'Talks under way' to end Libya fighting

[TomCADem]

Source: Al Jazeera

Secret channels are being opened between the Libyan government of Muammar Gaddafi and British citizens with a view to ending the conflict, sources have told Al Jazeera.

Abdelati al-Obeidi, the Libyan deputy foreign minister, who has been leading the government's diplomacy after Musa Kousa, the foreign minister, defected, gave hints on Saturday to Al Jazeera's James Bays about the secret talks to end the war.

The Al Jazeera correspondent, who spoke to al-Obeidi on a flight to the southern Tunisian town of Djerba, said the Libyan official was quite guarded in his approach and said that "he really was not authorised to tell me what had taken place at this meeting".

"The deputy foreign minister did admit that he had come for talks which have been taking place with British citizens. He could not say what the talks were about but did say it was an exchange of views and a channel of communication being opened by them," he said.

Read more: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/05/2011528143329921352.html

[DavidDvorkin]

1. Presumably not ordinary, run-of-the-mill, man-in-the-street British citizens.

[daleo]

2. Oil company executives, maybe? n/t

[DavidDvorkin]

3. People in the UK government, I assume

But it's a very odd to put it.

[daleo]

4. There may be legal issues

Such that the government can't be officially involved, at least not yet.

[DavidDvorkin]

5. Good point.

[Fool Count]

6. Yeah, sure, they care so much about legal issues.

They can bomb the country into rubble in obvious violation of UN mandate, but to negotiate for peace, everything just must be so
legally airtight. What, are they afraid to get sued by the rebels if they don't kill enough Qaddafists before ceasefire?