AL-QADHDHAFI GRANTS INTERVIEW TO BEIRUT MAGAZINE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP05-01559R000400370069-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 3, 2012
• Sequence Number: 69
• Publication Date: May 12, 1976
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

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V. 14 May 76 N O R T H A F R I C A
AL-QADHDHAFI GRANTS INTERVIEW TO BEIRUT MAGAZINE S`
Tripoli Voice of the Arab Homeland in Arabic 2315 GMT 12 May 76 LD
[Report on interview of Col Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi by AL-HADAF published on 8 May]
[Text] Col Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi, chairman of the Revolution Command Council, has
affirmed that the plot currently being carried out in Lebanon is aimed against the
Palestinian resistance, and he has called for the establishment of a unified command
between the resistance and the Arab Army of Lebanon. In an interview with the Beirut
AL-HADAF, the brother colonel praised the Palestinian resistance for adopting a stand
completely in line with that of the Arab Army of Lebanon. He stressed the need for the
rallying of all the Arab rejection forces from the Atlantic to the gulf in order to
counter the capitulationist trend in the Arab area.
Speaking about the reactionary and imperialist plots which are being hatched against the
Great 1 September Revolution, the brother colonel affirmed that the real motivating
force behind these plots is imperialism, which feels the threat of the 1 September Rev-
olution to its existence while the Arab reactionary regimes are imperialism's tool in
impllmenting these plots. These plots, he said, are doomed to failure because the tools
implementing them are worn out and weak. Imperialism cannot intervene directly in favor
of the reactionary regimes or even in its own favor because such an intervention would
be sheer madness.
He also affirmed that imperialism would be foolish to intervene against the great
September Revolution. I do not think that the outcome of such an intervention would
benefit imperialism. The whole situation in the area might flare up against imperialism
and its lackeys and could lead to the establishment of a broad popular base in every part
of the Arab homeland, thus bringing closer the day of the elimination of the reactionary
regimes. He added: The more reaction and imperialism escalate their challenges, the
more the popular masses rise to the challenge and the more determined they are to over-
come it. He said that our free Arab masses are now ready to clash with the enemies be-
cause they feel that they are facing provocation and a challenge to their aspirations
and achievements, as well as to liberation and progress.
The brother colonel said in his interview with AL-HADAF weekly that the Arab reaction
shuddered when it saw the popular uprising in the Libyan Arab Republic [LAR]. Even
the counterrevolutionary propaganda has become hopeless and in fact produced counter-
productive results. The Libyan Arab people have considered this attempt an encroachment,
a challenge and a provocation for their aspirations. He said that imperialism must
take the free popular masses into consideration and it cannot risk confronting them
directly. Colonel al-Qadhdhafi stressed the ability of the Libyan Arab people to con-
front imperialism whatever conspiratorial methods it uses.
Asked how an alliance with the Egyptian working factions can be achieved, the brother
colonel said: We are under constant pressure from the Egyptian workers to launch an
organized action based on the Libyan Arab Republic. He added: In fact, we still have
tenuous relations with the Egyptian regime. When these relations break, we will have
no objection to responding to the demands of the Egyptian popular masses. Should we
reach this stage, then it will be the point of no return as far as the Egyptian regime
is concerned.
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The brother colonel called on the Egyptian workers to take over their factories and
installations, He explained that this call is not aimed at bringing communism to
Egypt, but that the public sector in Egypt is no longer public but rather an exploita-
tionist sector controlled by the Egyptian bourgeoisie, which is in partnership with
imperialism and the exploiting foreign capital, The Egyptian worker has more right than
this unholy alliance to own these installations and factories and to manage them through
popular committees of workers, technicians, and engineers.
Speaking about the destitute condition of the Egyptian peasant, the brother colonel said
that the Egyptian peasants are extremely oppressed and that the purpose of this oppression
is to eliminate the threat they pose once and for all and to kill their revolutionary
spirit.
The brother colonel expressed the hope that there will be a peasant uprising in Egypt
so that they can live as humans should. The peasant sector, he said, should revolt and
wrest a free and dignified life. But it appears that the regime there has oppressed the
peasant to a great extent. He said that conditions are more conducive to revolpution in
the delta than in any of the other oppressed areas. The possibility of revolution exists
even without our encouragement because of the conditions there. But our alliance with
the real leaderships there will make the issue more serious for the Egyptian regime.
