Libya’s forgotten war victims
Libyan civilians killed or injured during the NATO bombing campaign were excluded from government support for "martyrs" of the revolution that overthrew Moammar Gadhafi.
In a few days, Libya will commemorate the third anniversary of the uprising, supported by NATO airstrikes, that eventually toppled the regime of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Yet in Libya today, there are many people who will not be celebrating and will always feel the pain of loss when the anniversary comes by.
On March 17, 2011, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1973, imposing a no-fly zone over Libya to protect “civilians” rising up against the Gadhafi regime. The resolution authorized all United Nations member states to use all means to implement it, effectively declaring war on Libya.
Two days later, NATO warplanes took to the skies over Libya to enforce the no-fly zone, which meant first neutralizing Libya’s air defenses through a series of air raids across the country. In total, NATO launched nearly 10,000 raids, dropping more than 7,000 laser-guided precision bombs, targeting what it called “legitimate” military targets. However, many of its raids and advanced weaponry went astray, killing dozens of civilians in at least five Libyan cities, particularly in western Libya.
