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CIA 'DESTABILISATION' OF LIBYA days for the benefit of his close aides by drawing two imaginary Les Coleman was one of many people I spoke to in an attempt six-guns and peppering an equally imaginary Qadhafi with bul- to get a clear understanding of the nonsensical US position on lets. It was pure Boys’ Own stuff, but backed by multi-megaton Libya. For the better part of 20 years, Libya—and its leader, Col. muscles. Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi—has been hoisted atop America's most- Over the following months, numerous intelligence briefings hated-nation list. It was a form of political vilification that reported that Qadhafi had ordered a revenge attack against Europe didn't share—until the murder of Yvonne Fletcher (to President Reagan and other high-level administration officials. which I shall return). Quickly shown to be unfounded, the fabricated report was traced Upon taking power, the Reagan administration immediately to Manucher Ghorbanifar, a shadowy Iranian arms dealer who had commenced a bitter campaign against Qadhafi, principally under _ helped to broker the arms-for-hostages deal. Despite this, the the guidance of Director of Central Intelligence, Bill Casey—a ‘false' death threat gave Casey and other administration insiders gruff, no-nonsense, financial street-fighter whose lack of political the ammunition they needed to wage a protracted campaign eloquence was matched by a well-used blackjack.* Casey had against the Libyan leader. been Ronald Reagan's campaign manager and carried Reagan to By November 1981, a top secret National Security Planning victory on the back of the "October Surprise" issue of 1980. Group, chaired by the President (who was known to sleep through President Carter's re-election chances were dashed by the intransi- Cabinet meetings), authorised planning for "a military response gence of both the Iranians and US officials who, unknown to him, against Libya in the event of further Libyan attempts to assassi- had concluded a secret deal to delay the release of US hostages nate American officials or attack US facilities." Soon drafted, the held by Tehran, in exchange for battlefield weapons. Reagan "Top Secret" memo, "Counter-terrorist planning towards Libya", romped home to a landslide victory and immediately announced = recommended that the President "immediately direct the Joint that the hostages would be released. It is now clear that Casey Chiefs of Staff to ready assets to carry out military action against was one of the central architects who negotiated the deal with the Libya in self-defense, following a further Libyan provocation." A Iranian ayatollahs. number of retaliatory ‘graduated’ responses were planned. Out of A virulent pro-market anti-Communist, Casey shared his views the main five options, four centred on air strikes against Libyan with British Prime Minister targets. Margaret Thatcher—a close person- Fear-stricken at these developments, al friend. Thatcher was one of the With administration insiders Qadhafi reacted by sending an envoy few prime ministers who took an to Washington, pleading that the whole active interest in the machinations concluding that Qadhafi would be thing was pure bunkum. The strategy of the intelligence community. She just the ‘ticket’ leading toa Reagan proved successful—for the time being. went out of her way to attend Joint There followed an hiatus in US Intelligence Committee meetings victory at the upcoming election that activity against Libya, as Casey and insisted on being regularly November, something had to be focused most of the CIA's resources on briefed. Her interest in these exotic d t dify E bli the Nicaraguan situation. But Qadhafi areas may have been whetted by one to mod! y -uropean public was not to be forgotten. After a tour of many of her ardent supporters, like opinion. European capitals in early 1984 (a US Airey Neave, who possessed intelli- presidential election year), US officials gence backgrounds. seeking allied co-operation against Casey also had a ‘thing’ about Libya returned home in bleak mood. Qadhafi, whom he saw as a low-life rebel-rouser who bankrolled The picture they presented of European attitudes to Qadhafi was the globe's terrorists. Along with other administration hard-liners, not encouraging. The Libyan leader was generally well-regarded: Casey set out to destabilise Libya and overthrow Qadhafi in true he did a lot of business with Europe, he wasn't a fundamentalist, CIA fashion. and a large number of European ex-pats lived and worked in Within months of taking office, President Reagan authorised a _—_ Libya. Collectively, the Europeans wouldn't sanction US hostili- battle fleet to sail along Libya's coastline. Announced to the ties—hardly surprising when the bulk of Libya's crude oil (almost media as a “naval exercise", the manoeuvre was designed to chal- 80 per cent) is exported to Western Europe, principally Italy, lenge Libya's recently declared sovereignty over the Gulf of Sidra Germany, Spain and France.* —a move that extended Libya's territorial claims well beyond the With administration insiders concluding that Qadhafi would be internationally recognised 12-mile coastal boundary. Ordinarily, just the 'ticket' leading to a Reagan victory at the upcoming elec- a territorial dispute of this nature would typically be subject to tion that November, something had to be done to modify international diplomacy and discussion. European public opinion. Within months, ‘fate’ seemed to lend a In the event, the Reagan administration saw it as a perfect helping hand. excuse to buckle on the hip-holsters and start blasting away with a set of Texan six-guns. Qadhafi was about to get a taste Reagan's | THE KILLING OF WPC FLETCHER gung-ho, go-get-'em diplomacy—the first in a series of ‘police Woman Police Constable Yvonne Fletcher was on duty outside actions' that were later to lead to the illegal invasions of Granada the London Libyan People's Bureau on 17 April 1984. Located in and Panama. the fashionable and serene St James's Square, the Libyan Bureau On 19 August 1981, two US Navy F-14 "Tomcats" patrolling building huddles in a corner of the square. Its address is No. 5. 30 miles inside the disputed territorial waters were attacked by On that day, a hail of automatic gunfire disturbed the tranquillity, Libyan jets. In the melee that followed, two Libyan jets were shot sending pigeons flying in all directions. The 11-round burst, fired down. [Note: Many researchers dispute that the Libyans attacked by a 9-mm Sterling sub-machine-gun from the first floor of the first. See additional comments in box on page 36. Ed.] Libyan building, felled a number of anti-Qadhafi demonstrators A delighted Ronald Reagan mimicked his old western-movie protesting outside. WPC Fletcher was killed outright. THE KILLING OF WPC FLETCHER Woman Police Constable Yvonne Fletcher was on duty outside the London Libyan People's Bureau on 17 April 1984. Located in the fashionable and serene St James's Square, the Libyan Bureau building huddles in a corner of the square. Its address is No. 5. On that day, a hail of automatic gunfire disturbed the tranquillity, sending pigeons flying in all directions. The 11-round burst, fired by a 9-mm Sterling sub-machine-gun from the first floor of the Libyan building, felled a number of anti-Qadhafi demonstrators protesting outside. WPC Fletcher was killed outright. 34 - NEXUS FEBRUARY - MARCH 1997