Libya says NATO air strike hits major oil field

[Viva_La_Revolution]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Libya said a U.N.-mandated British air strike had hit its major Sarir oilfield killing three guards and damaging a pipeline connecting the field to a Mediterranean port.

"British warplanes have attacked, have carried out an air strike against the Sarir oilfield which killed three oilfield guards and other employees at the field were also injured," Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim told reporters.

There was no immediate official comment from Britain's Ministry of Defense on Kaim's comments about the field.

Earlier, Muammar Gaddafi's forces unleashed mortar rounds, tank fire and artillery shells on the western city of Misrata on as a French minister said NATO air strikes in Libya risked getting "bogged down."

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/06/us-libya-idUSTRE7270JP20110406?WT.tsrc=Social%20Media&WT.z_smid=twtr-reuters_%20com&WT.z_smid_dest=Twitter

[villager]

1. "We can charge them $6.00 a gallon now!"

n/t

[sarcasmo]

7. +1

[pampango]

13. I think in the UK ("British air strike") they already do.

;)

[dipsydoodle]

14. Actually c. $8 / US gallon here at present

That's for diesel. Petrol is slightly cheaper.

[gateley]

2. Oops. nt

[xchrom]

3. Oooops! Nt

[Wilms]

4. That ought to help drive the cost of a barrel up.

In the words of GWB*, "heh-heh-heh...

[Tx4obama]

5. I think Gaddafi ordered it to be blown up by his own people. n/t

[dipsydoodle]

6. Best not always believe what you think

More will become clear in terms of claims and counterclaims when its daylight there in about 7 hours time. By that time NATO , when planes have all returned to base , will also have commented one way or the other.

[joshcryer]

11. Absolutely, but it's not like Libyan government spokesmen have been a beacon of truth.

Sky reporter Alistair Bunkall said: "You have got to wonder why British aeroplanes would come in from their bases in Italy and destroy an oil field. It would mark a change in tactics.

"Equally, you have the question of how the Libyan government know they were British aeroplanes, simply because they would be releasing their missiles from some distance.

"They do have different wing shapes from the French and other coalition aircraft but unless you have an eyewitness account it is very difficult to verify."

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Article/201104115967763

I frankly think that Gaddafi has such a tenuous hold on the east that he decided to hit those fields. He already hit one in the east south east. The "oil grubbing" coalition and the rebels have no reason to destroy that infrastructure and would avoid it at almost all costs.

[PurityOfEssence]

8. Which, of course, makes it fact.

Duly noted.

[Cerridwen]

9. The last 3 paragraphs of the linked article talk about gaddafi's troops

blowing up 2 rebel held oil fields.

Al Jazeera English also mentions the Libyan Deputy FM as saying the NATO strike "violated international law."

I'll start believing the Libyan gov't when I see the verified by western journalists damage on Libyan TV. Until then, the Deputy FM has as much veracity as sarah palin.

1:31am

Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim told the Reuters news agency that a British air strike hit the major Sarir oil field on Wednesday, killing three guards. He said the strike damaged a pipeline connected the field to Hariga port and that it violated international law.

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-april-7

[hayu_lol]

10. A real air strike by 2 or 3 modern aircraft would have made an...

inferno out of an oilfield. Not just 3 dead.

Unless NATO is using piper cubs armed with rifles.

Nice propaganda try Ka-Daffy.

[joshcryer]

12. I think that is increasingly looking to be the case. We'll know soon.

Props for putting yourself out there to be ridiculed in the event you are wrong.

[Swede]

17. I agree with you.

NATO is hitting military targets.

[dipsydoodle]

15. Its odd that 12 hours later

NATO have yet to deny it. :shrug:

[Baclava]

16. That Canadian general dude did blame it on Moe

NATO: Gaddafi's forces to blame for oilfield fire

BRUSSELS, April 7 (Reuters) - NATO blamed forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi for a fire in an oilfield in Libya on Thursday, and denied the Western military alliance had launched air strikes in the area.

"We are aware that pro-Gaddafi forces have attacked this area in recent days, which resulted in at least one fire at an oil facility north of Sarir," Canadian Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard, commander of NATO's operations in Libya, said in a statement.

"To try and blame it on NATO is a clear demonstration how desperate this regime is," he said.

He added that NATO, which is filling a United Nations mandate to protect civilians in Libya through air strikes and enforcement of a no-fly zone, was not conducting strikes in the area because there was no threat to the civilian population there.

"The only one responsible for this fire is the Gaddafi regime and we know he wants to disrupt oil getting to Tobruk," Bouchard said.

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFBRU01143720110407

[joshcryer]

19. Odd that once they did you didn't say how not odd it was.

:rofl:

[nalnn]

18. If true

This strike was likely because the Col. was trying to hide his heavy weapons and vehicles there thinking that NATO would not attack the oil field. In that case, he was wrong.

Strategically, there is no reason to go after the oil fields.