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Slouching Towards Sirte: NATO's War on Libya and Africa
A comprehensive analysis, this book examines all the justifications and myths about the war on Libya and methodically dismantles them. It delineates the documentary history of events, processes, and decisions that led up to the war while underscoring its resulting consequences. Arguing that NATO’s war is part of a larger process of militarizing U.S. relations with Africa—which sees the development of the Pentagon’s AFRICOM as being in competition with Pan-African initiative—this account shows that Western relations with a “rehabilitated” Libya were shaky at best, mired in distrust, and exhibiting a preference for regime change.
352 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 12, 2021
Very good book. Explains how Libya shows technocratic liberalism can be just as amenable to propaganda, American exceptionalism, and violence as more gauche conservativism. Pretty fair and balanced on Ghadafi explaining his late conversation to Pan Africanism and how it was in his strategic self-interest after the Arab world embraced either the west or Islamic extremism, but also explains the NATO campaign as a response to the threat of a resurgent Pan Africanism threatening American access to the continent. The book does a great job debunking Western propaganda around the campaign. The Libya example is more important than ever with the return of Samantha Power and the Responsibility to Protect crowd's return to power under Biden.
December 5, 2017
One of the only books written by a westerner that describes what Libya and Gaddafi have done for Africa.
Very comprehensive book, well referenced. This book tells the truth on the illegal war on Libya.
Very comprehensive book, well referenced. This book tells the truth on the illegal war on Libya.
December 16, 2015
Excepcional livro de história contemporânea
Brilhante narrativa da aventura carniceira da OTAN sobre a Líbia em 2011. Um trabalho minucioso de pesquisa - o Autor é detalhista ao extremo e fornece toneladas de informações concretas e citações que corroboram suas opinioes e situam o leitor - mas que não descamba para um trabalho maçante ou complicado de ler. Pelo contrário, Slouching Towards Sirte pode ser muito bem lido e compreendido por pessoas sem anterior conhecimento da guerra da Libia ou do jogo geopolitico internacional.
As exposiçoes acerca da situação política da Líbia e da Africa e das intençoes dos EUA no continente sao profundas e esclarecedoras, assim como a análise sobre o papel da mídia e redes sociais na manipulacao da opiniao publica, principalmente - mas nao exclusivamente - em tempos de guerra. Um livro excelente à altura da memória do lendário Coronel Kadafi e dos inocentes que pereceram na Líbia em um dos capítulos mais lamentáveis e deturpados do Século XXI.
Brilhante narrativa da aventura carniceira da OTAN sobre a Líbia em 2011. Um trabalho minucioso de pesquisa - o Autor é detalhista ao extremo e fornece toneladas de informações concretas e citações que corroboram suas opinioes e situam o leitor - mas que não descamba para um trabalho maçante ou complicado de ler. Pelo contrário, Slouching Towards Sirte pode ser muito bem lido e compreendido por pessoas sem anterior conhecimento da guerra da Libia ou do jogo geopolitico internacional.
As exposiçoes acerca da situação política da Líbia e da Africa e das intençoes dos EUA no continente sao profundas e esclarecedoras, assim como a análise sobre o papel da mídia e redes sociais na manipulacao da opiniao publica, principalmente - mas nao exclusivamente - em tempos de guerra. Um livro excelente à altura da memória do lendário Coronel Kadafi e dos inocentes que pereceram na Líbia em um dos capítulos mais lamentáveis e deturpados do Século XXI.
March 16, 2019
"I am only here for the good I can do." So said the smiling Ottoman bureaucrat in Elia Kazan's "America, America," and it seems the fine traditions of smug hypocrisy continue among empire's spokespeople. "The next time that empire comes calling in the name of human rights," Maximilian Forte concludes, mocking the summons of liberal interventionists, "please be found standing idly by."
Forte deconstructs the doctrine of "R2P" (Right to Protect) as a mask for colonial empowerment, much like Britain's crusade against the slave trade of an earlier era. Specifically he ties it to the need to remove an ideological competitor from Africa who stood in the way of "opportunity granted" by austerity-preaching free marketeers and their NATO musclemen. Qaddafi's career as a revolutionary sponsor of violence allegedly justified his overthrow by invasion and subsequent brutal lynching; yet the "humanitarians" who enthroned their own godhood as judges of the quick and the dead showed themselves to be made of the same clay. Hillary Clinton's ghoulish mockery - "We came, we saw, he died!" (p. 130) - was a display of imperial tastelessness not even ascribed to Hitler or Stalin. But self-promoting angels are allowed every evil impulse, including entitlement to the robes of empire itself in 2016.
