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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Libyan Militia Selling Oil, Defying the Government | Libyan Militia Selling Oil, Defying the Government |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| CAIRO — A militia group that has blockaded Libya’s main oil ports for more than six months began on Saturday to sell the oil for its own accounts as the weak transitional government appeared powerless to stop it. | CAIRO — A militia group that has blockaded Libya’s main oil ports for more than six months began on Saturday to sell the oil for its own accounts as the weak transitional government appeared powerless to stop it. |
| The first unauthorized export of the oil — the lifeblood of Libya’s government and economy — may be the most ominous indication yet that the nation is at risk of coming apart at the seams. | The first unauthorized export of the oil — the lifeblood of Libya’s government and economy — may be the most ominous indication yet that the nation is at risk of coming apart at the seams. |
| Until now, officials of the central government had played down the impact of the blockades by arguing that the militia was not stealing or wasting the oil, only holding it back for sale by the government at a later date. | Until now, officials of the central government had played down the impact of the blockades by arguing that the militia was not stealing or wasting the oil, only holding it back for sale by the government at a later date. |
| The militia leader who closed the ports, Ibrahim Jathran, a charismatic 33-year-old with close ties to Eastern Libyan tribes, has maintained that he was closing the ports not for personal profit, but to press the central government to crack down on oil-sector corruption and provide more resources to the long-neglected east. | The militia leader who closed the ports, Ibrahim Jathran, a charismatic 33-year-old with close ties to Eastern Libyan tribes, has maintained that he was closing the ports not for personal profit, but to press the central government to crack down on oil-sector corruption and provide more resources to the long-neglected east. |
| In the chaos that has followed the overthrow of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi three years ago, control of the country’s oil revenue was always presumed to be the greatest leverage in the hands of the fledgling government in Tripoli. Its leaders hoped to trade shares of oil revenue for the loyalty of fractious tribes and regions, and the shared patrimony of Libya’s oil wealth could bind the country together. | In the chaos that has followed the overthrow of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi three years ago, control of the country’s oil revenue was always presumed to be the greatest leverage in the hands of the fledgling government in Tripoli. Its leaders hoped to trade shares of oil revenue for the loyalty of fractious tribes and regions, and the shared patrimony of Libya’s oil wealth could bind the country together. |
| But those hopes and Tripoli’s power were upended Saturday when a tanker called the Morning Glory ignored the furious warnings of the central government and arrived at the major oil port of Es Seder to begin filling up with the first unauthorized shipment of oil. | But those hopes and Tripoli’s power were upended Saturday when a tanker called the Morning Glory ignored the furious warnings of the central government and arrived at the major oil port of Es Seder to begin filling up with the first unauthorized shipment of oil. |
| Ownership of the ship was unclear, though it was flagged under North Korea. | |
| Ali Zeidan, prime minister of Libya’s transitional government, has repeatedly threatened, without consequences, to use military force to reopen the ports or block any tankers coming for their oil. In January, a ship in the Libyan Navy reportedly fired shots to fend off a Maltese tanker headed for the same port, and in a news conference on Saturday Mr. Zeidan said that the Morning Glory was loading with oil, and called it an act of piracy. | Ali Zeidan, prime minister of Libya’s transitional government, has repeatedly threatened, without consequences, to use military force to reopen the ports or block any tankers coming for their oil. In January, a ship in the Libyan Navy reportedly fired shots to fend off a Maltese tanker headed for the same port, and in a news conference on Saturday Mr. Zeidan said that the Morning Glory was loading with oil, and called it an act of piracy. |
| “The tanker will be bombed if it doesn’t follow orders when leaving,” Mr. Zeidan said. “This will be an environmental disaster.” | “The tanker will be bombed if it doesn’t follow orders when leaving,” Mr. Zeidan said. “This will be an environmental disaster.” |
| But he also acknowledged that the military had already refused his orders to block the ship’s arrival. “The chief of staff was asked to deal with that and did not,” Mr. Zeidan said. “We took over a weak state and we were not helped to strengthen it. Everybody was working against us.” | But he also acknowledged that the military had already refused his orders to block the ship’s arrival. “The chief of staff was asked to deal with that and did not,” Mr. Zeidan said. “We took over a weak state and we were not helped to strengthen it. Everybody was working against us.” |
| Geoff Porter, an analyst who advises oil companies and others, called Mr. Zeidan’s threats “nonsense.” “This isn’t even saber rattling — Zeidan’s scabbard is empty,” Mr. Porter said, adding, “and Jathran likely knows it.” | Geoff Porter, an analyst who advises oil companies and others, called Mr. Zeidan’s threats “nonsense.” “This isn’t even saber rattling — Zeidan’s scabbard is empty,” Mr. Porter said, adding, “and Jathran likely knows it.” |
| The Eastern blockade has already helped drain the government’s revenues, contributing to severe blackouts and lines for gasoline in the capital. | The Eastern blockade has already helped drain the government’s revenues, contributing to severe blackouts and lines for gasoline in the capital. |
| In another televised news conference, a regional leader speaking for the militia that controls the ports said it had lost patience with the transitional government. In Cyrenaica, the Eastern province, “We do not get any attention,” said Abd-Rabbo al-Barassi, leader of a self-proclaimed regional authority that is pushing for a highly federalized system. | In another televised news conference, a regional leader speaking for the militia that controls the ports said it had lost patience with the transitional government. In Cyrenaica, the Eastern province, “We do not get any attention,” said Abd-Rabbo al-Barassi, leader of a self-proclaimed regional authority that is pushing for a highly federalized system. |
| Mr. Barassi said the group was exporting the oil “in broad daylight,” not stealing it. “We would like to assure all of our fellow Libyans that we are still standing by our pledge to preserve the wealth of Libyans,” including setting aside shares of the proceeds for the two other provinces, to the south and the west. | Mr. Barassi said the group was exporting the oil “in broad daylight,” not stealing it. “We would like to assure all of our fellow Libyans that we are still standing by our pledge to preserve the wealth of Libyans,” including setting aside shares of the proceeds for the two other provinces, to the south and the west. |
| But he said that the group would distribute the revenue under a formula stipulated by a 1958 law passed under the former Eastern-based monarchy, that gave the East the biggest cut because it contained the most oil. |