The brother colonel called on Egyptian students to stage a popular revolution in the
universities first so that it would eventually extend beyond the university campuses
because the student sector is aware and active and can therefore take the initiative
and declare and rejuvenate the popular revolution. He said: I believe that Egypt now
is like a haystack vulnerable to fire and dorms. The LAR is like a strong westerly storm
blowing on this haystack and can set it -on fire with a single spark; it can destroy
it completely. Should a popular revolution break out in Egypt, he stressed, it will
spread quickly. The peasants will take over the land they till, as well as the land
of the feudalists and the pashas. The workers will take over their installations and
factories. The students and enlightened intellectuals will lead the masses through
popular organizations and popular committees. The vocational unions and federations will
come to the fore, and the situation will be similar to that in France when the Bastille
fell. Egypt now is like France at that time. Colonel al-Qadhdhafi said that the popular
revolution does not depend on arms but rather on the popular will that the masses take
over control in villages and towns because the people's will is in itself a weapon, as
it would rc difficult to oppose millions of people when they march to take over power.
Speaking about the Egyptian Army, the brother colonel said; we ally ourselves with this
army not in order to instigate it to stage a coup. Our alliance goes beyond that be-
cause it is an alliance against the defeat which has been imposed on the Egyptian soldier
despite the fact that he proved his combat ability in the Ramadan war. it is an alliance
against the tampering with the destiny of the Egyptian soldiers with the aim of achieving
a capitulationist solution or implementing a political game for the sake of which thou-
sands of them paid with their lives. We ally ourselves with them against the disgrace
that has been imposed on the Egyptian Army. The Egyptian Army would have been able to
remove this disgrace--the disgrace of Kilometer 101 and of the Deversoir. Continuing
to speak about the Egyptian Army, the brother colonel affirmed that this army is capable
of crushing the Zionist penetration, but politically this is not desired. l-!e added:
We also ally ourselves with the Egyptian Army against the disgrace of the U.S. presence
in Sinai and of withdrawal ,from the Egyptian territory while the enemy is still occupy-
ing Egyptian territory.
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V. 14 May 76 I 3
Wondering about the significance of disengagement, the brother colonel said: It means
that the Egyptian should withdraw, from Egyptian territory and the Israeli should with-
draw from Egyptian territory. It is supposed to mean that as long as the enemy occupies
Egyptian territory, the Egyptian should not withdraw at all from this territory.
paragraph as heard)
The brother colonel said the Egyptian regime rewarded the valiant 3d Army by demobilizing
thousands of its soldiers and rendering them destitute at a time when the enemy was still
occupying Egyptian territory and passing through the Egyptian canal and at a time when
the Egyptian defense force was being 'wea&Sned. All these factors together, the brother
colonel stressed, make allies of the Egyptian Army, He said : We do not look at this
alliance from a narrow angle nor is it intended to stage a coup. This is because there
are greater reasons for S.which we find ourselves' allies with the. Egyptian Army. He
added: The forces that stand against us in Egypt are the intelligence organs, the
government media and certain politicians headed by the president of the republic. Other-
wise the rest of the forces are,. our allies.
Asked by the AL-HADAF correspondent about the expulsion of some Egyptian infiltrators from
the LAR, the brother colonel said,: Our.policy has been to allow all Egyptians to work
in Libya even if they have entered the country illegally. But our suspicions were aroused
after we had noticed that Egyptian intelligence had sent some of its elements to the LAR
amid this human wave from Egypt. ,Moreover, the Egyptian brothers who came to Libya illeg-
ally suffered great difficulties and terrible hardships on their way here. We were con-
cerned about the Egyptian citizens and did not wish to see them arrive in this state.
Asked about the present situation In Lebanon, the brother colonel said: I believe that
what is happening in Lebanon is in fact to provoke the Palestinian resistance. This is
almost the same as what happened to the resistance in Jordan in September 1970.? The
plan is , the same.
Talking about the plot to liquidate the Palestinian resistance, he said: There was the
Arab Sinai resistance organization and fedayeen operations were in fact carried out on
the Egyptian, Jordanian and Syrian fronts. In Lebanon there was a plan aimed at liquida-
ting the ' Palestinian armed resistance. The aim was to destroy this resistance so that it
would be easy to liquidate the Palestine problem and impose capitulationist solutions.
The brother colonel went on to say: The Arab Sinai organization somehow came to an and
and thus the resistance on the Egyptian front ended. This was followed by the blow to the
resistance in Jordan. It was a strong blow and comparable with the magnitude and in-
tensity of the fedayeen action there. Thus the Jordanian battlefield was cleared of
fedayeen action. As for Syria, the fact is that the Syrian borders were closed most of
the time, especially ,before the Ramadan war. Therefore, the resistance gathered in
Lebanon since it had no other place to go., They wanted to turn Lebanon into a grave-
yard for the Palestinian resistance. I believe that the operation in Lebanon was aimed
at liquidating the' Palestinian armed resistance in Lebanon, since it had no place to go
from there.
The nationalist forces in Lebanon, he said, stood on the side of the resistance. This is
something that did not happen in Jordan because the social structure in Lebanon is
different. The counterresistance move was motivated by religious, communal, and
ideological conflicts, which created an atmosphere conducive to clashes between these
conflicting forces. This is something that did not exist in Jordac.
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V. 14 May 76 14
'Continuing, the brother colonel added: The reason is that the nationalist forces were
provoked and therefore moved to defend the resistance. But the move this time took
the form of conflict between Moslems and Christians or between one community and another,
a conflict with capitalism and feudalism in Lebanon and a conflict between the hotel
owners and the shop owners. All sorts of conflicts between the Lebanese came to the
surface and everyone tried to direct these conflicts the way he wanted, but finally
they developed into a national Lebanese revolution. It was intended to liquidate the
Palestinian resistance, which has led to the outbreak of a Lebanese national
revolution. Consequently, the emergence of the Lebanese national revolution has over-
shadowed the clash between the resistance and its enemies. The brother colonel affirmed
that this nationalist movement has culminated in the emergence of the Arab Army of
Lebanon, which indicates the explosion of genuine revolutionary feeling in Lebanon.
None of the sides thought the traditional Lebanese army would be capable of producing
a Lebanese force that would fight on the side of the resistance and the nationalist
forces in order to liberate the country and oppose imperialism and sectarianism. This
goes to show the existence of a genuine revolutionary feeling in Lebanon.
The brother colonel called on all the nationalist forces to join unequivocally and
clearly with the Arab Army of Lebanon so that this army would not just be one of the
battalions of the nationalist forces. He said the logical and correct thing to do
now is to join the Arab Army of Lebanon, and he added: All the nationalist forces in
Lebanon are called upon to form a unified command with the Arab Army of Lebanon that
would lead the revolution in Lebanon rather than lead Lebanon toward settlements,
negotiations or elections. It should lead the revolution in Lebanon and insure that
the situation will develop so as to allow the tasks of national revolution in Lebanon
to be accomplished.
The brother colonel praised the groups of Palestinian resistance which adhere completely
to the Arab Army of Lebanon, spearheaded by the Popular Front for the Liberation of
Palestine. He said: We regret that some groups of the resistance are contributing to
the abortion of the revolution and to the toning down of the situation, although they
would be the losers in such a situation or if the revolution did not succeed in Lebanon.
Answering a question about the LAR's attitude toward the regimes proceeding along the
path to a settlement, the brother colonel affirmed: Our attitude toward these regimes
is very clear. The LAR has thought aloud. The rest of the Arab countries do not know
where they stand and on which side. But we announced a pan Arab stand with a loud
voice on all the issues, and our stance has been specified exactly in the Arab and
international arena.
He said: We regret having to move from the singular to the plural concerning the
capitulationist regimes. But the Palestinian people are allies to the end, and are
entitled to the cause and also entitled to speak the decisive word, and the world must
inevitably hear this word one of these days.
Colonel al-Qadhdhafi added: The Palestinian people were not affected by the capitula-
tion and treason of Faruq or King 'Abdallah, and they continued to struggle for their
cause. Arab regimes emerged, and some of them supported the Palestinian people while
others disavowed them. He said: If there is now another treason being repeated
against the Palestinians, I believe that this is not important. What is important
is the Palestinian people.
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1
V. 14 May 76 I 5 NORTH AFRICA
The brother colonel lauded the uprisings now taking place in the occupied West Bank. He
said: The Palestinian people are still carrying their rifles, determined to continue
the struggle until liberation under the leadership of the Palestinian resistance. This
is a sufficient reply to submissive solutions. Who can sign on behalf of these angry
people who face armed imperialism on their land and announce their rejection of the
present occupation? This is what places all the capitulationist attempts in the waste-
paper basket.
The brother colonel spoke of the concessions being made by the Egyptian regime. He said:
The most serious aspect of these concessions is the passage of Israeli goods through the
Suez Canal and the U.S. presence. He added: There are many other things, although
they are still only ink on paper and might not succeed. These things nonetheless
constitute treason in themselves. They are a sellout of the cause. However, the passage
of Israeli goods through the Suez Canal is something taking place and has come into force.
The brother colonel affirmed that it was expected that we would benefit from the Ramadan
war and that we would close another door and tighten the blockade on the enemy and force
him to surrender. But what is happening is the opposite. The greatest link in the block-
ade of the enemy was the Suez Canal.