Forte goes on to elucidate how R2P had nothing to offer the inhabitants of Qaddafi's model city of Sirte because NATO bombs by definition kill only the guilty, no matter how scattered their trajectory. Similarly, calls for human rights meant only the rights of those who aided and abetted the regime-change goals hatched in Washington, Paris and Brussels. They certainly did not apply to the black Africans and Libyans who were sadistically lynched, like Qaddafi, but en masse. Propaganda tropes like "mercenary hitmen" were paraded by the "responsible" Western media because, of course, no natives could legitimately side against their protectors. Violating sovereignty to defend rights and dignity is much like the rapist knight who took his reward for rescuing the helpless dame from the dragon's jaws.
Thus when rightwing pundits blame Mrs. Clinton for the assassination of Ambassador Stevens in Benghazi they are not far from the truth. As in Cambodia and Iraq, when a nation is bombed back to the Stone Age it's no surprise when the cavemen take over. This excellent analysis could not be published in the US without crushing criticism descending on the author (as witness Professor Stephen Cohen, for not buying into the demonization of Vladimir Putin). All those who sincerely believe in the necessity of invasion and the sodomizing murder of Muammar Qaddafi will not be pleased with this book. Watch as any of that camp who do find it and review it will sputter calumny, but not debate the hard facts of naked emperors yet again caught in the buff.
Forte deconstructs the doctrine of "R2P" (Right to Protect) as a mask for colonial empowerment, much like Britain's crusade against the slave trade of an earlier era. Specifically he ties it to the need to remove an ideological competitor from Africa who stood in the way of "opportunity granted" by austerity-preaching free marketeers and their NATO musclemen. Qaddafi's career as a revolutionary sponsor of violence allegedly justified his overthrow by invasion and subsequent brutal lynching; yet the "humanitarians" who enthroned their own godhood as judges of the quick and the dead showed themselves to be made of the same clay. Hillary Clinton's ghoulish mockery - "We came, we saw, he died!" (p. 130) - was a display of imperial tastelessness not even ascribed to Hitler or Stalin. But self-promoting angels are allowed every evil impulse, including entitlement to the robes of empire itself in 2016.
Forte goes on to elucidate how R2P had nothing to offer the inhabitants of Qaddafi's model city of Sirte because NATO bombs by definition kill only the guilty, no matter how scattered their trajectory. Similarly, calls for human rights meant only the rights of those who aided and abetted the regime-change goals hatched in Washington, Paris and Brussels. They certainly did not apply to the black Africans and Libyans who were sadistically lynched, like Qaddafi, but en masse. Propaganda tropes like "mercenary hitmen" were paraded by the "responsible" Western media because, of course, no natives could legitimately side against their protectors. Violating sovereignty to defend rights and dignity is much like the rapist knight who took his reward for rescuing the helpless dame from the dragon's jaws.
Thus when rightwing pundits blame Mrs. Clinton for the assassination of Ambassador Stevens in Benghazi they are not far from the truth. As in Cambodia and Iraq, when a nation is bombed back to the Stone Age it's no surprise when the cavemen take over. This excellent analysis could not be published in the US without crushing criticism descending on the author (as witness Professor Stephen Cohen, for not buying into the demonization of Vladimir Putin). All those who sincerely believe in the necessity of invasion and the sodomizing murder of Muammar Qaddafi will not be pleased with this book. Watch as any of that camp who do find it and review it will sputter calumny, but not debate the hard facts of naked emperors yet again caught in the buff.
January 18, 2021
This is honestly the only book on NATO/US' imperialist demolition of Libya that should have ever been written. The tone and purpose are unwaveringly and clearly anti-imperialist; outlining how Gaddafi's greatest sin was pan-Africanism, for which the US had to totally annihilate. The author wonderfully teases apart, destroys and historicizes all the (anti-black/anti-African) liberal imperialist myths and actions that led to this horror.
November 20, 2022
A truely damning account of NATO's destruction on Libya. On par with Chomsky's The New Military Humanism.
February 19, 2024
Bombing for “peace.”
February 27, 2025
this was so crazy i love learning so much i think this book changed me. empiireee...
June 5, 2022
A brilliant excoriation of NATO's destruction of Libya, 'Slouching Towards Sirte' sets the record straight on so-called 'humanitarian intervention'. The most impressive aspect of Forte's analysis is that his arguments about the true nature of US foreign policy are based on the state department's own words e.g. WikiLeaks cables, leaked intelligence reports. In addition to busting the myths propagated by the likes of Obama, Clinton, Sarkozy, etc about the war in Libya, this book shows the Libyan opposition for the racist murderers and torturers that they are. Highly recommended to everyone.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews