Libyan government forces let at least 35 reporters go free. They were hold up in the Rixos Hotel in Tripoli.
It happened after Mahmud Nacua, the Libyan charge d’affairs at the Libyan embassy in London, urged the government forces to let the journalists go free.
CNN’s Mathew Chance said the government gunmen “…literally cast away their weapons and said they were sorry to us.”
“The Ashura brigades of Basij forces are ready to be deployed to London as peacekeeping forces.”- Brigadier General Mohammad-Reza Naqdi
Since the beginning of the riots in England, Iran has been critical of the U.K. government’s handling of the crisis.
Iranian officials pointed out that London police have Big Brother style surveillance cameras all over the city. At last count, there are 4.6 million security cameras, and only one million people living in London. So why is it so difficult for them to track down the “thugs”? Why, with all those security cameras on just about every street, didn’t police react sooner?
Iranian officials also point out that most of the “thugs” are the deprived lower classes of Britain.
Iranian military commanders say that if the United Nations decides to send peacekeepers to the U.K., Iranian troops are ready to go now.
“There’s been tension for a long time. The kids aren’t happy. They hate the police. It’s like a war zone and the police weren’t doing anything. There were too many people and not enough police.”-Matthew Yeoland, 43-year-old teacher in Peckham.
Violence has spread to three cities now; London, Birmingham and Liverpool. Police are using armored vehicles in the worst hit districts of London.
Prime Minister David Cameron cut short his summer vacation in Italy, after first saying he would continue with his vacation.
There are so many fires being fought in London, that Thames Water is warning its customers their water pressure will drop.
Most British media, and most British officials say there is no correlation with the riots in the various districts and cities, and no justification.
Many rioters are poor people who’ve been struggling for years to find employment. They’re also the people who’re being hit the hardest but the government spending cuts. Remember, the leaders of the United Kingdom force drastic cuts on social programs, then go on luxury vacations!
In answer to officials calling the rioters “thugs” one man said it was pay back time: “This is the uprising of the working class. We’re redistributing the wealth.”-Bryn Phillips
Young people in the U.K. are especially upset over huge increases in college tuition, cuts in social programs and the total lack of jobs for youth. The unemployment rate is the highest for young adults in the U.K.
Police are so desperate they’re even asking parents to control their children, to keep them from rioting.
The original violence started in Tottenham, after a man was shot to death by police. The family of the man say he was unarmed, and sitting in the back of a taxi when he was shot.
“Officers responding to sporadic disorder in a number of boroughs made more than 100 arrests throughout last night and early this morning.” Scotland Yard statement, August 8
The violence that started in Tottenham has spread to Enfield and Brixton. The riots started on Friday August 5, after police shot and killed a man in the back seat of a taxi the day before. Police say he was a gun runner, locals say it was police brutality. Tottenham, a borough of London, has a decades long history of police brutality.
The riots are spreading and become more about the lack of jobs, and the severe cuts to social programs made by the British Parliament.
Another factor could be that British Prime Minister, David Cameron, is on a luxury vacation in Italy, while Chancellor of the Exchequer (kinda like the U.S. Treasury), George Osbourne, is on vacation in California. This after they told British taxpayers to make more financial sacrifices.
Police feel targeted, and who wouldn’t be surprised at that since London police have powers even U.S. cops don’t. The United Kingdom uses Orwellian tactics in their law enforcement. One bobby said: “Officers are shocked at the outrageous level of violence directed against them.”
An immigrant from Africa said: “I can imagine this kind of thing happening in Somalia but to see it in London was strange.”
Of course the elected and appointed officials in Britain are calling the rioters “petty criminals”, but local residents say people are finally fed up with the system: “Unemployment is very, very high … they are frustrated.” Uzodinma Wigwe, age 49, recently laid off
History shows that peaceful protest does not work. History shows that it always takes violent protest to make the leaders realize the people want change. In some cases leaders are so arrogant they end up going to their death thinking there is nothing wrong (French Revolution). The Civil Rights laws in the United States did NOT come about because of the peaceful protests led by Martin Luther King Jr, but because of the violence that took place after Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated. That’s the part they don’t teach about in the United States, but the info is there, do your own research.
Scotland Yard (Metropolitan Police, aka Met) has come forward with the cost of dealing with all the various anti government protests.
From April 2010 to March 2011, the Met spent $56.7 million to provide security for demonstrations for everything from anti spending cuts, to anti student fee increases, to even elections and a visit from the Pope, and, protecting former Prime Minister Tony Blair for his appearance before the Iraq War Inquiry.
The most expensive single event was the December 9, 2010, anti tuition fee increase demonstration. It cost $2.1 million.
To be sure, the yearly costs to the London Met wouldn’t have been so high if it weren’t for all the anti government demonstrations.