Concerning the Arab popular action under current conditions within the Arab regimes, he
stressed the need to begin the process of grouping the rejectionist front in a popular and
official form, if possible. He said: Having understood the seriousness underlying the
grouping of these forces, that is, the popular and revolutionary forces, imperialism and
reaction tried to distract them from organizing their ranks, particularly at this stage,
through an onslaught on the LAR, the Palestinian resistance, and the patriotic forces in
Lebanon.
He called for continued attempts to group the rejectionist forces and to broaden their
ranks so that the front would be a wide one--from the ocean to the gulf--and for the
emergence of a popular pan-Arab movement rejecting this capitulationist trend, to put
a stop to this treason, to make the imperialists see that they are backing a loser.
The brother colonel held the Palestinian resistance, and primarily the Popular Front for
the Liberation of Palestine, responsible for taking action in this respect. He affirmed
that the LAR will continue to be their real supporter in the battle of liberation and
that in so doing it is adopting a unique stand in the Arab homeland, because, at present,
there is no.Arab country placing its resources at the disposal of the Palestinian people's
rejeot.ionist forces apart from the'LAR.
Answering a question about the reason for the resumption of political relations between
the LAR and Jordan, the brother colonel said: The relations were severed in 1970 at the
summit conference attended by Jamal 'Abd an-Nasir. But since that time many things have
naturally changed.
He added: Even before the attempt to abort the Palestinian revolution, there was a
rapprochement between Syria and Jordan. We were and we still are supporting Syria in
facing the Israelis and [words indistinct]. We were the allies of Syria against the
Israelis. Syria has become the ally of Jordan [words indistinct] that we should be the
allies of Syria'a ally. [passage indistinct] Jordan is the only place connected with
the West Bank. We have decided to be (?close) to the West Bank.
The brother colonel concluded by saying: There are many things which we could have
offered the West Bank, but we had no contact with it as a result of the severance of
relations with Jordan.
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V. 14 May 76 I 6
AL-QADHDHAFI ADDRESSES 1 SEPTEMBER UNIVERSITY
Tripoli Domestic Service in Arabic 1730 GMT 13 May 76 JN
(Excerpts) The leader of the revolution, Brother Col Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi, met with
the masses of the 1 September University this morning. The brother colonel spoke to
the masses--students, faculty members and workers--who had gathered in the courtyard of
the university.
The brother colonel said: There was a group which was alien and hostile to you, the
university, and education and which tried to distort the image of the university.
Thank god, however, the masses of the revolution were able to liquidate and crush
their enemies. The leader of the revolution affirmed that the Great 1 September Revolu-
tion was not a fascist coup d'etat but is a real, continuous revolution, which is deter-
mined to achieve its objectives. It will crush its enemies, who are lurking in wait
for it.
The brother colonel added: The eruption of the popular revolution in the universities
on 7 April revealed those who belonged to the forces of the revolution--the forces of
progress, good, and freedom--and those who belonged to the forces of the right--the
forces of reaction and agentry. He said that the revolution will continue in the
universities because what is required is the crushing of the enemies of the revolution
at home and abroad.
Concluding his address, the brother colonel spoke about the role of the university in
graduating specialists needed by Libya in the various fields.
Tripoli ARNA in English 1226 GMT 13 May 76 LD
[Text] Cairo, May 13, ARNA--Cairo security authorities rushed into the residence of
the Libyan Arab Republic's delegation of the television service, (?entrusted) with
shooting a film on the football match between Azzamalek of Cairo and Al-Ahl of
Tripoli, which took place in Cairo last Friday.
The T.V. delegation, which got delayed in returning home because of a surgical operation
on one of its members, was subjected to expressions of mockery by the Egyptian passports
criminal investigation officer.
The Cairo security authorities threatened some delegation members of
expulsion and ban on their entry into Egypt, if they criticized President as-Sadat.
On the other hand the Cairo airport authorities provoked the carrier of the Libyan
diplomatic pouch while proceeding to Cairo and subjected him to ordinary measures
meant for general travellers and kept him inside the airport for more than one and a
half hours without any justification, and against diplomatic traditions.
ARNA: MOROCCAN LIBERATION ARMY CONDEMNS WAR
Tripoli ARNA in English 1355 GMT 13 May 76 LD
["Moroccan Liberation Army Statement"--ARNA headline]
[Text] Paris, May 13 ARNA--A group of the Moroccan Liberation and Resistance Army has
strongly condemned all attempts aimed at striking the Saharan people's aspirations of
freedom and independence.
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