front
for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC), and the Irish Republic Army.
Libyan-sponsored bombings and assassinations also drew sharp international criticism, especially
killings of Libyan dissidents and the bombings of Pan Am Flight 103 and UTA Flight 772 in the
late 1980s. In the 1990s, Libyan-trained individuals led brutal rebel movements across Africa,
including Foday Sankoh’s Revolutionary United Front in Sierra Leone and Charles Taylor’s
National Patriotic Front of Liberia.4
Qadhafi’s Arab-Israeli Intransigence
The Arab-Israeli conflict was another particularly pointed source of tension between the United
States and Qadhafi: Libya remained distinctly opposed to negotiation or reconciliation with Israel
throughout the Cold War era and the 1990s, promoting armed struggle as the only viable means to
end Israel’s occupation of territory it captured from neighboring Arab states in 1967. At times,
Qadhafi’s positions led to deep bilateral rifts between Libya and Egypt, particularly under Anwar
Sadat, as well as confrontations with P.L.O. leader Yasir Arafat. Qadhafi and his security services
provided support, training, and safe harbor for Palestinian terrorist groups until the late 1990s.
After a temporary reconciliation with Arafat during the first Palestinian intifada in 1987, Qadhafi
returned to voicing complete opposition to the Oslo peace process and called for Arab leaders to
avoid further recognition of or negotiation with Israel.
In recent years, Qadhafi publicly has maintained his opposition to Arab engagement with Israel in
the face of continued Israeli occupation and settlement activity. He also has called for a “one state
solution” based on reconciliation between the Israeli and Palestinian people within a single state,
which he proposes be called “Isratine.” In a January 2009 opinion editorial in the New York Times
Qadhafi rejected the “tired rhetoric of partition and two-state solutions,” and argued that “the
compromise is one state for all, an ‘Isratine’ that would allow the people in each party to feel that
they live in all of the disputed land and they are not deprived of any one part of it.”5 Central to
Qadhafi’s position is the proposal that Palestinian refugees be granted “the right of return for
Palestinian refugees to the homes their families left behind in 1948,” which is rejected by the
Israeli government.
4 See Paul Richards, “War as Smoke and Mirrors: Sierra Leone 1991-2,1994-5,1995-6,” Anthropological Quarterly,
Vol. 78, Issue 2, Spring 2005; Douglas Farah, Blood from Stones, Broadway Books, New York, 2004, pp.23-25; The
Economist, “Foday Sankoh,” Vol. 368, August 9, 2003, p. 73; Economist, “Qaddafi Says Farewell, Arabia, and Sets
His Sights on Africa,” Vol. 351, April 24, 1999; I. Abdullah and P. Muana, “The Revolutionary United Front of Sierra
Leone,” in C. Clapham (ed.) African Guerrillas, London: James Currey, 1998, pp. 179-193; Scott Anderson, “The
Makeover,” New York Times Magazine, January 19, 2003; and Douglas Farah, “Gaddafi ‘Meddling’ in Africa,”
Washington Post, August 16, 2003.
5Muammar Qaddafi, “The One-State Solution,” New York Times, January 22 2009.
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International Isolation and Signs of Change
Following the imposition of U.N. sanctions in the aftermath of the Libyan-sponsored airliner
bombings of the late 1980s, Libya entered a period of increasing international isolation. The
compounded effects of a loss of oil revenue, restrictions on the travel of senior officials, an
international air travel ban, and an arms embargo brought significant pressure on Qadhafi and his
government. Signs of change began to emerge in 1999 when Libya agreed to pay compensation
for the bombing of UTA Flight 772 and allowed two intelligence agents to stand trial for the
bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.
Qadhafi’s offers of counterterrorism and intelligence cooperation following the terrorist attacks of
September 11, 2001, and his late 2003 decision to dismantle Libya’s weapons of mass destruction
and long range missile development programs marked further steps toward new relationships with
the United States and the international community. Qadhafi pledged to end his government’s
support for violent political movements around the world in December 2003, and the Libyan
government has recently participated in peacemaking efforts in a number of African conflicts,
including hosting and subsidizing U.N. World Food Program aid flights to Darfur, Sudan from
Libyan territory. New oil production agreements and improved relations with the United States
and a number of European and Asian countries have demonstrated the tangible benefits of Libya’s
apparent new political orientation. Libya was elected as a non-permanent member of the U.N.
Security Council in October 2007. Libya will hold the seat for 2008 and 2009, and held the
Council presidency in January 2008 and March 2009.
Current Issues in U.S.-Libyan Relations
The relationship between the United States and Libya has been tense for much of the last thirty-
five years but has normalized gradually since late 2003. The Libyan government’s past support
for international terrorism, its history of intervention in regional conflicts, and its now-abandoned
pursuit of weapons of mass destruction proved to be persistent points of contention with the
United States. The Libyan government has long taken issue with what it regards as unbalanced
U.S. military and financial support for Israel and what it describes as unwarranted U.S.
intervention in the affairs of Arab states. In the past, these differences led to a number of
confrontations and engagements between U.S. and Libyan armed forces, the imposition of
economic and diplomatic sanctions by the United States, and, reportedly, some limited, covert
U.S. efforts at regime change.6 As sanctions were removed in recent years, a number of U.S. oil
companies successfully bid for reentry into Libya’s energy market, and other U.S. businesses
resumed trade relationships with Libyan firms.
The restoration of full diplomatic relations between the United States and Libya in 2006 was
expected to open a new chapter in the bilateral relationship and bring a long period of U.S.-
Libyan confrontation to a close. However, until recently, U.S.-Libyan relations remained clouded
by mutual frustration. Libyan officials expressed dissatisfaction with the pace and scope of
normalization with the United States and alleged that Libya had not gotten what was promised
when it decided to abandon weapons of mass destruction and terrorism in 2003. Considerable
6 Joseph T. Stanik, El Dorado Canyon: Reagan’s Undeclared War with Qaddafi, Naval Institute Press, 2003; Bernard
Gwertzman, “Shultz Advocates U.S. Covert Programs to Depose Qaddafi,” New York Times, April 28, 1986; and
Clifford Krauss, “Failed Anti-Qaddafi Effort Leaves U.S. Picking Up the Pieces,” New York Times, March 12, 1991.
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discontent also remained apparent in some U.S. quarters, including among some Members of
Congress. New terrorism concerns delayed Libya’s removal from the state sponsors of terrorism
list until 2006, and Libyan engagement with legal counsel and U.S. officials on terrorism cases
led to charges that Libya was not acting in good faith to resolve outstanding claims.
The Libyan government responded to congressional pressure with increasingly direct statements
warning that if its relations with the U.S. government and U.S. business community remained
complicated by outstanding terrorism claims, U.S. companies could miss opportunities to bid on
lucrative Libyan government contracts to refurbish and expand the country’s infrastructure. The
Administration and the U.S. business community supported normalization with Libya while
continuing to engage Libya on outstanding terrorism claims.
Throughout this period, some participants on both sides supported efforts to find an agreeable
formula for resolving outstanding issues so that the United States and Libya could reap the
potential benefits of a fully normalized relationship. Bilateral negotiations bore fruit in mid-2008
in the form of a Comprehensive Settlement Agreement (see below). Congress supported those
negotiations by authorizing the creation of an independent entity to manage settlement funds and
by opening the prospect of conditional legal immunity for Libya.
The Bush Administration viewed Libya as a model for potential rapprochement with other state
sponsors of terrorism and sought to establish and expand counterterrorism, military, and
economic cooperation with Libyans through foreign operations budget requests. The Obama
Administration has now embarked on an effort to more fully define the goals and scope of
renewed U.S.-Libyan relations. The 111th Congress may influence future developments through
its consideration of FY2010 foreign assistance requests for Libya, oversight of security
cooperation or other bilateral assistance programs, and through the funding and oversight of plans
to construct a new U.S. embassy in Tripoli.
Comprehensive Claims Settlement Agreement
From January 2008 onward, the enactment by Congress of changes in terrorism liability
provisions and the awarding of significant monetary damages to the families and estates of U.S.
victims of the 1989 bombing of UTA Flight 772 heightened the intensity of U.S.-Libyan
engagement on outstanding terrorism claims.7 In particular, the new terrorism liability provisions
appear to have signaled to both the Libyan authorities and the Bush Administration the urgency of
the need to resolve outstanding legal claims in order for renewed bilateral relations to reach their
full potential. Confidential negotiations began in early 2008 on a comprehensive settlement, while
the Administration publicly underscored its desire “to show the Libyans that they made the right
decision” in abandoning weapons of mass destruction and eschewing terrorism.8 Negotiations
continued through mid-2008, and the prospect of success led to collaboration between the
Congress and the Bush Administration aimed at providing potential relief for Libya from the
liability changes in the event of a finalized claims settlement agreement.
7 In January 2008, U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy ruled that Libya was directly responsible for the bombing of
UTA Flight 772 and ordered the Libyan government and specific Libyan officials to pay $6 billion in damages to the
families and estates of six U.S. victims of the attack.
8 U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman quoted in Jay Solomon, “U.S. Vies to Seal Libya Settlement,
Preserve Detente,” April 2, 2008.
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Settlement Details
On August 14, 2008, Libya and the United States signed a comprehensive Claims Settlement
Agreement.9 The agreement provides for the establishment of a humanitarian settlement fund to
receive donations sufficient to address the outstanding legal claims of U.S. terrorism victims and
Libyan claims related to U.S. military strikes.
• The agreement’s stated objective is to “reach a final settlement” of claims, “terminate
permanently all pending suits” and “preclude any future suits” arising from personal
injury, death, or property loss caused by certain defined acts10 that occurred prior to June
30, 2006.
• The agreement calls for the establishment of a humanitarian settlement fund to
receive contributions. The agreement also directs the parties to open accounts for the
distribution of funding to their respective nationals from the central fund.
• Upon receipt of $1.8 billion in funding, the agreement calls for the central fund
account to distribute $1.5 billion dollars to the United States’ national account and $300
billion to Libya’s national account. Thereafter, the agreement requires each party to
terminate any suits pending in its courts, preclude any new suits, and restore “the same
sovereign, diplomatic, and official immunity” to the other party, its personnel, and
property “as is normally provided to other states”.
• Further distribution of the funds from the national accounts is precluded until the
immunity restoration provisions are satisfied. Claimants’ suits also must be terminated in
order for them to be eligible to receive distributions from the national accounts.
On October 31, 2008, the Administration, acting according to the terms of the Libya Claims
Resolution Act (S. 3370, P.L. 110-301), certified the receipt of $1.5 billion and stated the received
funding was sufficient to meet the claims requirements outlined in section 5(a)(2) of the act. An
accompanying memorandum of justification stated:
“This amount is sufficient to ensure the remaining payment of $536 million for the Pan Am
103 Settlement and $283 million for the LaBelle settlement. ...The remaining $681 million is
sufficient to ensure fair compensation for the claims of nationals of the United States for
wrongful death or physical injury in those cases described in the Act which were pending
against Libya on the date of enactment of the Act (August 4, 2008) as well as other
terrorism-related claims against Libya.”11
The certification rescinded the applicability of several terrorism liability provisions to certain
cases involving Libya, including Section 1083 of P.L. 110-181, the National Defense
Authorization Act for FY2008 (see Appendix B for more information).
9 Claims Settlement Agreement between the United States of America and the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab
Jamahiriya, August 14, 2008. Text and Annex provided to CRS by U.S. Department of State.
10 The acts defined in Article One of the agreement include “an act of torture, extrajudicial killing, aircraft sabotage,
hostage taking or detention or other terrorist act, or the provision of material support or resources for such an act” or
“military measures”.
11 Certification Under Section 5(a)(2) of the Libyan Claims Resolution Act Relating to the Receipt of Funds for
Settlement of Claims Against Libya, with Memorandum of Justification, signed and transmitted to Congress October
31, 2008.
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Settlement Eligibility and Adjudication
In December 2008 and January 2009, the State Department referred all eligible outstanding
claims to the U.S. Department of Justice Foreign Claims Settlement Commission for final
adjudication and certification. Claims for physical injury were referred in December 2008, and
six additional categories of claims were referred in January 2009. Claim forms and
documentation for the December 2008 referral must be submitted to the FCSC by July 23, 2009.
Current information on the Libya claims settlement adjudication process is available at the
Commission’s website at http://www.usdoj.gov/fcsc/libyaclaims.htm.
