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Isdore Guvamombe

The United States of America’s unprecedented blind support for Israel even when the Zionist state is committing genocide against the Palestinians, has reached fever pitch with President Joe Biden seeking to use funds seized from Libya to fund Tel Aviv.

Official US Treasury reports say the US is holding on to US$34 billion in its banks it froze from Libyan accounts, just before launching the military offensive that killed Gaddafi. Now it is applying to use the same funds to prop up Israel’s military attack on Palestine.

Libya is one of Africa’s richest countries whose Pan African plinth has been core to strengthening the African Union but is reeling under severe economic stress since the military intervention by US and its allies and this has left its people highly impoverished. To take its money and use it to fund Israel is not a good idea by an iota of humanism.

This is a very sad development that shows US thuggery, injustice, bully tactics and lack of morality.

African leaders are very worried about this move and corridors of power are shaking.

It is common knowledge that current war between Israel and Palestine came at a time when the Russia-Ukraine war had drained US Treasury of trillions of dollars and Washington was already talking of planning to abandon US support to Kyiv.

While the discussion in US Treasury to stop supporting Ukraine was gaining traction, the current Palestine-Israel war broke out and Washington found itself in sixes and sevens, financially.

Now the US has mooted a plan to use part or all of the US$34 billion dollars of Libyan money frozen in its banks to support Israel.

Now that is very cruel and unacceptable by any measure of morality.

The African Union (AU) and the Arab League together with other progressive thinking people in the world have red-flagged US’s move to us the Libyan money for all the wrong reasons. 

The bone of contention by diplomats is that the US should stop engaging in military escapades its Treasury cannot afford.

It is senseless, to steal and unilaterally invest another country’s money to support a war it does not believe in. Libyans do not believe in Israel killing Palestinians like flies. 

Millions of Libyan people are suffering from disease, hunger, starvation and lamentation and need that money to rebuild their country from the strife caused by the military intervention of the US and its allies that killed President Muammar Gaddafi.

To steal Libyan money and invest it in a mad and unnecessary war against Palestinians, is not only to be cruel but world class crass. 

Of course, we all know that the Libyan people are among the strongest supporters of the state of Palestine sine the Nakba of 1948 but they should not be punished for it.

American-based Libyan political analyst and strategist Ahmed al-Fitiouri expressed his indignation and that of the Libyan people at the prospects on funds that are supposed to develop Libya, being used to support Israel”s cruelty.

Libya and its people, he said, vehemently reject this idea and want money released and used in rebuilding the country that is now in ruins because of another cruel war started by US and its allies.

The fecundity of the whole US action is to take Libyan people as not human beings who deserve respect and who deserve to benefit from their resources, financial or otherwise.

It is now clear that the US Treasury did not freeze the Libyan bank accounts to help the people of Libya, but to squander it and abuse it.

Therefore, it is clear that Libya under Gaddafi was better off as the people enjoyed their natural resources. 

Now they are dodging bullets and bombs every day and worse still, now they are going to have their money abused to obliterate Palestine from mother earth.

Using Libyan money to support Israel is akin to saying Libyans are not people and do not deserve to benefit from their country’s resources and to make Israelis first class citizens of the world. 

This is far from the image that the US has over the years tried to portray, the image of being the world’s moralist, the world’s best democracy and the world’s grand upholder of human rights. 

In that plinth the US has lost its moral standing to referee on anyone. The US is the chief culprit. 

The US is the chief thief, stealing from Libyans in broad day light. 

Where is the democracy? Where are the human rights? 

What are the morals? And indeed where are the human rights, good governance and accountability?

Instead, a forthright US administration, would have released the money to Libyans and give the current leadership the depth to rebuild their country and to fight catastrophes like the recent dam burst disaster that killed more than 15 000 people.

According to Al-Fitouri, Washington’s intention to abuse Libyan funds in Israel must be stopped and US Treasury should openly release the funds to Libya.

If the US is not a good custodian of the money as it is proving, and if the current Libyan leadership is equally not trusted, it is better to release the money to the Aran League where Libya is a member or to the African Union.

Libya itself needs more than $34 billion to rebuild its infrastructure damaged by years of warring factions and that money frozen in the US banks could go a long way in easing the lives of ordinary Libyans than being used to support Israel’s cruel war.

If it proceeds to divert the Libyan funds to Israel was, US under President Biden, will go into history books as an administration that did the unthinkable, that shook the world by brazenly stealing money from Libya to support its political bed-mate, Israel.

And, Israel itself will go into history books as a cruel thug, that decimated Palestinians, with hasty abandon and of course, with the support of a bloody-dripping US.

In the end, it is clear that the US is becoming more cruel than ever before and needs checkmating.