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| Libyan military moves to rein in armed factions | Libyan military moves to rein in armed factions |
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| Libya's military command has appointed two army officers to head two powerful Islamist militias in the country's east, part of the government's efforts to rein in armed factions amid popular demands that the groups disband. | Libya's military command has appointed two army officers to head two powerful Islamist militias in the country's east, part of the government's efforts to rein in armed factions amid popular demands that the groups disband. |
| The move reflects the pressure on the government to control militias, many of which it had relied on for securing the country in the turmoil following last year's ousting and killing of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi. | The move reflects the pressure on the government to control militias, many of which it had relied on for securing the country in the turmoil following last year's ousting and killing of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi. |
| Ali al-Sheikhi, spokesman for Libya's joint chiefs of staff, told the news agency Lana that the chiefs of the Rafallah al-Sahati brigade and the February 17 Brigade, two groups authorities had allowed to manage security in the eastern city of Benghazi, would be replaced with army commanders. | Ali al-Sheikhi, spokesman for Libya's joint chiefs of staff, told the news agency Lana that the chiefs of the Rafallah al-Sahati brigade and the February 17 Brigade, two groups authorities had allowed to manage security in the eastern city of Benghazi, would be replaced with army commanders. |
| Anger at the militias boiled over following the killing of the top American diplomat in Libya and three US mission staff in an assault on the consulate in Benghazi on 11 September. The attack followed an angry protest against an anti-Islam film produced in the US. | Anger at the militias boiled over following the killing of the top American diplomat in Libya and three US mission staff in an assault on the consulate in Benghazi on 11 September. The attack followed an angry protest against an anti-Islam film produced in the US. |
| Members of the radical Islamist Ansar al-Shariah militia are suspected of being behind the attack. | Members of the radical Islamist Ansar al-Shariah militia are suspected of being behind the attack. |
| In an attempt to deflect the anger, Libya's president ordered all militias to dissolve or to come under a joint operation command to co-ordinate between the militia brigades and the army. | In an attempt to deflect the anger, Libya's president ordered all militias to dissolve or to come under a joint operation command to co-ordinate between the militia brigades and the army. |
| The move came as Libya's leader, Mohammed Magarief, apologised to the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, for this month's attack on the consulate in Benghazi, which killed four Americans, and pledged his government would bring the perpetrators to justice. | The move came as Libya's leader, Mohammed Magarief, apologised to the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, for this month's attack on the consulate in Benghazi, which killed four Americans, and pledged his government would bring the perpetrators to justice. |
| "What happened on 11 September towards these US citizens does not express in any way the conscience of the Libyan people, their aspirations, their hopes or their sentiments towards the American people," Magarief, the head of Libya's national congress, told Clinton at a meeting on the sidelines of the UN general assembly session in New York. | "What happened on 11 September towards these US citizens does not express in any way the conscience of the Libyan people, their aspirations, their hopes or their sentiments towards the American people," Magarief, the head of Libya's national congress, told Clinton at a meeting on the sidelines of the UN general assembly session in New York. |
| "Of course we … express our great readiness to co-operate with the US government in order to co-operate in the investigation and bring those perpetrators to justice." | "Of course we … express our great readiness to co-operate with the US government in order to co-operate in the investigation and bring those perpetrators to justice." |
| Libyan and US officials have pledged not to allow relations to be derailed by the attack on the consulate in Benghazi, which killed US ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in what Washington described as a terrorist attack. | Libyan and US officials have pledged not to allow relations to be derailed by the attack on the consulate in Benghazi, which killed US ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in what Washington described as a terrorist attack. |
| "Through everything, [Magarief] and the Libyan government have been staunch partners to the United States," Clinton said at the start of her first face-to-face session with the Libyan leader, who was elected to head the ruling national assembly in August. | "Through everything, [Magarief] and the Libyan government have been staunch partners to the United States," Clinton said at the start of her first face-to-face session with the Libyan leader, who was elected to head the ruling national assembly in August. |
| "Courage has been the defining characteristic of the Libyan people over these last two years. Courage to rise up and overthrow a dictator, courage to choose the hard path of democracy, courage to stand against violence and division in the country and the world," she said. | "Courage has been the defining characteristic of the Libyan people over these last two years. Courage to rise up and overthrow a dictator, courage to choose the hard path of democracy, courage to stand against violence and division in the country and the world," she said. |
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