What Is Libya's National Transitional Council?

[ABDUL JABBAR KATIAR]

Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) was established in Benghazi on March 5, 2011 as the nation's official opposition organization and governing body of the rebellion to overthrow Muammar el Qaddafi, who had been in power for 42 years. On Aug. 21, 2011, rebel forces entered Tripoli, the Libyan capital, marched to Green Square, and took control of a majority of the city, signaling the end of the Qaddafi regime and the transformation of the National Transitional Council into the country's ruling body. The council intended to move its headquarters to Tripoli as soon as feasible.

France became the first nation to recognize the National Transitional Council as the official representative government of Libya, on March 10, 2011. The United States recognized the council on July 15: “I am announcing today that, until an interim authority is in place, the United States will recognize the TNC as the legitimate governing authority for Libya, and we will deal with it on that basis,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, speaking from Istanbul in Turkey.

The council, however, lacked, even as its rebels entered Tripoli, a unifying figure who could lead the new government, command respect, and prevent the rebellion from damaging infighting. The reason: Qaddafi ran the country like a tribal cult. He prevented the organization of institutions that could yield a cadre of leaders who understand the country and could serve as the building blocks to a modern government. Libya's tribal traditions are also an obstacle to national unity.

"A hint of what could be in store is the still unexplained July 28 killing of the rebels' military commander, Abdel Fattah Younes, a former top Gaddafi security official, after he was taken into custody by his own side for questioning," Reuters reported on Aug. 21. "The killing has raised fears that the NTC is too weak and fractured to halt a slide into bloodshed as rival factions, including Islamists, bid for power."

Here's the top leadership of the National Transitional Council as of late August, 2011:

Mustafa Abdel-Jalil is the chairman of the council. Taciturn, authoritarian, humorless, he is a former minister of justice in Qaddafi's government. He resigned when Qaddafi ordered his forces to open fire on protesters.

Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga, a lawyer who represented families of prisoners killed at the Qaddafi-ordered Abu Salim prison massacre in 1996, is the vice chairman of the council, is the council's chief spokesman. He is from Benghazi.

Mahmoud Jibril was Qaddafi's National Economic Development Board chairman before defecting early in the rebellion, and shuttling from capital to capital abroad to win support for the council.

The council made clear early that it would respect all agreements and treaties signed during the Qaddafi regime. The transitional council laid out its mission on its website plainly: "In this important historical juncture which Libya is passing through right now, we find ourselves at a turning point with only two solutions. Either we achieve freedom and race to catch up with humanity and world developments, or we are shackled and enslaved under the feet of the tyrant Mu’ammar Gaddafi where we shall live in the midst of history." The council chooses to "liberate Libya from the hands of the tyrant Mu’ammar Gaddafi who made lawful to himself the exploitation of his people and the wealth of this country. The number of martyrs and wounded and the extreme use of excessive force and mercenaries against his own people requires us to take the initiative and work on the Liberalization of Libya from such insanities."

The council also assures that the council "will guide the country to free elections and the establishment of a constitution for Libya."

Libya sits on the Middle East's sixth largest oil reserves, with about 43 billion barrels of oil. It was the 17th-leading oil producer in the world in 2009, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, producing 1.8 million barrels of oil per day. That was before the rebellion broke out and production fell significantly. But Saudi Arabia increased oil production to compensate and stabilize world oil prices.

source: Libya's Nationalal Transition Council (NTC) - What Is Libya's National Transitional Council FAQ