Tripoli, July 30 (ANI): Western diplomats are scrambling to prevent a damaging split in the Libyan opposition after its top commander was killed, possibly by his own side.
The mysterious murder of Libyan rebel commander General Abdel- Fattah Younes threatened to set off damaging infighting amongst the Libyan rebel movement, just days after it was officially recognised by Britain.
General Younes was ambushed by a group of men while returning to Benghazi. Two aides, a colonel and a major, were also killed.
Suspicions over the origin of the attack were stoked by summons that had been issued to the general to face court questions over his continuing ties with Colonel Muammar Gaddafi regime.
While National Transitional Council (NTC) leadership blamed a hit squad from the regime for killing General Younus, some of the general's supporters suspected erstwhile comrades to be behind Younus' death.
However there were pleas for unity from all sides in the aftermath of General Younus' death.
A member of the Younes' family called for supporters to resist a slide into infighting.
"A message to Mustafa Abdel Jalil: We will walk with you all the way. Libya first, until God gives us victory or chooses us as martyrs", the Telegraph quoted General Younus' nephew, as saying.
General Younes, who served as Colonel Gaddafi's Defence and Interior Minister, defected to the regime at the outset of the uprising in February, but never gained the trust of many rebels who saw him as one of the enforcers of the Gaddafi's rule.
With General Younes, now out of the picture, it is possible that the Libyan rebels may find greater cohesion.
However analysts have warned that the NTC had lost one of the few experienced military figures of a movement.
"Regardless of who killed him, the loss of Younes is a serious blow to the opposition. He was one of the few credible senior opposition military commanders and he has been a key figure in helping stabilise and reorganise rebel fighters, particularly in the east of the country," an expert at IHS Global Insight David Hartwell said. (ANI)
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