Mutassim Gadhafi Wanted U.S. Jet Fighters Despite Ban, 'Strange' Request Added to Libyan Officials' Doubts About Mutassim's Smarts
Last month the U.S. and its allies took little time in dominating the airspace over Libya, but the mission could have been exponentially harder had the U.S. agreed to an ambitious military "wish list" from a son of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi just two years before.
The military request, which included American F-16 fighter jets, is reported in an April 2009 leaked State Department cable posted on the website WikiLeaks. Libyan officials, speaking on behalf of Moammar Gadhafi's son and National Security Advisor Mutassim Gadhafi, made the request to U.S. officials in January 2009, a little more than two years before American F-16s did take to the air in Libya, but against Gadhafi.
The officials, the cable said, had "been keen to purchase U.S. military equipment -- both lethal and non-lethal -- and to secure training for Libyan military personnel."
The wish list, "which included requests ranging from F-16 fighters to mobile field hospitals," was so wide-ranging that another Libyan official speaking on behalf of another Gadhafi son labeled Mutassim's request as "strange," according to a December 2009 cable.
That official, speaking for Mutassim's fraternal rival Saif al-Islam, did not hesitate, however, to ask why the U.S. had blocked the sale of Little Bird special operations "light attack" helicopters to Libya.
"The Libyan military was still very interested in purchasing the aircraft," the cable says. The Libyan official "suggested the helicopters have all armament removed so they could be categorized as 'non-lethal equipment.'"
13 years ago
0 comments