U.S. Foreign Assistance to Libya
Although U.S. sanctions on Libya were lifted in 2004 and terrorism-related restrictions on foreign
assistance were rescinded in 2006, Congress acted to limit the Bush Administration’s ability to
provide foreign assistance to Libya as a means of pressuring the Administration and the Libyan
government to resolve outstanding terrorism claims. The Bush Administration’s October 2008
certification (see “Settlement Details” above) ended standing restrictions on the provision of U.S.
foreign assistance contained in appropriations legislation for FY2008 and FY2009.12 Assistance
requests submitted by the Bush and Obama Administrations for FY2009 and FY2010 include
funding for programs to reengage with Libyan security forces after decades of isolation and to
support Libyan efforts to improve security capabilities in areas of common concern, such as
border control, counterterrorism, and export/import monitoring.
For FY2009, the Bush Administration requested $350,000 in International Military Education and
Training (IMET) funding for Libya to “educate and train Libyan security forces as well as create
vital linkages with Libyan officers after a 35-year break in contact.”13 Proposed training would
include English language education and “seek to identify candidates for specific courses” on
civil-military relations, border security, and counter-terrorism. The Obama Administration has
requested a further $350,000 in FY2010 IMET funds for Libya for similar purposes. Participation
in the IMET program also makes the Libyan government eligible to purchase additional U.S.
military training at a reduced cost.14 The Bush Administration’s FY2009 request indicated that
“the Government of Libya would pay for additional training and education with national funds.”
12The certification satisfied the requirement in Section 654 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act FY2008 (P.L. 110-
161, H.R. 2764, signed December 26, 2007) relating to the provision of foreign assistance to Libya. Under the terms of
Section 101 of H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009
(P.L. 110-329, signed September 30, 2008), the provision of FY2009 foreign assistance funding for Libya was
prohibited prior to the certification issued on October 31, 2008.
13 U.S. Department of State, Congressional Budget Justification for Foreign Operations FY2009, Near East Regional
Overview. Available at http://www.state.gov/documents/ organization/101442.pdf.
14 Section 21(c) of P.L. 90-629, the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), states that IMET recipient countries are eligible
to purchase non-IMET training at reduced cost. Section 108(a) of P.L. 99-83 amended the AECA to provide this
reduced cost benefit to IMET recipients. The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) implements the
authority provided in P.L. 99-83 to apply a lower cost to U.S. military training purchased by IMET recipient countries
through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. At present, the “incremental rates” applied to the FMS training
purchases of IMET recipient countries are calculated according to the terms outlined in Department of Defense
Financial Management Regulation (FMR), Volume 15, Chapter 7 (Sections 0711 and 0712).
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The Obama Administration is requesting FY2010 Foreign Military Financing assistance for Libya
for the first time, with the goal of providing assistance to the Libyan Air Force in developing its
air transport capabilities and to the Libyan Coast Guard in improving its coastal patrol and search
and rescue operations. According to the Administration’s request, “additional funding will be
sought through the Trans-Sahara Counter Terrorism Partnership (TSCTP) initiative, focusing
primarily on anti-terrorism assistance, counter-terrorism finance, terrorist interdiction, and de-
legitimizing terrorist ideology through educational, cultural, and information programming.”
Libya has been invited to join the TSCTP.
Table 1. Recent U.S. Foreign Assistance to Libya
Current U.S. $, thousands
FY2007
FY2008
FY2009
FY2010
Account
Actual
Actual
Estimate
Request
Nonproliferation Antiterrorism,
- 1,000 1,050a 500
Demining, and Related Programs
(NADR)
Economic Support Fund (ESF)
-
-
2,500b -
International Military Education and
- -
350 350
Training (IMET)
Foreign Military Financing (FMF)
-
-
-
250
Annual Total
0 1,000 3,900
1,100
Source: U.S. State Department , Congressional Budget Justifications for Foreign Operations Appropriations.
a. The Bush Administration’s original request cal ed for $750,000 in NADR assistance, including $200,000 in
Antiterrorism Assistance (NADR-ATA). An additional $300,00 in NADR-ATA since has been designated for
Libya programs.
b. The Bush Administration did not original y request FY2009 ESF funding for Libya.
Funding for New U.S. Embassy Construction
In conjunction with the restoration of full diplomatic relations, the United States upgraded its
Liaison Office in Tripoli to an Embassy, which has moved to an interim location. Libyan
demonstrators attacked and burned the former U.S. Embassy in December 1979. Plans to procure
property for a new U.S. embassy were placed on hold, after delays in securing funding and
approval complicated negotiations during 2007.15 The Administration had requested $109.9
million in FY2008 Embassy Security, Construction, and Maintenance (ESCM) funds for property
procurement and construction of a new U.S. Embassy in Tripoli. The Senate report on the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (S.Rept. 110-128, H.R. 2764/P.L. 110-161) did not
include the requested ESCM funds. The State Department’s FY2009 and FY2010 budget requests
indicate that requested ESCM funds may support the acquisition of property for a future new
embassy compound in Tripoli.
15 CRS Analyst consultation with State Department personnel, May 2008. Plans for the new embassy compound
included an office building, support annex, and quarters for a Marine Security Detachment.
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Counterterrorism Cooperation
Muammar al Qadhafi immediately condemned the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks as
“horrific and gruesome” and his government has taken steps to improve U.S.-Libyan
counterterrorism cooperation and intelligence sharing since 2001. The Libyan government has
long perceived Al Qaeda as a threat because members of Libya’s Islamist opposition have been
linked to Al Qaeda and other foreign jihadist organizations (see “Libyan Islamic Fighting Group
(LIFG)” below). This has contributed to Libya’s willingness to expand counterterrorism
cooperation with U.S. authorities. Qadhafi has characterized members of Al Qaeda as “heretics”
in prominent public statements and has described his government’s intelligence and
counterterrorism cooperation with the United States as “irrevocable.” Libya has taken direct
action to limit the activities of known Al Qaeda associates within its borders, including elements
of its own Islamist opposition allied with Al Qaeda. Libya is a party to all 12 international
conventions and protocols relating to terrorism, including the International Convention on the
Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism.
According to the U.S. Department of State’s 2008 Country Report on Terrorism (issued April
2009), the Libyan government “has continued to cooperate with the United States and the
international community to combat terrorism and terrorist financing.” This included efforts to
support U.S. counterterrorism initiatives against the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) and
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM, formerly known as the Salafist Group for Call and
Combat, or GSPC).16 U.S. officials hope to extend counterterrorism assistance to Libya during
FY2010, including potential assistance under the framework of the interagency Trans-Sahara
Counter Terrorism Partnership (TSCTP), which involves all of Libya’s neighbors, except Sudan
and Egypt.17
Libyan Foreign Fighters in Iraq
A 2007 U.S. Military Academy Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) report concluded that an
“apparent surge in Libyan recruits” to serve as foreign fighters in Iraq after late 2006 may have
resulted from an “increasingly cooperative relationship” between the LIFG and Al Qaeda.
Documents found by U.S. forces in Iraq suggest that 137 of 700 foreign fighters brought into Iraq
by a single Al Qaeda-affiliated smuggling operation between August 2006 and September 2007
were Libyan nationals.18 The CTC report highlighted the relatively large percentage of Libyans
reflected in the seized records (over 18 percent), noting that “no previous study has indicated that
more than 4 percent of [foreign] fighters [in Iraq] were Libyan.”
16 U.S. Department of State, Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Country Reports on Terrorism - Libya,
April 30, 2007.
17 As noted above, the Obama Administration’s FY2010 foreign assistance request states that TSCTP funds may
support counterterrorism assistance programs for Libya once the government agrees to join the initiative. The Bush
Administration reportedly intended to extend TSCTP assistance to Libya, but Libya did not agree to participate in the
program. See Ann Tyson, “U.S. Pushes Anti-Terrorism in Africa,” Washington Post, July 26, 2005.
18 Richard A. Oppel Jr., “Foreign Fighters in Iraq Are Tied to Allies of U.S.,” New York Times, November 22, 2007.
According to the United States Military Academy Combating Terrorism Center, the seized records “contained varying
amounts of detail on the fighters’ personal background, group affiliation, travel to Syria, and intended role in Iraq.
Some records had considerably more detail than others.” United States Military Academy Combating Terrorism Center,
Al Qa’ida’s Foreign Fighters in Iraq: A First Look at the Sinjar Records, December 19, 2007.
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The records suggest that many of the Libyan nationals traveled from the country’s northeastern
coastal region, especially from the cities of Darnah and Benghazi, to Iraq via Egypt and Syria.
Both cities are known as strong bases of Islamist and opposition sentiment and reportedly have
been the site of clashes between government security forces and armed opponents in the past.19
Although some Libyan officials have been outspoken in their criticism of U.S. policy toward Iraq,
available public reporting does not suggest that the Libyan government is in any way involved in
encouraging or facilitating the travel of Libyan nationals to Iraq to serve as combatants. The 2008
State Department Country Report on Terrorism in Libya, released April 30, 2009, cites press
reports as stating that “LIFG maintains a limited presence in eastern Libya and has facilitated the
transfer of foreign fighters to join insurgents fighting U.S.-led forces in Iraq.”
Political and Economic Profile
Muammar al Qadhafi: A Profile
Muammar al Qadhafi was born in 1942 near the central coastal city of Sirte. His Arabized Berber
family belongs to the relatively small Qadhafa tribe, and his upbringing was modest. As a young
man Qadhafi identified strongly with Arab nationalist and socialist ideologies espoused by leaders
such as Egypt’s Gamel Abdel Nasser. Although he was excluded from the elite Cyrenaica Defense
Forces on a tribal basis during the Libyan monarchy period (see Appendix A), Qadhafi was
commissioned as a regular army captain following stints at the Libyan military academy in
Benghazi and the United Kingdom’s Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. Following his return
to Libya, he led the September 1, 1969 overthrow of the Libyan monarchy with a group of fellow
officers. He was 27 years old.
Qadhafi has proven to be a controversial, complex, and contradictory political survivor during his
long reign in Libya, in spite of numerous internal and external challenges to his rule. He has
exercised nearly complete, if, at times, indirect political control over Libya over the last thirty-
plus years by carefully balancing and manipulating complex patronage networks, traditional tribal
structures, and byzantine layers of national, regional, and local governance. Libya’s foreign and
domestic policies nominally have been based on his personal ideology. In the past, Qadhafi and
his supporters have imposed his theories with realistic purpose and precision, not hesitating to
crush coup attempts, assassinate dissidents abroad, or sponsor violent movements and terrorist
attacks against Libya’s perceived external enemies.
Personally, Qadhafi often is described as mercurial, charismatic, shrewd, and reclusive. He is
married and has eight children: seven sons and one daughter. An April 1986 U.S. air strike in
retaliation for a Libyan-sponsored anti-American bombing in Berlin hit one of his homes in
Tripoli, killing his adopted infant daughter and hospitalizing members of his immediate family.
The incident reportedly continues to be a source of personal anger and resentment for Qadhafi: he
has preserved the bombed out ruins of the home in the military compound where it stood, and he
remarked on the death of President Ronald Reagan in 2004 that the former U.S. president had
19 See for example, Michael Sheridan, “Libya’s Secret War Pits Islam Against Gaddafi,” The Independent (UK),
October 14, 1995; and, Marie Colvin, “Islamic Revolt Jolts Gadaffi - Dictator Sends out Helicopter Gunships to Crush
‘Holy War,’” Sunday Times (UK), March 31, 1996.
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died before he could be prosecuted for the “ugly crime that he committed in 1986 against the
Libyan children.”20
Political Dynamics
Libya’s often contradictory political dynamics are a product of competing interest groups seeking
to influence policy within the confines of the country’s authoritarian political system and amid
Libya’s emergence from international isolation. Elements of Muammar al Qadhafi’s ideology
permeate political discourse on many security and foreign policy issues, while in other cases,
such as economic reform, new frameworks are being embraced to meet society’s current and
changing needs. The legacies of colonial occupation and Libya’s struggle for independence
continue to influence Libyan politics; rhetorical references to preserving sovereignty and
resistance to foreign domination are common in political statements. Most Libyans also accept a
prominent role for Islamic tradition in public life: Islam is the official religion and the Quran is
the basis for the country’s law and its “social code.”
