Libyan who claims she was raped by Gaddafi troops deported from Qatar

As Nato continues strikes on Tripoli, US expresses concerns for the safety of Iman al-Obeidi A Libyan woman who claimed she was gang-raped by Muammar Gaddafi’s troops has been deported from Qatar, where she sought refuge, and is now in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, a UN official has said. Her expulsion casts light on one of the most widely covered alleged abuses by Gaddafi’s forces. Meanwhile Nato continued its relentless nightly bombing raids on Libyan military and security bases, backing rebels who are trying to unseat the Libyan dictator after a four-decade rule. A series of at least 10 strikes hit targets in and around the Libyan capital early on Friday. The attacks targeted military barracks close to Gaddafi’s sprawling compound in central Tripoli, a police station and a military base, according to a government official speaking on condition of anonymity. He said it was not immediately clear if there were any casualties. The US government expressed concern for the safety of the Libyan woman, Iman al-Obeidi. In March, al-Obeidi rushed into Tripoli’s Rixos hotel where all foreign correspondents are forced to stay while covering the part of Libya under Gaddafi’s control, and shouted out her story of being stopped at a checkpoint, dragged away and gang-raped by soldiers. As she spoke, and as photographers and reporters recorded her words, government minders whose job is to escort reporters around the area, dragged her away. She disappeared for several days, then turned up in Tunisia and later Qatar. Little was heard from her until Thursday, when she was suddenly expelled from Qatar and ended up in Benghazi, the Libyan rebels’ de facto capital. No explanation was forthcoming from Qatar. Rebel spokesman Jalal el-Gallal said al-Obeidi arrived in Benghazi by plane. “She’s welcome to stay, this is her country,” el-Gallal told the Associated Press. The UN refugee agency’s Sybella Wilkes said al-Obeidi should have been allowed to stay in Qatar, and her deportation runs contrary to international law. Al-Obeidi “is a recognized refugee, and we don’t consider there is any good reason for her deportation,” Wilkes told AP. US state department spokesman Mark Toner said the US was “monitoring the situation” and working to ensure al-Obeidi’s safety. “We’re going to work to make sure that she’s kept safe, first and foremost, and that she finds appropriate asylum,” Toner told reporters in Washington on Thursday. Libyan authorities have alternately labeled her a drunk, a prostitute and a thief. Al-Obeidi has maintained that she was targeted by Gaddafi’s troops because she is from Benghazi, the rebel stronghold. Human rights violations are one aspect of the rebels’ complaints against the Gaddafi regime. This week a report by a UN body said it found evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity by Gaddafi’s government, and also charged that the rebels have committed abuses. Four of the early morning blasts on Friday shook and rattled the city, targeting an area where military barracks are located, said the government official. Those barracks, which had been hit in the past, are close to the sprawling compound of the Libyan leader. The blasts shook windows of the hotel where reporters stay in Tripoli. The official said it wasn’t immediately clear if there were any casualties. Six earlier strikes targeted a police station and a military base outside of Tripoli in the areas of Hera and Aziziya, said the official. The strikes appeared to be the heaviest to hit Tripoli since South African president Jacob Zuma visited Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in the capital last week in an effort to find a peaceful resolution to the country’s crisis. Libya Iman al-Obeidi Muammar Gaddafi Arab and Middle East unrest Qatar Middle East Africa guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 3, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.