EQUIPO NIZKOR |
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22Aug11
Wisconsin Guard Unit Helping Libyan Rebels
As Moammar Gadhafi's 40 year rule in Libya looked all but over Sunday night, members of the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing realize they are part of history.
The guard members are part of the NATO force that has been protecting Libyan citizens against Gaddafi's troops since earlier this summer.
A Marquette University graduate who was held captive in Libya said NATO's involvement has been key.
"Gaddafi had such heavy armor and tanks and the rebels were poorly trained. Most of the major advances were with heavy NATO support," said Jim Foley.
Foley was reporting on the early uprising in Libya this spring for www.GlobalPost.com when he was taken prisoner by the Gaddafi government.
He was released six weeks later.
As he watches the latest developments in Libya unfold, he said some of his first thoughts go to the tens of thousands of political prisoners.
"I was overjoyed hearing the prisoners are being freed," said Foley. "We even had an American guy call his wife and she called me because we had seen him, and he was still in prison, and he got out today."
After he was freed, Foley gave testimony against Muammar Gaddafi in the International Criminal Court.
"To see him in an international criminal court would bring the most satisfaction because there you have him not getting away with his crime, but being dealt with in a public, legal manner," Foley said.
Foley said he regrets not being on the ground to see these recent developments in person, but he said he plans to go back to Libya in the next few weeks.
[Source: Wisn.com, Milwaukee, US, 22Aug11]
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