Tribal relationships remain important, particularly with regard to the distribution of leadership
roles in government ministries and in political-military relations. Tribal loyalties remain strong
within and between branches of the armed services, and members of Qadhafi’s tribe, the Qadhafa,
have held many high ranking government positions, reportedly including key positions in the air
force. Members of larger, rival tribes, such as the Warfalla, have opposed the regime on grounds
of tribal discrimination. Some Libyan military and security officials staged limited, unsuccessful
coup attempts against Qadhafi in 1993 and 1996 based in part on tribal and familial rivalries. The
Qadhafi government has performed periodic reassignments and purges of the officer corps to
limit the likelihood of organized opposition reemerging from within the military. However, these
political considerations have affected the military’s preparedness and war fighting capability.
Political parties and all opposition groups are banned in Libya under Law number 71 of 1972.
Formal political pluralism is frowned upon by many members of the ruling elite, even as an
increasing number of regime figures advocate for greater popular participation in existing
government institutions. Opposition groups, most notably the Muslim Brotherhood, appear to
have shifted their political strategies toward gradual attempts to influence national policy making
in contrast to others’ confrontational efforts to change the makeup of the regime. Prominent
figures in Libyan politics include Muammar al Qadhafi’s son Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi,21 General
People’s Committee Secretary Al Baghdadi Ali al Mahmudi, National Oil Company chief Shukri
Ghanem, Foreign Minister Musa Kousa, and prominent members of the security establishment,
including army leader and original RCC member Abu Bakr Younis Jaber.
Government Structure
Libya has a unique political system composed of nominally decentralized and participatory levels
of government. Muammar al Qadhafi and his closest supporters exercise final authority over
20 Khaled El-Deeb, “Gadhafi: Regrets Reagan Died Before Being Tried for 1986 Air Strikes on Libya,” Associated
Press, June 6, 2004.
21 For a detailed profile of Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi and a discussion of questions about the possibility of his succeeding
his father, see Yehudit Ronen, “Libya’s Rising Star: Said Al-Islam and Succession,” Middle East Policy, Vol. XII, No.
3, Fall 2005, pp. 136-44.
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domestic and foreign policies by means of their control of the implementation mechanisms of the
national government—the sizeable military and security apparatus and a handful of powerful
ministries. Qadhafi’s ideological emphasis on “the authority of the people” is the stated basis for
the operation of Libya’s multiple levels of government. Although participation in these
institutions is mostly open and political leaders routinely encourage citizens to take part in their
deliberations, most external observers regard Libya’s political system as largely authoritarian and
undemocratic. The U.S. State Department’s annual human rights reports document ongoing
restrictions on political life and human rights in Libya (see “Political Reform and Human Rights”
below).
The “Authority of the People”
A hierarchy of “people’s congresses” make up Libya’s government and serve as venues for the
exercise of “popular authority” as defined by Muammar al Qadhafi’s ideology. At the local level,
citizens meet in Basic People’s Congresses to appoint representatives to regional and ultimately
the national General People’s Congress. Participation in the basic congresses is open to all Libyan
citizens, although participation rates are notoriously low and Qadhafi regularly makes public
statements expressing his disappointment with participation levels and urging broader popular
involvement in public affairs. At the March 1, 2000, session of the General Peoples’ Congress,
Qadhafi abolished the positions of 12 General People’s Committee (cabinet-equivalent)
secretaries and reassigned their duties to provincial committees. Secretariats of foreign affairs,
justice, public security, and finance remained under the authority of the centralized General
People’s Committee. Some experts have argued that the decentralization was designed to deflect
popular criticism from the central government and further dilute political opposition within the
country.
In March 2006, the Libyan government announced the replacement of Secretary (prime minister-
equivalent) of the General People’s Committee Shukri Ghanem by former Health Minister Al
Baghdadi Ali al Mahmudi. A cabinet reshuffle and the creation of seven new ministries also were
announced. The replacement of the reform-oriented Ghanem was interpreted by some observers
as an effort by conservative and hard-line elements of the Libyan political establishment to
reassert control over the speed and direction of Libya’s reform efforts. Ghanem now serves as the
director of the National Oil Company, where he is involved with ongoing international bidding
for oil exploration and production-sharing agreements. A further reshuffle in March 2009 elevated
long-time intelligence chief Musa Kusa to the position of Foreign Minister.
Proposals for the Dissolution of State Ministries and Revenue Distribution
In March 2008, Qadhafi announced his intention to dissolve most government administrative
bodies and institute a Wealth Distribution Program whereby state oil revenues would be
distributed to citizens on a monthly basis for them to administer personally, in cooperation, and
via local committees.22 Citing popular criticism of government performance in a long, wide-
ranging speech, Qadhafi repeatedly stated that the traditional state would soon be “dead” in Libya
and that direct rule by citizens would be accomplished through the distribution of oil revenues.
Defense, foreign affairs, security, and oil production arrangements reportedly would remain
22 BBC Monitoring Middle East, “Libyan leader says cabinet must be dismantled,” March 2, 2008; and, “Libyan Leader
Addresses Libyan People’s Congress; Dissolves Cabinet,” OSC Report GMP20080305864001, March 3, 2008.
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national government responsibilities, while other bodies would be phased out. In early 2009,
Libya’s Basic People’s Congresses considered variations of the proposals, and the General
People’s Congress voted to delay implementation.
Opposition Groups
The government has dealt harshly with opposition leaders and groups over the last four decades,
establishing special “people’s courts” and “revolutionary committees” to enforce ideological and
political discipline and to punish violators and dissidents. Abroad, Libyan intelligence personnel
have monitored, harassed, and, in some cases, assassinated expatriate dissidents, some of whom
were referred to as “stray dogs.” In recent years, some in the Libyan establishment have reached
out to opposition figures and exiles, facilitating engagement and negotiating the return of some
former regime opponents to Libya.
Libya’s myriad opposition movements can be categorized broadly as Islamist, royalist, or
democratic in orientation. However, their activities and effectiveness have been largely limited by
disorganization, rivalry, and ideological differences. New efforts to coordinate opposition
activities have begun in response to Libya’s reintegration to the international community and the
emergence of a broader political reform debate in the Arab world. However, most observers do
not regard any of Libya’s current opposition groups as a serious threat or alternative to the current
government.
Exiles
In the past, government officials and intelligence operatives have monitored and taken violent
action against expatriate opposition groups and leaders, including in Europe and the United
States. Clandestine opposition groups also have carried out assassinations and attacks against
Libyan government officials abroad. Opposition groups in exile include the National Alliance, the
Libyan National Movement (LNM), the Libyan Movement for Change and Reform, the Islamist
Rally, the National Libyan Salvation Front (NLSF), and the Republican Rally for Democracy and
Justice. A royalist contingent based on the claim to the throne by Mohammed al Sanusi, the
grandson of the former king, is based in London. These groups and others held an opposition
conference in July 2005 in London and issued a “national accord,” calling for the removal of
Qadhafi from power and the establishment of a transitional government.23 A follow-up meeting
was held in March 2008.24
In a September 2005 interview, then-Foreign Minister Abd al Rahman Shalgam characterized
some of the regime’s expatriate opponents as individuals who fled the country after committing
economic crimes or collaborating with foreign intelligence services. He then invited any
expatriate dissidents who had not committed crimes to return to Libya.25 In August 2005, the
government announced the return of 787 exiles who agreed to reconcile with the Qadhafi
23 May Youssef, “Anti-Gaddafists Rally in London,” Al Ahram Weekly (Cairo), No. 749, June 30 - July 6, 2005; Al
Jazeera (Doha), “Opposition Plans to Oust Al Qadhafi,” June 25, 2005; Middle East Mirror, “Libya’s Fractured
Opposition,” July 29, 2005.
24 “Libyan Opposition Groups Meet in London To Reiterate Commitment To Save Libya,” OSC Report
GMP20080329825012, March 29, 2008.
25 “Libya’s Shalgam on Ties With US, S. Arabia, Opposition,” OSC Document GMP20050924512001, September 24,
2005.
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regime.26 Regional observers characterized the return of prominent dissidents in August 2006 as
evidence of an unofficial reconciliation program between the Libyan government and its
expatriate opponents.27
The Muslim Brotherhood
Like other political organizations and opposition groups, the Muslim Brotherhood is banned in
Libya under law number 71 of 1972. Since the late 1940s, when members of the Egyptian
Muslim Brotherhood first entered Libya following a crackdown on their activities, the Libyan
Muslim Brotherhood has existed as a semi-official organization. Hundreds of Brotherhood
members and activists were jailed in 1973, although the Brotherhood eventually reemerged and
operated as a clandestine organization for much of the following two decades. In 1998, a second
round of mass arrests took place, and 152 Brotherhood leaders and members were arrested.
Several reportedly died in custody, and, following trials in 2001 and 2002, two prominent
Brotherhood leaders were sentenced to death and over 70 were sentenced to life in prison. The
government announced a retrial for the imprisoned Brotherhood activists in October 2005, and in
March 2006, the group’s 84 remaining imprisoned members were released.28
The controller general of the Libyan Muslim Brotherhood, Suleiman Abdel Qadir, describes the
Brotherhood’s objectives as peaceful and policy-focused, and has called for the cancellation of
laws restricting political rights.29 Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi has reached out to the Libyan Muslim
Brotherhood by publicly characterizing the organization as nonviolent and non-seditious. Abdel
Qadir responded to political reform statements by Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi in 2007 with calls for
more inclusive, consultative decision making.30 In a November 2008 interview with Qatar-based
satellite channel Al Jazirah, Abdel Qadir expressed appreciation for the younger Al Qadhafi’s
attempt, while noting that the fact that outreach has taken place under the auspices of the Qadhafi
Foundation and not through official state organs undermines their significance. He also repeated
calls for reform and reconciliation aimed at creating a constitution and protecting civil rights for
Libyans.31
Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG)
The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) is a violent Islamist movement opposed to the
Qadhafi government. Its imprisoned leaders have been engaged in a dialogue with the Qadhafi
Foundation for several years, and over 130 LIFG members have been released in recent years.
However, Libyan and U.S. concerns about LIFG’s domestic and international activities persist.
According to the Department of State, the LIFG has attempted to assassinate Qadhafi, most
recently in 1996, and may have participated in the planning of the May 2003 suicide bombings in
26 UPI, “Libya Says Hundreds Return From Exile,” August 20, 2005.
27 Khalid Mahmoud, “Libya: Surprise Return of More Opponents Following Secret Contacts,” Al Sharq Al Awsat
(London), August 19, 2006.
28 Afaf El-Geblawi, “Libya Frees All Jailed Muslim Brotherhood Members,” Agence France Presse, March 3, 2006.
29 “Al Jazirah TV Interviews Libyan Muslim Brotherhood Leader on Current Situation,” OSC Document -
GMP20050803550006, August 3, 2005.
30 “Libyan MB Concerned Over Sayf al-Islam’s Statements Regarding New Constitution,” OSC Document -
GMP20070830282001, August 30, 2007.
31 “Libyan Muslim Brotherhood Official on Libya’s Foreign, Domestic Politics,” OSC Document -
GMP20081111635001, November 10, 2008.
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Casablanca, Morocco.32 The group’s reported ties with Al Qaeda came under scrutiny in July
2009 after group members based in Britain reportedly renounced the group’s affiliation with Al
Qaeda, and contrasted the LIFG with others who use indiscriminate bombing and target civilians.
In November 2007, Al Qaeda figures Ayman al Zawahiri and Abu Layth al Libi announced the
merger of the LIFG with Al Qaeda, which many terrorism analysts viewed at the time as having
political rather than operational relevance.33 Al Libi was killed in an air-strike in Pakistan in
February 2008.
In a July 2009 statement, LIFG members in Britain characterized the November 2007
announcement from Al Libi as “a personal decision that is at variance with the basic status of the
group,” and sought to “clearly emphasize that the group is not, has never been, and will never be,
linked to the Al Qaeda organization.”34 The statement stressed that LIFG members abroad support
“the dialogue underway between the group’s leadership and the Libyan regime if it should lead to
an end to bloodletting, the release of prisoners, the spreading of security and justice, the reunion
of families, and to permitting preaching, educational, and political activities.” The statement
warned that the group would “preserve [its] lawful and natural right to oppose the regime if it
does not turn its back on its previous policy that has led to tension and deadlock.”
Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi has overseen an effort to engage with LIFG leaders in an effort to
encourage them to renounce violence and links with other violent groups. Reports on the dialogue
suggest it is similar to processes completed or underway in other countries such as Egypt and
Saudi Arabia and may result in the issuance of written “revisions” of the LIFG’s views on
religion, violence, and its political disputes with the Libyan government. As of March 2009,
reports suggested that over 130 jailed members of the LIFG and other violent Islamist groups had
been released from prison as part of the process, following their renunciation of violence and
pledge to participate in society peacefully.35 Since mid-2008, periodic Libyan press reports have
stated that Sayf al Islam Al Qadhafi has continued to pursue dialogue with imprisoned members
of the LIFG leadership, and the reports suggest that the LIFG and representatives of the Qadhafi
foundation remain close to brokering an agreement that could lead to the LIFG renouncing
violence against the Libyan state.36 In March 2009, a statement published in a state-owned
newspaper and attributed to imprisoned LIFG leader Abdel Hakim Belhaj (also known as Abu
Abdallah As Sadiq) thanked Sayf al Islam Al Qadhafi “for his attention and continuous pursuing
of this dossier.”37
The United States froze the LIFG’s U.S. assets under Executive Order 13224 in September 2001,
and formally designated the LIFG as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in December 2004. In
February 2006, the U.S. Department of the Treasury designated five individuals and four entities
in the United Kingdom as Specially Designated Global Terrorists for their role in supporting the
32 U.S. Department of State, “Libya,” Country Reports on Terrorism 2004, April 2005.
33 “Al-Zawahiri, Al-Libi: Libyan Islamic Fighting Group Joins Al-Qa’ida,” OSC Document - FEA20071104393586,
November 3, 2007.
34 “Libyan Islamic Fighting Group Abroad Issues Statement Supporting Regime Dialogue.” OSC Document -
GMP20090703825003, July 3, 2009.
35 Agence France Presse, “” March 11, 2009.
36 “Report on ‘Seething Anger’ in Libya Over Dismantling Al Qa’ida-Linked Cells,” OSC Report
GMP20080630825001 June 30, 2008; “Libya: Jailed Islamic Group Leaders ‘Preparing’ To Renounce Armed
Violence,” OSC Report GMP20080706837002, July 6, 2008; and, “Libyan Islamic Fighting Group Source Announces
Ideology Revision Nearly Complete,” OSC Report GMP20090615825012, June 15, 2009.
37 “Libyan Islamist lauds Al Qadhafi’s son,” OSC Document - GMP20090402950042, March 10, 2009.
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LIFG.38 On October 30, 2008, Treasury designated three more LIFG financiers.39 Some observers
have characterized the designations as a gesture of solidarity with Libya and have argued that the
ability and willingness of the LIFG to mount terror attacks in Libya may be limited. Others claim
that LIFG fighters have allied themselves with other violent Islamist groups operating in the
trans-Sahara region, and cite evidence of Libyan fighters joining the Iraqi insurgency as an
indication of ongoing Islamist militancy in Libya and a harbinger of a possible increase in
violence associated with fighters returning from Iraq.40 Reports suggest that eastern Libya may be
a stronghold for LIFG members and other extremist groups that could pose a threat to Libya’s
security.
Political Reform and Human Rights
The 2008 U.S. Department of State report on human rights in Libya (released in February 2009)
characterizes Libya’s human rights record as “poor.”41 A January 2008 Human Rights Watch
report argued that in spite of “some improvements” in Libyan human rights policies in recent
years,” serious rights abuses persist.”42 Annual reports on political and human rights conditions
from the U.S. State Department and international groups such as Amnesty International and
Human Rights Watch have catalogued a broad range of recurring abuses including arbitrary
arrest, incommunicado detention, torture, a general ban on political opposition, and official
limitations on public speech, assembly, and press activity.43
Since 2003, Libyan political figures, including Muammar al Qadhafi and his son Sayf al Islam al
Qadhafi, have made a series of public statements and policy announcements in an effort to repair
Libya’s reputation with regard to human rights practices. Some tangible steps have been taken,
and Libyan authorities have reported that legal reforms are under way that may improve the
protections and rights afforded to citizens. Judicial entities associated with human rights abuses
and political control in the past, such as “revolutionary courts” and “people’s courts,” reportedly
have been dismantled. As a result, some observers have expressed cautious optimism that
political, social, and religious freedom may be improving in Libya. Others continue to warn that
such reforms may be merely cosmetic and meant to support the government’s efforts to improve
its domestic legitimacy and international standing. In February 2009, the U.S. State Department
report on human rights in Libya stated that “security personnel routinely tortured prisoners during
interrogations or as punishment.”
38 U.S. Department of the Treasury, “Treasury Designates UK-Based Individuals, Entities Financing Al Qaida-
Affiliated LIFG,” JS-4016, February 8, 2006.
39 U.S. Department of the Treasury, “Three LIFG Members Designation for Terrorism,” HP-1244, October 30, 2008.
40 Alison Pargeter, “Militant Groups Pose Security Challenge for Libyan Regime,” Janes Intelligence Review, Vol. 17,
No. 8, August 2005, pp. 16-19.
41 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Country Reports on Human Rights
Practices, Libya - 2008, March 6, 2007.
42 Human Rights Watch, “Backgrounder - Libya: Rights at Risk,” January 3, 2008. Available at http://hrw.org/english/
docs/2008/01/03/libya17674.htm.
43 The latest reports on human rights conditions in Libya are available in the U.S. Department of State’s Country
Report on Human Rights Practices in Libya (March 6, 2007) and from Amnesty International http://web.amnesty.org/
library/eng-lby/index, and Human Rights Watch http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=mideast&c=libya.
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Legal and Institutional Reform
Libyan law prohibits the activities of all political opposition groups and restricts the free exercise
of speech and the press.44 Since Qadhafi’s 1969 coup, little legal recourse has been available to
citizens accused of political crimes. Nevertheless, officials have announced plans to embark upon
a full review of the country’s Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure to eliminate restrictive
laws regarding political activity. Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi also has called for a constitution to
clarify the power of different legislative, executive, and judicial institutions in Libya and has
endorsed ongoing legal reforms as a means to “provide a free environment that is suitable for a
normal political life.”45 He renewed these calls in an August 2007 speech and indicated that a
constitutional drafting process would begin. The speech called for the guarantee of “independent
institutions,” including the central bank, the supreme court, the media, and civil society. He also
outlined four “red lines” to guide reform efforts: Islamic law, the territorial integrity of Libya,
security and stability, and “Muammar al Qadhafi.”46
In support of the reform efforts, some institutional changes have been instituted to improve
political and human rights conditions. In March 2004, the General People’s Committee
Secretariat of Justice and Public Security was split into two separate secretariats in an effort to
establish greater judicial independence. In January 2005, the General People’s Congress approved
a law abolishing judicial institutions known as “people’s courts” and “revolutionary courts” that
tried suspected regime opponents, sometimes in secret. International human rights organizations
welcomed the abolition of the people’s court system as an “important step” and urged Libyan
authorities to grant new trials to prisoners convicted by the courts, including several who were
convicted in late 2004.
Human Rights Monitoring
The Libyan government has not permitted the establishment of independent human rights
organizations but invited international human rights groups Amnesty International and Human
Rights Watch to Libya for the first time in 15 years. In late 2004 and early 2005, representatives
from both organizations toured various security facilities and prisons and met with selected
imprisoned dissidents. A January 2006 Human Rights Watch report based on research conducted
during the visit concluded that “Libyan leader Muammar al Qadhafi and his inner circle appear
unwilling to implement genuine reform, especially in the areas of free expression and
association,” although the Libyan government has taken “some positive steps” to improve human
rights conditions since 2003.47
44 According to the U.S. State Department, Libyan law provides for freedom of speech “within the limits of public
interest and principles of the Revolution.” In practice, criticism of the government and Qadhafi are restricted and often
punished. By law, print and broadcast media in Libya are owned and operated by government authorities. Satellite and
Internet access are limited and partially censored.
45 “Libyan Leader’s Son on Call to Reopen Human Rights Files,” OSC Document - GMP20050820537003, August 20,
2005.
46 “Libyan Leader’s Son Outlines his Version of Democracy,” OSC Document - GMP20070823950058, August 20,
2007.
47 Human Rights Watch, “Libya: Words to Deeds The Urgent Need for Human Rights Reform,” Volume 18, No. 1(E),
January 2006.
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Since 2004, Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi has publicly supported a pro-human rights agenda and has
created an official human rights monitoring body under the auspices of the Qadhafi Development
Foundation. The foundation’s Human Rights Society now operates a national hotline for Libyans
to report cases of unlawful detention, seizure of property or assets, and death or injury at the
hands of security personnel.48
Fathi al Jahmi
The death of Fathi al Jahmi, Libya’s most internationally recognized political prisoner, shortly
after his release from Libyan custody in May 2009, brought a negative end to a long-running
issue of contention in U.S.-Libyan relations. Al Jahmi was imprisoned in 2002 after publicly
calling for elections and press reforms and for criticizing Muammar al Qadhafi and the
government. President Bush praised Al Jahmi’s subsequent release in March 2004 under a
suspended sentence, but Al Jahmi was soon rearrested after he repeated his calls for reform and
expanded his criticism of Qadhafi in interviews with regional satellite channels, including U.S.-
funded Al Hurra. Al Jahmi subsequently was detained and remained in ill health throughout his
detention. Bush Administration officials repeatedly called for Al Jahmi’s release,49 and U.S.
officials, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, reportedly raised the issue in private
with their Libyan interlocutors.50 On March 17, 2009, U.S. State Department spokesman Robert
Wood stated that the Obama Administration continued to call for Al Jahmi’s “unconditional
release, as well as his ability to travel and seek medical care where he wishes.” In response to the
news of his death, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, “we had welcomed his release to
Jordan. We regret that his poor state of health, however, did not allow him to fully recover upon
transfer.”
Libyan Foreign Policy
Libyan foreign policy since the 1990s has been defined by a shift from engagement with other
Arab states to a greater focus on Africa. The prominent role played by Libyan leader Muammar al
Qadhafi ensures that foreign relations remain personality driven, somewhat unpredictable, and
characterized by close relationships with non-state actors and opposition movements in a number
of neighboring states. In recent years, Qadhafi publicly has maintained his opposition to Arab
engagement with Israel in the face of continued Israeli military occupation and settlement activity
in the West Bank. He also has called for a “one state solution” based on reconciliation between
the Israeli and Palestinian people within a single state, which he proposes be called ‘Isratine.’
Qadhafi has criticized the Arab League’s Arab Peace Initiative, arguing that it does not represent
the views of all Arabs and would be detrimental to the interests of Palestinians.
Qadhafi’s diplomatic engagement in Africa remains active, particularly his efforts to mediate
between governments and rebel factions in neighboring Sudan, Niger, and Chad and his proposals
for the establishment of an United States of Africa, which many African leaders consider quixotic
48 Brian Whitaker, “Libya: Getafe’s Son Sets Up Human Rights Hotline,” The Guardian (London), September 17,
2005.
49 On March 31, 2008, the U.S. Department of State issued a statement urging “the Libyan government to fulfill their
promise to release without condition” prominent political activist Fathi al Jahmi. U.S. Department of State Deputy
Spokesman Tom Casey, Press Statement: Washington, DC, March 31, 2008
50 Issues Related to United States Relations With Libya On-the-Record Briefing Washington, DC, May 15, 2006.
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and regard with suspicion. Qadhafi’s election as Chairman of the African Union has created
opportunities for him to advocate for greater African unity and for a more powerful voice for the
African Union in international bodies.
Libyan defense officials have informed their U.S. Defense Department counterparts that the
Libyan government opposes the potential introduction of non-African military forces on the
continent on a permanent basis. Libyan officials reportedly support the proposed security capacity
building mission of the new U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), if only in general terms.51 The
Arab Maghreb Union, of which Libya is a member, rejected the presence of foreign military
forces on its members’ territory at a 2007 summit in Rabat, a move seen as underscoring Libya’s
opposition to stationing of U.S. forces in North Africa under the new command.52 AFRICOM’s
Deputy for Military Operations, Rear Admiral Robert Moeller, has stated that, “the U.S.-
AFRICOM does not need to station large operational units across the African continent,” and that
“small numbers of forces will come to the continent to do a particular activity and then...
depart.”53 AFRICOM Commander General William Ward met with Qadhafi in Libya in May
2009.
