Secretary hails historic trip as US officially renews ties with former foe

AFP Sep 5, 08 2:34 PM CDT
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Iran and North Korea, take heed: America’s reconciliation with Libya proves that Washington has no permanent enemies, Condoleezza Rice said today. The secretary of state, meeting in Tripoli with onetime international pariah Moammar Gadhafi, said her historic trip “demonstrates that when countries are prepared to make strategic changes in direction, the United States is prepared to respond,” AFP reports.
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First secretary of state visit to Libya in 55 years

Voice of America Sep 3, 08 3:13 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Condoleezza Rice will become first US secretary of state to visit Libya since the Eisenhower administration when she meets Friday with leader Moammar Gadhafi, reports the Voice of America. The meeting demonstrates the radical improvement in relations between the two nations since Gadhafi turned away from terrorism and scrapped Libya's weapons of mass destruction program in 2003.
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All passengers freed, 2 men arrested

Reuters Aug 27, 08 11:45 AM CDT
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The hijackers of a Sudanese flight from Darfur surrendered to authorities in Libya today after releasing all 95 passengers. The two men gave no motive, but asked for refugee status in France, Reuters reports. The pilot said the suspects are from the Sudanese Liberation Movement, a charge the group's leader denies. An SLM member on the plane said, "Last night we felt terrorized."
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Continue to hold crew after commandeering jetliner in Sudan

Associated Press Aug 27, 08 7:29 AM CDT
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Hijackers began releasing the 87 passengers today at a remote desert airfield in southern Libya, reports the AP, a day after they took control of a Sudanese 737 jetliner as it took off from Darfur. The hijackers continued to hold eight crewmembers. Sudan officials called the hijacking an "irresponsible terrorist act" and called for the hijackers to be extradited.
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Former Darfur rebels among 102 still aboard as talks continue

AFP Aug 26, 08 3:14 PM CDT
(Newser)
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A Sudanese flight hijacked today after lifting off from a Darfur airport has landed in Libya, the AFP reports. Authorities are still negotiating with hijackers; three former members of a rebel group are said to be among 102 on board. Yesterday, the UN reported 33 dead after a clash between the Sudanese military and refugees in the region. “I’m not sure if it’s connected,” a rebel leader said, “but it’s related to that.”
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Diplomats, businesses under fire in Libya after Hannibal detained for Geneva assault

Times (UK) Jul 24, 08 3:43 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi is waging a diplomatic, business and public-relations offensive against Switzerland, the Times of London reports, in response to the July 15 arrest of his son Hannibal in the assault of a Geneva hotel worker. Qaddafi has closed Swiss offices and expelled diplomats, apparently organizing a boisterous gathering outside the Swiss embassy in Tripoli to protest the “mistreatment” of 32-year-old Hannibal, who’s out on bail.
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Libyan leader slams candidate for speech on Israel

BBC Jun 12, 08 11:09 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Muammar Gadhafi shot off his infamously intemperate mouth at Barack Obama yesterday, berating the candidate for saying Jerusalem should remain the undivided capital of Israel, and suggesting that he might have an inferiority complex because of his African origins. Either the candidate is ignorant of international politics, the Libyan leader said, or it was "a campaign lie,” the BBC reports.
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Cuba and Libya beat America

Reuters May 20, 08 6:44 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Iceland is the world's most peaceful nation, says a new ranking of 140 countries, Reuters reports. Other findings of the Global Peace Index: The US ranked 97th, below Libya, Cuba, Chile, and Belarus. Iraq finished last, edging out Sudan, Somalia, Afghanistan, and Israel.
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Cartel may meet early and backpedal on current policy

New York Times May 9, 08 7:39 PM CDT
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As crude hit $125 a barrel today, one OPEC member said the cartel may boost oil production to relieve prices, the New York Times reports. The move would conflict with OPEC's public stand that speculators, not oil supplies, have been keeping prices high. “We would consider among other options the possibility of increasing output as a way to ensure market stability,” Libya's top oil official said.
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Reporter travels to Darnah to uncover insurgents' motives

Newsweek Apr 21, 08 1:04 PM CDT
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American intelligence has long known that the bulk of foreign combatants waging jihad in Iraq are Saudi nationals, but Libya is a close second, with much higher per capita representation. Documents found in Sinjar, Iraq, showed 112 fighters in a group of 606 were Libyan, and 52 came from Darnah, an impoverished coastal town of 50,000. Newsweek traveled there to attempt to learn why.
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Israel has new security concerns over flow of Palestinians into Egypt

BBC Jan 26, 08 6:45 AM CST
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Thousands of Palestinians continued to flood into Egypt for a fourth day today, despite Egyptian attempts to close the border using water cannons, barbed wire and a human chain of riot police. Hamas bulldozers smashed new holes in the fence, and cars joined the stream of traffic, the BBC reports; cranes have been erected to move supplies into the Strip faster.
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Washington visit latest chapter in makeover for former pariah state

Washington Post Jan 3, 08 5:49 PM CST
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In the latest sign of a remarkable turnaround in relations between the countries, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today hosted Libyan Foreign Minister Abdel-Rahman Shalqam, who later signed agreements on science and technology. Leader Moammar Gaddafi's renunciation of terrorism and enmity with the West has opened relations, the Washington Post reports, with economic sanctions lifted in 2006.
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How international prosecutors dug up suspicious payments

Wall Street Journal Dec 28, 07 8:40 AM CST
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In one of the world's largest corporate bribery scandals in recent years, German industrial giant Siemens allegedly channeled millions of euros in bribes to customers in Nigeria, Russia, Libya, and other countries to win infrastructure contracts. The Wall Street Journal traces the unearthing of the Siemens case across four years of investigations in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Germany.
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Critics see too much carrot, not enough stick during Libyan leader's highly visible visit

Christian Science Monitor Dec 12, 07 4:38 PM CST
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Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi’s visit to Paris continues to raise questions as to whether the French president sold out by dealing with the dictator, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Activists and some government officials say President Nicolas Sarkozy ignored Liby