How Qaddafi bought friends and influence on the African continent.
BY ELIZABETH DICKINSON
Just a day after an international coalition began bombing targets in Libya, an African Union (AU) delegation tried to fly to Tripoli to mediate between Col. Muammar al-Qaddafi and rebel opposition leaders. The group, which included five African heads of state, said that both the Libyan leader and his opponents were ready to negotiate. But the plane never landed. On March 17, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution that imposed a no fly zone over the country, now enforced by the United States, France, and Britain. The AU's attempt to bring an African solution to an African problem was cut short...[continued]