Energy and the Libyan Economy
Until the discovery of oil in 1959, Libya’s economic viability was seriously questioned by many
outside observers. Foreign aid and subsidies largely supported the national budget, until the
introduction of massive amounts of oil revenue transformed the country’s economy and social
fabric. Following the September 1, 1969 military coup, Qadhafi and his government restructured
Libya’s economy along socialist lines, placing a heavy emphasis on national management of
industry and resource allocation. However, the economy remained highly dependent on oil
revenue and thus highly vulnerable to fluctuations in global oil prices.54 The government has
announced its intention to reverse state ownership trends associated with the country’s long
experiment with socialism. Economic diversification and resource management remain
challenges for the government and private sector as they seek to revive the economy and
capitalize on interest from foreign investors.
Oil revenue has been the lifeblood of the Libyan economy and government since exports began in
1961. According to the International Monetary Fund, hydrocarbon (oil and gas) revenue
accounted for an estimated 90% of Libya’s government revenue in 2008.55 Rising oil prices
through mid-2008 spurred corresponding growth in the economy. Libyan leader Muammar al
Qadhafi has stated that Libyans have been “very happy” with higher price levels in the global oil
market, although he has underlined the importance of creating alternative sources of revenue and
51 Testimony of Theresa M. Whelan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Africa before the Africa and Global
Health Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, August 2, 2007.
52 Libyan Foreign Minister Abd al Rahman Shalgam stated, “The Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) will not allow the
presence of any foreign soldier on its soil, because people in this region object to that, the authorities are not thinking of
such presence and even others are aware of the fact that this region will not accept the presence of any kind of foreign
troops on its territory.” “Libyan Foreign Minister on Maghreb Union, US Military Command in Africa,” OSC
Document GMP20071201950028, November 30, 2007.
53 Voice of America, “U.S. Military Delegation in Nigeria for AFRICOM Talks,” November 29, 2007.
54 See Dirk Vandewalle, Libya Since Independence, Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca, 1998.
55 International Monetary Fund, Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya: 2008 Article IV Consultation—Staff
Report, IMF Country Report No. 08/302, September 2008.
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economic growth in public statements.56 Current economic forecasts suggest that rising import
costs and lower global oil prices may combine to reduce Libya’s trade and fiscal surpluses over
the coming two years.
Oil Reserves and Production Capacity
According to Oil and Gas Journal, Libya’s proven oil reserves are estimated at 43.7 billion barrels
(ninth largest in the world). The Libyan National Oil Company (NOC) manages oil production
activity and negotiates exploration and production agreements with foreign companies. Oil
exploration and production are carried out on the basis of a 1955 oil law, and Libyan authorities
reportedly are drafting a new law to govern production activities and reform the foreign
investment approval process. Foreign investment is regulated through exploration and production
agreements negotiated by foreign companies and the NOC. In September 2006, Libya established
a Council for Oil and Gas Affairs to regulate oil and gas exploration and production and to
approve decisions about the development of the oil and gas sector.57 Most of Libya’s oil is
exported to Italy, Germany, France, and Spain. However, following the resumption of crude oil
exports to the United States in June 2004, oil shipments to U.S. refiners have increased, from
56,000 barrels per day in 2005 to an average of 102,000 barrels per day in 2008.58
Until recently, Libyan oil production had steadily declined from its peak of 3.3 million barrels per
day (b/d) in 1970 due to the deterioration of production equipment and infrastructure related to
strict investment controls and international sanctions. According to the U.S. Energy Information
Administration, Libya produced an average of 1.88 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2008, which
officials have stated is currently the sector’s maximum capacity. Since the termination of U.N.
and U.S. sanctions in 2003 and 2004, Libya has sought foreign investment to rehabilitate and
expand its oil production capacity and expects $11 billion in oil production related investment
from 2005 to 2015. Current government production targets are 2.3 million b/d by 2013.59
Natural Gas
Libya’s proven natural gas reserves are estimated to be 54 trillion cubic feet, although, like the
country’s oil reserves, Libya’s gas holdings may be significantly higher given the generally
under-explored status of Libyan territory. As with oil production, the development of natural gas
production and export capacity has been limited by restrictive investment policies and
international sanctions. Nevertheless, Libya has been able to use natural gas for some domestic
power generation and for limited exports to some European countries. Shell is currently exploring
for natural gas deposits and has developed a plan to upgrade Libya’s aging liquefied natural gas
plant at Marsa al Brega.60 Libyan authorities also are reportedly pursuing pipeline agreements
56 “Libyan Leader Says ‘Problems Abroad’ Solved,” OSC Document GMP20050919710040, September 19, 2005;
Reuters, “Libya Very Happy With High Oil Prices - Gaddafi,” July 4, 2005.
57 The prime minister serves as the chairman of the Council. Other members include outside experts, the head of the
NOC, the ministers of economy, trade, employment, finance, and the central bank governor. Vahe Petrossian, “Libya
Sees Panel on the Fast Track,” Upstream, September 15 2006; and, Reuters, “Libya Oil Licensing Round Attracts
Many Offers - NOC,” September 26, 2006.
58 U.S. Energy Information Admin. (EIA), Libya Country Analysis Brief, July 2009.
59 Ibid.
60 WWP Report on Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals, “Libya: Multi-billion Dollar Joint Venture Agreement to Modernize
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Plant,” June 1, 2005.
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with neighboring North African states to improve export access to European markets. In May
2007 representatives from British Petroleum (BP) announced the signing of an extensive natural
gas exploration and LNG export agreement with Libya. In July 2008, representatives from
Russia’s Gazprom visited Libya and expressed interest in purchasing Libya’s natural gas exports
and cooperating with Libya on new natural gas export pipelines to Europe. According to
Gazprom, Libya and Gazprom decided “to initiate the thematic negotiations on the purchase of
the currently available hydrocarbon volumes from the Libyan party.”61
Military Profile and WMD Disarmament
The Libyan Military
Structure, Training, and Equipment
Libya’s mostly conscripted military forces are small relative to the large amount of weaponry at
their disposal (see Table 2 below). Most outside military analysts regard the training and
leadership of Libyan forces as poor and identify a lack of combined arms and joint service
planning as factors that limit their overall effectiveness. The Qadhafi government historically has
made the acquisition of weapons and equipment a higher priority than training or creating high-
quality military support infrastructure.
Table 2. Libyan Military Personnel
Service Personnel
Army (~ half conscript)
50,000
Air Force
18,000
Navy 8,000
Revolutionary Guard Corps
3,000
Reserve People’s Militia
40,000
Total 119,000
Sources: International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance, February 2009; Jaffee Center for
Strategic Studies, “Libya,” Middle East Military Balance, September 2007.
Libya’s army, navy, and air forces are equipped with a broad range of aging Soviet and Eastern
Bloc equipment, although the country’s poorly maintained inventories also include some U.S. and
western European arms, including French Mirage fighters and U.S. C-130 transports.62 Libya’s
exorbitant military spending in the late 1970s and early 1980s yielded an unmanageable crop of
diverse weapon systems from various sources and manufacturers. Purchases declined
significantly during the 1990s because of international sanctions, which limited the revenue
available for defense spending. Libya’s current military leadership presides over a largely stored
61 Polya Lesova, “Gazprom seeks to buy all of Libya’s oil, gas exports,” MarketWatch, July 10, 2008.
62 Facts on File World News Digest, “U.S. Bars Libya Planes, Training,” September 20, 1975; and Washington Post,
“Libya’s Qaddafi Praises Carter, Urges Closer Ties,” June 13, 1977. In 2004, Libya sold 40 of its aging Mirage fighters
to Pakistan.
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and surplus catalogue of weaponry with poor maintenance records.63 The military also lacks
sufficient numbers of trained personnel to operate the military equipment currently in its
possession.
Arms Sales64
The subject of renewed arms sales to Libya remains a sensitive subject in the United States and
some European countries whose citizens were killed in Libyan sponsored terrorist attacks during
the 1980s. The European Union lifted its arms embargo against Libya in October 2004. The U.S.
ban on export of defense articles lapsed at the end of a 45-day congressional notification period,
on June 30, 2006. Qadhafi reportedly has expressed interest in procuring U.S., European, and
Russian weapon systems. France, Spain, Ukraine, and Russia are among the countries reportedly
interested in refurbishing and replacing Libya’s weapon stocks.65 The United Kingdom’s Defense
Export Services Organization (DESO) reportedly has labeled Libya a “priority” market in
documents promoting exports by U.K. arms manufacturers, and press reports have detailed
meetings between DESO representatives and Libyan authorities since 2004.66
In August 2007, the European aerospace and defense group EADS signed a contract to provide
Milan anti-tank missiles to Libya in the wake of a visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to
negotiate the release of imprisoned Bulgarian medics. The contract is being investigated and both
sides have denied any quid pro quo arrangement. A potentially larger sale reportedly remains
under negotiation: press reports suggest that Libyan and French officials continue to negotiate the
terms of a multi-billion dollar arms sale that could send new fighter jets, helicopters, patrol boats,
armored vehicles, and air defense upgrades to Libya. France also may agree to upgrade several
1970s era F1 fighters in Libyan possession or provide up to 14 Dassault Rafale multirole fighters
if continuing talks prove successful.67 In conjunction with a state visit by then-Russian President
Vladimir Putin in April 2008, a number of potential arms sales were discussed by the Russian
press, including fighter aircraft, helicopters, submarines, and sophisticated air defense missiles.68
In return, Russia agreed to cancel Soviet-era Libyan debt. A November 2008 visit by Muammar al
Qadhafi to Russia did not produce any publicly announced weapons sales, creating speculation
that the Libyan leader may be seeking other sources of new military equipment.
63 Senior Middle East security analyst Anthony Cordesman has described Libya as “the world’s largest military parking
lot.” For a more detailed profile of the Libyan military, see Anthony H. Cordesman, The Military Balance in the Middle
East, Center for Strategic and International Studies, March 15, 2004, pp. 79-85.
64 For a detailed account of Libya’s recent military procurement activities, see Jane’s Sentinel Security Assessment -
North Africa, “Procurement – Libya,” June 22, 2009.
65 AFP, “French Defence Minister Holds Talks in Libya,” February 5, 2005; Andrew Borowiec, “Paris Strengthens
Military Ties with Libya,” Washington Times, February 17, 2005; and Flight International, “France Eyes Libyan
Deal,” August 1, 2006.
66 Antony Barnett, “MoD targets Libya and Iraq as ‘Priority’ Arms Sales Targets,” Observer (London), September 24,
2006; and, Independent (London), “MoD targets arms deals with Libya,” March 9, 2007.
67 “Under the negotiated deal, France would supply Libya with 14 Rafale aircraft as part of a larger arms package
valued at between $5.7 billion and $6.4 billion. Forecast International Defense Intelligence Newsletters, “Deadline for
Libyan-French Arms Package Negotiations Likely to be Extended,” June 12, 2008; Reuben Johnson, “Dassault denies
sale of Rafale to Libya is imminent,” Jane’s Defence Weekly, March 26, 2009.
68 Tor-M1 air defense missiles were reported as part of the potential package along with MiG-29SMT fighter
interceptors and Su-30MK multi-mission fighter aircraft. ITAR-TASS World Service (Russia), “Russia-Libya military
cooperation increasing,” April 17, 2008.
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WMD Programs and Disarmament69
Nuclear, Chemical, and Ballistic Missile Programs
Despite Libya’s membership in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Libyan leader
Muammar al Qadhafi made several efforts to acquire nuclear weapons related technology
assistance, beginning in the early 1970s. The most renowned was his reported unsuccessful
request for a working nuclear weapon from China in the 1970s. Other unsuccessful attempts to
acquire nuclear energy technology useful to the development of nuclear weapons were
subsequently made through contacts with the Soviet Union, the United States, France, India,
Pakistan, Japan, and Argentina.70 Nonetheless, most experts agree that Libya never had a
dedicated indigenous nuclear weapons program. Over the next 25 years, Qadhafi made several
public statements in which he argued that Arab states were compelled to develop their own
nuclear weapons capability in response to Israel’s development of nuclear weapons.71 Libya
established a small nuclear research reactor at Tajura in 1979 with Soviet assistance, and entered
into several rounds of negotiations with Soviet and French authorities for the construction of large
nuclear power facilities that were never concluded.
According to several press accounts, Libyan officials reached an agreement with Pakistani
nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan in 1997 for Khan and his illicit proliferation network to
provide the Libyan government with a nuclear weapons design and the uranium enrichment
technology it desired. These accounts and International Atomic Energy Agency reports describe
how, over the next six years, a complex network of companies and individuals in Malaysia,
Switzerland, Pakistan, Spain, Turkey, South Africa, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the
United Arab Emirates supplied Libya with uranium enrichment components.72
Libya’s chemical weapons programs were more advanced and independent than its nuclear
weapons development activities. In 1986 and 1987, U.S. officials suspected Libya of using
Iranian-supplied chemical weapons against military forces in neighboring Chad and provided the
Chadian military with protective equipment to guard against further Libyan attacks.73 During the
69 For a detailed discussion of Libya’s WMD programs and disarmament see CRS Report RS21823, Disarming Libya:
Weapons of Mass Destruction, by Sharon Squassoni.
70 John K. Cooley, “Qaddafi’s Great Aim for Libya is a Nuclear Capability of its Own, Christian Science Monitor,
November 12, 1980; New York Times, “Nuclear Energy Aide And Foreign Adviser Appointed in Tripoli,” January 8,
1981; Joshua Sinai, “Libya’s Pursuit of Weapons of Mass Destruction,” Nonproliferation Review, Spring/Summer
1997, pp. 92-100; and Associated Press, “Japan Company Sold Atomic Plant to Libya,” March 12, 2004.
71 In 1987, for example, Al Qadhafi said that, “Now that the Israelis possess the atomic weapon, the Arabs have nothing
before them except to work day and night to possess the atomic weapon in order to defend their existence.” Reuters,
“Gaddafi Urges Arabs to Develop Nuclear Weapons,” September 2, 1987. See also San Francisco Chronicle “Khadafy
Wants Arab A-Bombs,” June 23, 1987; and Agence France-Presse, “Libya Urges Arabs to Get Nuclear Arms,” January
27, 1996. Qadhafi made similar remarks in a March 2002 interview: “We demanded the dismantling of the weapons of
mass destruction that the Israelis have ... Otherwise, the Arabs will have the right to possess that weapon.” John Bolton,
Remarks to the Heritage Foundation, Washington, DC, May 6, 2002.
72 The IAEA does not directly identify Dr. Khan or Pakistan as a source for nuclear weapons designs or enrichment
equipment disclosed by Libya. Leslie Lopez, “Libyans Got Nuclear Training at Malaysian Company, Police Say,” Wall
Street Journal, June 4, 2004; Stephen Fidler and Mark Huband, “Turks and South Africans ‘Helped Libya’s Secret
Nuclear Arms Project’,” Financial Times, June 10, 2004; Craig Whitlock and Shannon Smiley, “Germany Arrests Man
in Libyan Atomic Case,” Washington Post, October 12, 2004; Douglas Frantz and William C. Rempel, “New Find in a
Nuclear Network,” Los Angeles Times, November 28, 2004.
73 Elaine Sciolino, “U.S. Sends 2,000 Gas Masks to the Chadians,” New York Times, September 25, 1987.
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late 1980s and early 1990s, the Libyan government developed chemical weapons production
facilities at Rabta, Sebha, and Tarhuna with technology acquired from a number of western
European and Asian firms.74 The plants produced large amounts of chemical weapons and
components, including 23 tons of mustard gas. Libya’s ballistic missile program relied on foreign
technical assistance to produce Scud-B and a limited number of Scud-C missiles but was limited
by a lack of indigenous technical skill and ineffective management.75
Termination of WMD and Missile Programs
In 1999, Libyan officials approached the Clinton Administration and offered to dismantle Libya’s
chemical weapons programs in exchange for a loosening of U.S. terrorism sanctions. The offer
was rejected in an effort to maintain pressure on Libya to comply with U.S. and United Nations
demands in the Lockerbie airliner bombing case. Following the Lockerbie settlement, Sayf al
Islam al Qadhafi and intelligence chief Musa Kusa re-engaged with U.S. and British intelligence
authorities beginning in March 2003 regarding Libya’s weapons of mass destruction programs.
The October 2003 naval interception of the freighter BBC China, which was carrying centrifuge
components to Libya, accelerated negotiations and led to assessment visits by U.S. and British
personnel later that month and in early December 2003.
On December 19, 2003, Foreign Minister Abd al Rahman Shalgam read a statement on Libyan
national television announcing the government’s decision to dismantle its weapons of mass
destruction and long range missile programs and to invite international inspectors to Libya to
remove materials and perform verifications. Qadhafi publicly endorsed the statement, paving the
way for the removal of WMD-related equipment from Libya in January and March 2004.76
Subsequent reviews of seized material and interviews with Libyan officials indicated that Libya
remained far from developing a nuclear weapons capability, although A.Q. Khan sold Libya a
crude nuclear weapons design and some components necessary to begin a uranium enrichment
program. However, as of late 2003, Libya had not obtained key pieces of equipment, such as a
sufficient number of high precision rotors to power its enrichment centrifuges.77
Motives for Disarmament
Officials and independent observers have attributed Libya’s decision to end its pursuit of weapons
of mass destruction to a number of factors. Administration officials have argued that U.S. military
action in Iraq in 2003 demonstrated to Libya the resolve of the Bush Administration to eliminate
perceived threats to U.S. security posed by states associated with terrorism and in pursuit of
74 Joshua Sinai, “Libya’s Pursuit of Weapons of Mass Destruction,” Nonproliferation Review, Spring/Summer 1997,
pp. 92-100; Anthony H. Cordesman, Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Middle East, Center for Strategic and
International Studies, 1999; Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) et al., “Educational Module on
Chemical and Biological Weapons Non-Proliferation: Case Study: Libya,” 1998-2001.
75 Andrew Koch, “Libya’s Missile Programme Secrets Revealed,” Jane’s Defence Weekly, August 18, 2004.
76 Statement of Assistant Secretary of State for Verification and Compliance Paula A. DeSutter Before the House
Committee on International Relations Subcommittee on International Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Human Rights,
September 22, 2004; and, Douglas Franz and Josh Meyer, “The Deal to Disarm Kadafi,” Los Angeles Times, March 13,
2005.
77 William J. Broad, “Libya’s Crude Bomb Design Eases Western Experts’ Fear,” New York Times, February 9, 2004;
David Crawford, “Libya Was Far From Building Nuclear Bomb,” Wall Street Journal, February 23, 2004; and William
J. Broad, “Arms Control Group Says U.S. Inflated Libya’s Nuclear Bid,” New York Times, March 25, 2004.
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weapons of mass destruction. In contrast, Libyan officials have denied that external pressure or
threats influenced their government’s decision making processes and have characterized the
decision as a sovereign initiative to restore Libya’s ties with the international community and
improve its security and economy. Most independent observers have argued that Libya’s decision
was a calculated move designed to extricate the country from the international sanctions regime
that was limiting its economic activity and contributing to the deterioration of its vital oil and
natural gas infrastructure. Libyan officials have pointed to the financial and economic rewards
associated with its international re-engagement, although, prior to and following the restoration of
full diplomatic relations with the United States, Qadhafi has stated his belief that Libya should be
more directly and substantively rewarded for its decision to disarm and re-engage.
International Controls and Inspections
Libya acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1975. Libya’s nuclear research
facility at Tajura has been subject to IAEA safeguards since 1980. Since Libya announced its
intent to abandon its weapons of mass destruction programs, the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have
monitored and assisted in ongoing disarmament activities. Libya signed an “additional protocol”
agreement in March 2004 granting IAEA inspectors greater access to its nuclear facilities. The
IAEA continues to evaluate Libyan disclosure statements related to the scope of its uranium
enrichment and nuclear weapons development activities, particularly with regard to the sources of
the materials Libya acquired from the proliferation network of Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer
Khan. As a result of the 2003 WMD disarmament decision, Libya signed the Comprehensive
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and acceded to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in
2004. Libya also committed to eliminating all its ballistic missiles beyond a 300-kilometer range
with a payload of 500 kilograms and agreed to abide by Missile Technology Control Regime
(MTCR) guidelines. Libya, the U.S., and the UK established a Trilateral Steering and
Cooperation Committee (TSCC) to oversee the elimination of Libyan WMD and MTCR-related
missile programs in September 2004.
As of October 2005, all materials and components associated with Libya’s nuclear weapons
development program had been removed and all associated activities had stopped. Libya returned
highly enriched nuclear fuel assemblies weighing 17 kilograms from its Tajura research reactor to
Russia in 2004, and Russia replaced them with low enriched uranium fuel in December 2005 as
part of a program co-sponsored with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the U.S.
Department of Energy.78 During the summer of 2006, Libya returned a further 3 kilograms of
highly enriched uranium from the Tajura reactor to Russia.79
Libya has signaled its desire to continue its nuclear energy and materials development plans
under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). France signed a
nuclear energy agreement with Libya in July 2007 that could result in the construction of a
nuclear reactor to fuel water desalinization plants. In August 2007, Libyan officials confirmed
78 International Atomic Energy Agency, Staff Report: Removal of High-Enriched Uranium in Libyan Arab Jamahiriya,
March 8, 2004; RIA Novosti (Moscow), “Russia Supplies 14kg of Low-Enriched Uranium to Libya,” December 23,
2005.
79 William C. Mann, “U.S. Says Libya Has Returned 20 Kilograms of Weapons-grade Uranium to Russia,” Associated
Press, July 27, 2006; U.S. National Nuclear Safety Administration, “NNSA Secures Nuclear Material from Libya,”
July 27, 2006; and Associated Press, “Oak Ridge Workers Assess Uranium in Libya,” July 29, 2006.
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that they are negotiating with unspecified foreign governments for the sale of 1,000 tons of
uranium yellow cake ore stored at a former nuclear facility in Sebha.80 Libyan officials also
reportedly have signed civil nuclear cooperation agreements with Russia and Canada.
Libya has submitted an inventory of its chemical weapons and related activities to the OPCW and
has destroyed over 3,600 munitions designed to disperse chemical agents. The OPCW has
verified Libya’s inventory of 23 metric tons of mustard gas and over 1,300 metric tons of
precursor chemicals and approved the conversion of a chemical weapons facility into a
pharmaceutical plant for the production of HIV/AIDS and malaria medication. In July 2009, the
OPCW stated in a draft report that Libya had completed construction of its chemical weapons
destruction facility81 as of late 2008, and that only 2% of Libya’s chemical weapons stockpiles
had been destroyed as of December 31, 2008.82 Destruction of Libya’s remaining chemical
munitions and precursors is required before December 31, 2011.83
Further Reading and Historical Resources
Ali Abdullatif Ahmida, The Making of Modern Libya, State Univ. of New York Press, Albany,
1994.
Lisa Anderson, The State and Social Transformation in Tunisia and Libya, 1830-1980, Princeton
Univ. Press, Princeton, 1986.
Scott Anderson, “The Makeover,” New York Times Magazine, January 19, 2003.
Mansour O. El Kikhia, Libya’s Qadhafi, Univ. Press of Florida, Gainesville, 1997.
Muammar al Qadhafi, Kitaab al Akhdar (The Green Book), Green Book World Center for
Research and Study, Tripoli, 1983.
Richard B. Parker, Uncle Sam in Barbary, Univ. Press of Florida, Gainesville, 2004.
Ronald Bruce St. John, Libya and the United States, University of Pennsylvania Press,
Philadelphia, 2002.
Ronald Bruce St. John, Libya: From Colony to Independence, Oneworld Publications, Oxford,
2008.
80 Katherine Griffiths, “Libya Stalls on Pledge to Destroy Stock of Uranium,” Daily Telegraph (UK), August 13, 2007;
BBC Monitoring/Al Jazeera (Qatar), “Libyan Official Slams UK Paper’s Uranium Allegations, Says Supply ‘Known,’”
August 13, 2007.
81 Known as the “Rabta Toxic Chemical Disposal Facility and Ruwagha Chemicals Reloading System.”
82 According to the OPCW, Libya “had destroyed 551 metric tons of declared Category 2 chemical weapons. None of
its declared Category 1 chemical weapons had yet been destroyed.” Draft Report of the OPCW on the Implementation
of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and use of Chemical Weapons and
on their Destruction in 2008, Fourteenth Session C-14/CRP.1, July 16, 2009.
83 The OPCW states that Libya “is due to complete destruction of its Category 1 chemical weapons by 31 December
2010 and Category 2 chemical weapons by 31 December 2011.” Ibid.
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Joseph T. Stanik, El Dorado Canyon: Reagan’s Undeclared War with Qaddafi, Naval Institute
Press, 2003.
Dirk Vandewalle, A History of Modern Libya, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2006.
Dirk Vandewalle (ed.), Libya since 1969: Qadhafi’s Revolution Revisited, Palgrave Macmillan,
2008.
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Appendix A. Libya’s Pre-Qadhafi History
Libya’s Colonial Experience
The Ottoman Empire and Qaramanli Dynasty
Ottoman forces first occupied the coastal regions of the territory that now constitutes Libya in the
mid-16th century. However, Ottoman administrators faced stiff and near constant resistance from
tribal confederations and a rival independent state in the Fezzan region, all of which limited the
Ottomans’ political influence. Beginning in 1711, a semi-independent state under Turkish official
Ahmed Qaramanli emerged in Tripoli and established control over the Ottoman provinces of
Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, with Fezzan remaining contested. The Qaramanli family maintained
its power and independent rule until the early 19th century through naval privateers and pirates
under its control who were used to collect tribute and ransom from merchant vessels seized in the
Mediterranean Sea.
“The Shores of Tripoli”
The Qaramanli naval forces of Tripoli formed one component of a regional grouping commonly
referred to as “the Barbary pirates,” which played a pivotal role in shaping the foreign and
military policies of the young United States. Beginning in the late 1780s, a series of
confrontations between U.S. merchant ships and naval raiding parties from Tripoli and other
neighboring city-states such as Algiers and Tunis led to the destruction of U.S. maritime cargo
and the seizure of U.S. hostages. Subsequent negotiations between the United States and the
governments of the Barbary states concluded with the signing of some of the first bilateral treaties
in U.S. history, including U.S. agreements to pay tribute to Tripoli in exchange for the safe
passage of U.S. vessels off what is now the Libyan coast.
Disputes over the terms of this bilateral agreement and continuing attacks on U.S. merchant ships
impressed upon the U.S. government the need for a naval protection force to safeguard U.S.
commercial activity in the Mediterranean. This need eventually was satisfied by the creation of
the United States Navy by Congress in April 1798. An attack on the U.S. consulate in Tripoli in
1801 and further attacks on U.S. ships sparked open hostilities between the newly commissioned
light naval forces of the United States and the privateers of Tripoli. Frequent naval engagements
from 1801 to 1805 were often won by U.S. forces, but one skirmish in 1804 ended with the
grounding of the U.S.S. Philadelphia and the capture of her crew. The conflict culminated in the
overland seizure of the eastern Libyan city of Darnah by U.S. Marines and a team of recruited
indigenous forces in 1805—the basis for the reference to “the shores of Tripoli” in the Marine
Corps hymn. The fall of Darnah compelled the Qaramanli leadership in Tripoli to relent to
demands to ransom the U.S. prisoners and sign a “treaty of peace and friendship.” Efforts to
repatriate the remains of U.S. personnel killed in these early 19th century military engagements
with Tripoli are ongoing.84
84 See Veterans of Foreign Wars Magazine, “Return Oldest U.S. MIAs,” Volume 94, Issue 1, September 1, 2006; and
the Somers Point Historical Society, information available at http://www.richardsomers.org.
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The decline of Qaramanli naval power following the confrontation with the United States
contributed to the dynasty’s steady loss of political power. Ottoman authorities reoccupied Tripoli
in 1835 and began a campaign to pacify and co-opt the region’s tribal confederations. The
Ottomans solicited the cooperation of the leaders of a conservative revivalist Sufi order known as
the Sanusiyah based in Cyrenaica, which they allowed to raise an independent militia and
participate in a tacit ruling partnership. Although the Ottoman administrative structure imposed in
the 19th century formed the basis for a centralized state, the penetration of Ottoman political
power remained incomplete and regional resistance to Ottoman reforms and central authority
persisted into the 20th century.
Italian Annexation and Post War Uncertainty
Italy annexed Tripolitania and Cyrenaica in 1911, and the Ottoman Empire’s subsequent release
of its claim to its territory in 1912, marked the beginning of a violent twenty-year period of
resistance to Italian rule led by the Sanussi order and local tribes. The Italian occupation
authorities dismantled the remaining Ottoman governing structures and disrupted the activities of
social and cultural institutions across Libya. Sanussi resistance fighters were defeated during
World War I, and the international community formally recognized Italian control over the
territory in 1924. A second round of anti-Italian insurgency spurred a violent crackdown by
Italian forces under Mussolini, who renamed the territory Libya in 1929. Resistance based in
Cyrenaica was worn down and ultimately crushed by 1931. In 1934, Italian peasant colonists
began entering the provinces, leading to the displacement of local farmers and the uprooting of
established agricultural communities across the country. The population of Cyrenaica remained
hostile to Italian rule and its Sanussi leaders allied themselves with British colonial forces in
neighboring Egypt.
During the Second World War, Libya served as a staging ground for Italian and German attacks
on French North Africa and British-held Egypt. Pivotal battles took place in Cyrenaica from 1940
to early 1943, when German and Italian forces were forced from Libya by British troops under
General Bernard Montgomery. British-organized Sanussi fighters played a role in supporting
allied operations against German and Italian forces. Following the war, Libya’s provinces were
divided under British and French protection until the disposition of Italy’s former colonies could
be negotiated. Protracted and complex negotiations continued for years. In November 1949, U.N.
General Assembly Resolution 289 declared that the three disparate regions would be united in a
single, independent state. The resolution also dispatched a United Nations Commissioner to assist
a national assembly representing the regions in creating institutions for a new state that was to
assume sovereignty no later than January 1, 1952. The strength of tribal and regional identities
complicated the subsequent negotiations and strongly influenced the new government following
independence.
Independence and Monarchy, 1951-1969
A constitution agreed to by the U.N.-assisted National Constituent Assembly in October 1951
established a federal system of government with central authority vested in King Idris As Sanussi
I and legislative authority vested in a Prime Minister, a Council of Ministers, and a bicameral
legislature. On December 24, 1951, the United Kingdom of Libya became one of the first
independent states in Africa. The first parliamentary election was held in February 1952, one
month after independence. Political parties were banned by the king shortly after independence
was declared, and Libya’s first decade of independence was characterized by continuous
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bargaining and rivalry among the provincial governments over taxation, development, and
constitutional issues. In 1963, King Idris replaced the federal system of government with a
unitary monarchy that centralized royal authority, in part to streamline the development of the
country’s newly discovered oil resources.
Prior to the discovery of marketable oil in 1959, the Libyan government was largely dependent on
economic aid and technical assistance it received from international institutions and through
military basing agreements with the United States and United Kingdom. The U.S.-operated air
base at Wheelus field outside of Tripoli served as an important Strategic Air Command base and
center for military intelligence operations throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Oil wealth brought
rapid economic growth and greater financial independence to Libya in the 1960s, but the
weakness of national institutions and Libyan elites’ growing identification with the pan-Arab
socialist ideology of Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser contributed to the gradual
marginalization of the monarchy under King Idris. Popular criticism of U.S. and British basing
agreements grew, becoming amplified in wake of Israel’s defeat of Arab forces in the 1967 Six
Day War. King Idris left the country in mid-1969 for medical reasons, setting the stage for a
military coup in September, led by a young, devoted Nasserite army captain named Muammar al
Qadhafi.
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Appendix B. Normalization of Relations, Terrorism,
and Related Claims
Background: Pan Am Flight 103
On December 21, 1988, a bomb exploded on Pan Am flight 103 en route from London to New
York, killing all 244 passengers and 15 crew on board and another 11 people in the town of
Lockerbie, Scotland. On November 14, 1991, the United States and Scotland indicted two Libyan
intelligence agents for their alleged roles in the bombing: Abd al Baset Ali al Megrahi and Al
Amin Khalifah Fhimah. Under a U.N.-negotiated agreement, Fhimah and Al Megrahi were tried
on murder charges under Scottish law in The Hague beginning in 1999. Fhimah was acquitted
and Al Megrahi was convicted: he is currently serving a life sentence in a Scottish prison.
Al Megrahi is appealing his conviction and the length of his 27-year sentence before the Scottish
Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC). Some observers in the United Kingdom,
including lead Scottish Lockerbie investigator Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, have questioned Al
Megrahi’s conviction and argued that the Lockerbie investigation should be reexamined.85 Claims
have resurfaced that the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command may
have planned the bombing for Iran in retaliation for the downing of an Iranian airliner by the U.S.
Navy in 1988.86 In November 2006, the Scottish commission ruled that Al Megrahi’s appeals
could be heard in Scottish courts, and in June 2007, the SCCRC granted Al Megrahi the right to a
second appeal of his conviction.87 (See below.)
In August 2003, Libya accepted responsibility “for the actions of its officials” and agreed to a
settlement agreement that called for successive payments to the families of Pan Am 103 victims
following the termination of U.N. and U.S. sanctions.88 As of October 2005, Libya had issued
payments of $4 million per victim following the termination of U.N. sanctions in September 2003
and a second payment of $4 million to each victim’s family following the termination of bilateral
U.S. sanctions in September 2004. The Libyan government withdrew funds for a final payment of
$2 million from a designated escrow account after several deadline extensions because of delays
in the United States government’s rescission of Libya’s designation as a state sponsor of
terrorism.89 The previously negotiated final round of $2 million payments is worth over $500
85 Sunday Times (London), “Focus: Was Justice Done?” October 23, 2005; Magnus Linklater, “It’s Time To Look
Again at Lockerbie,” The Times (London), October 26, 2005.
86 Derek Lambie, “Diplomat ‘Evidence’ May Clear Megrahi of Flight 103 Bomb,” Express on Sunday (UK),
September 24, 2006.
87 An executive summary of the SCCRC’s findings in support of further appeal is available online
at:http://www.sccrc.org.uk/ViewFile.aspx?id=293.
88 Letter from the Great Libyan Arab Jamahiriyah to the President of the Security Council, reprinted in United
Kingdom Foreign & Commonwealth Office Release - “UK Calls for Lifting of UN Sanctions on Libya,” August 15,
2003.
89 On April 21, 2004, Libya extended its unilaterally set deadline for the recision and payment to the victims’ families
to July 22, 2004. Libya extended the deadline a second time to September 22, 2004. Lawyers and U.S. negotiators
secured a third extension to April 30, 2005; however, Libya froze the final round of $2 million payments (worth an
estimated $500 million) and reasserted its demand for removal from the U.S. state sponsors of terrorism list. Associated
Press, “Libyan Central Bank Takes Back Last Batch of Compensation Money Due to Lockerbie Victims,” April 9,
2005.
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million. Under the terms of the Comprehensive Settlement Agreement, the Bush Administration
certified that sufficient funds for the final Lockerbie payment have been made available to settle
the remaining outstanding claims.
Lockerbie Appeal
Proceedings for the second appeal for Abd al Baset Ali al Megrahi opened in October 2007, and
preliminary hearings continue to be held in an effort to determine the scope of his appeal.
Defense attorneys have sought access to classified information regarding key pieces of evidence,
reportedly including classified intelligence documents related to the supply of timers by a Swiss
company to the Libyan intelligence service. The documents reportedly originated with a third
country’s government, and that government has refused to grant permission for the documents to
be made available to the court by British authorities.90
In May 2008, the British government filed a Public Interest Immunity (PII) order with the
Scottish court seeking to keep the documents secret, but the court ruled that the government was
required to “produce for the court the documents in question... subject to appropriate security
measures.”91 In June 2008, the prosecution reportedly argued to restrict the appeal to the original
terms under which the appeal was granted, while the defense reportedly argued that new evidence
should be considered. Al Megrahi’s appeal for release on bail on the basis of his diagnosis with
terminal prostate cancer was denied. In July 2009, the Libyan government submitted an
“application for compassionate release” to Scottish authorities requesting that he be allowed to
return to Libya. Under the terms of a prisoner transfer agreement signed between the United
Kingdom and Libya, Megrahi could be eligible to serve the remainder of his prison term in Libya
if he agreed to drop his pending appeal in the Scottish court system. Families of some U.S.
victims of the Lockerbie bombing have stated their opposition to his release in consultations with
Scottish legal authorities.
Background: La Belle and UTA Flight 772
Compensation claims for U.S. victims of the 1986 bombing of the La Belle nightclub in Berlin
and the 1989 Libyan-sponsored bombing of a French passenger aircraft also have been pending in
U.S. courts. Two U.S. servicemen, Sgt. Kenneth T. Ford and Sgt. James E. Goins, were killed in
the La Belle bombing, and 80 other U.S. servicemen and women were injured. Some were
permanently disabled.92 On September 19, 1989, a mid-air explosion killed 171 passengers and
crew of the French airline UTA flight 772 over Niger in western Africa, including seven U.S.
citizens. On March 10, 1999, a French court found six Libyans guilty in absentia for bombing the
DC-10 aircraft. In January 2008, U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy ruled that Libya was
directly responsible for the bombing of UTA Flight 772 and ordered the Libyan government and
specific Libyan officials to pay $6 billion in damages to the families and estates of six U.S.
victims of the attack. Libya made payments to German and French victims for the two
bombings.93
90 John Robertson, “Angiolini Rapped over Lockerbie File,” The Scotsman (UK), December 21, 2007.
91 Ian MacKenzie, “Scottish judges call for secret Lockerbie papers,” Reuters, May 29, 2008.
92 See Robert Lee Beecham, et al., v. Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, 01 CIV 02243, District of Columbia
Circuit.
93 Libya paid a total of $33 million in compensation to the victim’s families in July 1999. France re-negotiated the
(continued...)
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Legal representatives of the La Belle victims and representatives the Libyan government met
several times in 2006 to discuss settlement terms, and reached an agreement in which the victims
and their families relinquished further claims against Libyan government in return for a Libyan
commitment to make specified settlement payments. The U.S. parties signaled their acceptance of
the agreement by signing and transmitting to Libyan government representatives legal documents
known as Release of Claims forms. The Libyan government did not make the payments described
under the terms of the agreement, and the U.S. parties filed a motion before the U.S. District
Court for the District of Columbia to enforce the settlement agreement.94 In early July 2007,
President Bush reportedly identified the resolution of the La Belle settlement as an issue of
importance for further consolidation of U.S.-Libya relations in a letter to Libyan leader Muammar
al Qadhafi.
Under the terms of the Comprehensive Settlement Agreement, the Bush Administration certified
that sufficient funds for the LaBelle payments were made available to an independent entity under
the supervision of the U.S. Secretary of State. Reporting suggested that some UTA plaintiffs have
expressed dissatisfaction with the arrangements, stating, “The courts have decided that Libya
carried out the UTA 772 attack, and has awarded us compensation under the rule of law. [S. 3370]
will invalidate the court’s judgment, and allow Libya to avoid a court judgment.”95
Reestablishing Normal Bilateral Relations
The reestablishment of normal bilateral relations between the United States and Libya has
proceeded incrementally in the wake of Libya’s December 2003 decision to relinquish its
weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.
• On February 11, 2004, the United States opened a two-person interest section at the
Belgian embassy in Tripoli, which was expanded to a larger Liaison Office in June 2004.
The White House announced several measures on February 26, 2004, including recisions
on bans on using U.S. passports to travel to or through Libya, and U.S. citizen
expenditures in Libya.
• On September 20, 2004, President Bush issued Executive Order 13357 that ended
most economic sanctions against Libya, allowed air flights between the two countries,
permitted Libyan purchases of U.S.-built aircraft, and released approximately $1 billion
in Libyan assets that had been frozen in the United States.
• On September 28, 2005, President Bush issued two waivers of Arms Export Control
Act restrictions on the export of defense articles to Libya. The waivers allowed U.S.
companies to “possibly participate” in Libya’s efforts to destroy its chemical weapons
and precursor stockpiles, along with the refurbishment of eight C-130 transport planes
(...continued)
settlement in 2003 and received about $1 million for each victim. See Robert L. Pugh, et al. v. The Socialist People’s
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, et al., Civ. A. No. 02-2026, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
94 At issue is the question of whether the Libyan representatives who participated in the meetings with the U.S. parties
when the terms of the agreement were outlined has “apparent authority” to represent the Libyan government and
commit to binding agreements on its behalf. See Robert Lee Beecham, et al. V. Socialist People’s Libyan Arab
Jamahiriya, et al., Civ. A. No. 01-2243 U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
95 Adam Graham-Silverman, “Congress Clears Measure Limiting Further Terrorism Lawsuits Against Libya,”
Congressional Quarterly, July 31, 2008.
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purchased by Libya in the 1970s that have been withheld for the last thirty years. The
President has not indicated when or if the aircraft will be delivered.96
• On May 15, 2006, the Bush Administration announced its intention to restore full
diplomatic relations with Libya and to rescind Libya’s listing as a state sponsor of
terrorism and a country not fully cooperating with U.S. counterterrorism efforts. Full
diplomatic relations were restored on May 31, when the United States upgraded its
Liaison Office in Tripoli to Embassy status.
• On June 30, 2006, one day after the 45-day congressional notification period for the
rescission of Libya’s terrorism-related designations ended, the remaining restrictions on
U.S. trade with Libya were removed, including the ban on the export of U.S. defense
articles. Certain dual-use technology exports remain restricted under revised U.S.
Commerce Department national security guidelines.97
• On September 30, 2006, President Bush signed the Iran Freedom Support Act (H.R.
6198/P.L. 109-293), which removed Libya from the terms of the Iran and Libya Sanctions
Act (P.L. 107-24).
Prior to the announcement of plans to restore full diplomatic relations with Libya, some Members
of Congress vocally supported further U.S. engagement in response to Libya’s decision to rid
itself of its weapons of mass destruction and long-range missile development programs.98 Many
Members welcomed the announced changes, although some Members were vocal in calling for
the Administration to obtain assurances from the Libyan government that it would adequately
resolve the outstanding claims of some U.S. terrorism victims. The fulfillment of the Claims
Settlement Agreement and the signing of Executive Order 13477 officially recognized the
settlement of outstanding claims from the U.S. government’s perspective, although some
concerns may remain among private parties.
Congressional Efforts on Behalf of U.S. Terrorism Victims
Congressional concern over the outstanding legal claims of U.S. terrorism victims accompanied
efforts to restore full diplomatic relations between the United States and Libya for several years.
Congressional concerns related to a number of claims, including some related to prominent cases
such as the 1986 bombing of the La Belle nightclub in Berlin, the 1988 bombing of Pan Am
Flight 103, and the 1989 bombing of French airline UTA Flight 772 over Niger (For more
information on these attacks and related claims, see Appendix B).
96 The C-130s remain in storage at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Georgia. They reportedly remain militarily useful, bur
will require technology upgrades and significant repair. The Administration reportedly has declined to release the
planes, but may plan to allow their sale and the return of the proceeds, minus repair and storage costs, to Libya. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution, “Bound to the Ground: Libyan C-130s Still Parked 30 Years After Purchase,” May 2, 2004; and,
Renae Merle, “After 30 Years, Libya Can’t Get Its Planes, Might Get Repair Bill,” Washington Post, August 18, 2006.
97 Inside U.S. Trade, “BIS Removes Libya’s State Sponsor-related Export Controls,” Vol. 24, No. 36, September 8,
2006.
98 After an August 2005 visit to Libya, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Chairman Lugar called Libya “an
important partner for [the United States] on the war against terrorism,” and indicated that he would “work
constructively on the assumption that it’s in our best interest to normalize the relationship, to get an embassy there, to
get an ambassador.” Representative Lantos introduced the “United States-Libya Relations Act of 2005” (H.R. 1453)
calling for the dispatch of a charge d’affaires to Libya, the negotiation of an agreement for the establishment of a full
U.S. embassy in Tripoli, and a number of cooperative security, economic, and cultural initiatives. Sylvia Smith, “Libya
Wins Lugar, Souder’s Praise,” Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, September 25, 2005.
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From 2007 through mid-2008, an atmosphere of brinksmanship characterized U.S.-Libyan
engagement, particularly with regard to outstanding terrorism claims. Some terror victims’
families, associated legal counsel, and some Members of Congress sought to leverage remaining
symbols of diplomatic normalization and new U.S.-Libya economic ties to pressure Libya to
resolve pending cases. This included efforts to delay the construction of a new U.S. Embassy in
Tripoli and postpone the confirmation of the Administration’s nominee for the U.S.
ambassadorship to Libya. Congress also enacted legislation to prohibit U.S. foreign assistance to
Libya for FY2008 and to alter immunity and damage award provisions relating to Libyan-
sponsored acts of terrorism.
Liability Changes Under Section 1083 of P.L. 110-181
Legislation enacted in January 2008 altered the legal environment in which some outstanding
terrorism cases were being considered, and further complicated U.S.-Libyan relations. Section
1083 of P.L. 110-181, the FY2008 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA, H.R. 4986,
signed January 28, 2008) amends the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) (28 U.S.C.§§
1602-1611) in order to provide a federal cause of action to sue foreign governments designated as
state sponsors of terrorism for damages (including punitive damages) arising from terrorist acts
committed or supported by that state.99 The provision includes measures designed to facilitate the
enforcement of judgments by allowing a claimant to subject foreign government assets to liens of
lis pendens as soon as a suit is filed and by permitting the attachment of indirectly held property
to satisfy a final judgment. It also permits the re-filing of certain dismissed cases, nullifying
certain legal defenses that might have been available to defend against them, and permits the
filing of new cases related to previously filed cases that would otherwise be time-barred.
As such, the provisions could have proven applicable to Libya because Libya was previously
designated as a state sponsor of terrorism and remained subject to lawsuits by victims of terrorist
acts that were committed or alleged to have been committed by agents of Libya. Nearly $1.7
billion had been awarded against Libya, with an additional $5.3 billion awarded against certain
named Libyan officials,100 with some twenty additional cases pending. As long as there were
pending claims or outstanding judgments against Libya under the terrorism exception to the
FSIA, U.S. companies doing business with Libya may have been subject to litigation by judgment
creditors who believed the U.S. company was in possession of Libyan property that is subject to
execution on a terrorism judgment.101 From January 2008 onward, legal representatives of U.S.
terrorism victims reportedly filed liens of lis pendens on Libyan assets related to current contracts
with legal and lobbying firms such as Blank & Rome, the Livingston Group, and White &
Case.102
99 See CRS Report RL31258, Suits Against Terrorist States by Victims of Terrorism, by Jennifer K. Elsea.
100 For legal analysis, see CRS Report RL31258, Suits Against Terrorist States by Victims of Terrorism, by Jennifer K.
Elsea.
101 The new legislation addresses the rights of third parties who have an interest in property that may be subject to levy
in execution on a judgment. The conference report for H.R. 1585 (H.Rept. 110-477) applies to P.L. 110-181 and states
the conferees intention with regard to the application of Section 1083 was to “encourage the courts to protect the
property interests of such innocent third parties by using their inherent authority, on a case-by-case basis, under the
applicable procedures governing execution on judgment and attachment in anticipation of judgment.”
102 Kevin Bogardus, “Libya contracts targeted to fund terror victims’ compensation,” The Hill, June 4, 2008.
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President Bush vetoed the original version of the bill (H.R. 1585) on December 27, 2007, based
on concern that potential court proceedings related to Section 1083 of H.R. 1585 could tie up
billions of dollars in Iraqi government funds in the United States, thus undermining efforts to
rebuild Iraq and train Iraqi security forces. Conditional waiver authority for Iraq was included in
H.R. 4986 and subsequently exercised.103 However, no specific provisions were included to limit
the applicability of the provisions to Libya. In March 2008, the Administration proposed
amending Section 1083 to include a new waiver provision to permit an exception with respect to
all states whose designation as sponsors of terrorism have been rescinded if the President
determines that the waiver is in the national security interest of the United States.104 Under the
terms of the Libyan Claims Resolution Act (P.L. 110-301), the applicability of Section 1083
provisions to Libya was suspended once the Bush Administration certified the receipt of $1.5
billion in settlement funds and issued Executive Order 13477 stating that claims covered by the
agreement were settled.
Author Contact Information
Christopher M. Blanchard
Analyst in Middle Eastern Affairs
cblanchard@crs.loc.gov, 7-0428
103 The waiver authority provided in Section 1083 of P.L. 110-181 requires the President to determine that a waiver for
Iraq is in the national security interest of the United States and will “promote the reconstruction of, the consolidation of
democracy in, and the relations of the United States with, Iraq.” The President also must determine that Iraq continues
to be a reliable ally in combating international terrorism. President Bush waived the application of Section 1083 of P.L.
110-181 to Iraq on January 28, 2008, by issuing Presidential Determination No. 2008-9.
104 Text of the Administration proposal was included in the correspondence from U.S.-Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman, and U.S. Secretary of
Commerce Carlos Gutierrez to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leaders Harry Reid, et al., March
18, 2008.
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