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Friday, December 2, 2011

The Sirte Massacres: Defense Minister Jabr

December 1, 2011
(incomplete)

last edits May 19, 2012

The Sirte Massacres

Here will eventually be gathered the best information on this pivotal episode. For the time being, the information will be in the comments section below, submitted by readers/contributors and myself as we see fit.

Jabr was captured along with Muammar Gaddafion October 20, around the same time the leader's son Mutassim was captured. Like those two, he soon wound up dead. The question of whether he was executed, as they clearly were, is obviously quite relevant.

Abu-Bakr Yunis Jabr (Arabic: أبو بكر يونس جابر)
Wikipedia

Petri Krohn adds a video of minister Jaber, apparently, shortly after his death:

Peet 73 adds that Bakr was
the quite popular leader of the libyan army. Here he is during a visit at the Brega frontlines in June. I think he can be recognized at 0:55 in the video which Petri recovered now. Another video shows that he later on was exhibited in Misrata together with Muammar and Mutassim (after 1:54). A better foto from the same place is here. Anyway, I can't see signs of execution yet.

In honor of Minister Jabr, a poem written by an admirer, an unnamed prisoner from Sirte freed from a Misratan jail (his horrific account of the torture happening there is detailed with a link to the original here). He honed "some words which crossed my mind during my jail," written in his planner, composed along with other prisoners. His inspiration:
I am one of the leader’s beloved and I congratulate anyone who stood with him before after and during these events especially General Abu Baker Yuness Jaber, who was in Al Jufra and after it had fallen he could have escaped from there but he preferred to come to Sirte beside the leader which made some people to ask him with a stunned mind why he came to Sirte while he could have run away through the south to another country. 
The poem as translated with a couple minor edits:
Sirte has written its glory with golden words, 
the leader stood and his son stood fighting 
without giving their backs to the enemy 
'til they were martyred. 
A prayer to ALLAH to send them to his heaven 
a great salute to the Heroes who fought till the end 
and did not betray like Ashkal (the general who paved the way for NATO and its thugs to invade Tripoli) *
It's a nice eulogy, a little short on poetry in translation, but spoken in Arabic probably have a power and rhythm/etc... At any rate, he kept excellent notes and, presuming his story is true, he's done the world a great service and he made good use of his time so far in "Free Libya." 

10 comments:

  1. Gerald A. Perreira, who has been living in Libya for a cople of years just described Junis Jaber as one of Muammar al-Gaddafis most faithful companions:

    "At his side were his son, Mutassim Qaddafi and Libya’s Minister of Defense, and one of the leaders of the 1969 Al Fateh revolution, Major General Abu-Bakr Yunis Jaber. Decades ago, he and the young Muammar were in the same class at the Military Academy in Benghazi and were co founders of the Free Officers’ Movement which overthrew King Idris.

    Both men, spiritual heirs of Omar Al Mukhtar’s armed resistance against the Italian invaders in 1911, were in their 70s. Having to witness such a savage attack on them and not being able to do anything to defend them against NATO’s jackals, was traumatizing.

    The core group of revolutionaries, who led the Al Fateh revolution in 1969 in their twenties, all now in their late 60s and 70s, chose to stay at their posts and fight alongside the people, despite having received many offers for safe passage out of Libya."

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  2. Geoff Simons describes Yunis as a key figure in the 1969 coup, Operation Jerusalem although not mentioned in this brief resume The relevant page from Simon's book is online here

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  3. Bless these guys and their courage. It all adds to the legacy that will have to be kept down by brute force.

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  4. Some YouTube footage here, marked القبض علي اولاد ابوبكر يونس جابر في سرت -Google translate "Boys arrested Abu Bakr Younis Jaber in Sirte". Recognise any of these guys in trouble here? I don't. The older guy with thinning greying hair? Perhaps it has been shown elsewhere.

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    1. The guy at 0:52? That's Gaddafi's driver, isn't it? Definitely interviewed in a video along with Jabr's sons The younger guys against the cab are I think his sons, no expert in this area...

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  5. http://www.firstpost.com/topic/person/abu-bakr-video-eRt5kL2ahBw-17181-1.html

    Capture of Abu-Bakr Yunis Jabr's Sons and Gaddafi's Driver

    Abu Bakr Yunis' Sons have been captured, beaten very badly along Gaddafi's driver, while Abu Bakr Yunis , the father has been found dead near the explosion of the convoy where Gaddafi escaped alive until he ran into the Army of Benghazi Men and wanted to bring him alive to the NTC but the Misrata brigade ran into Gaddafi and beat him. In the Video, The 2 boys are the sons of Abu Bakir Yunis, as you can see that they have taken a very bad beating and the revolutionaries ( most likely from Misrata ...

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  6. There's something not quite right here....driver and Jabr's sons roughed up in back of pick-up.(I meant to link this videoالقبض علي اولاد ابوبكر يونس جابر في سرت . Then given a good stressful grilling. Next news, driver Hanish has a wash and brush up, hair combed, and turns out for preparation of bodies in the same shirt. (the interview video is at YouTube ) So what happened then to the driver Hanish?? Or is there another sequence?

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  7. The Misrata Al-Hurra video ,where Hanish is grilled, is also on YouTube,uploaded 9 November here,http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRt5kL2ahBw

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  8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bWNqRuKcG0&feature=related

    كيفية القبض على وزير دفاع القذافي أبو بكر يونس جابر

    malomat : Khadafi and Abu Bakr Younis Jaber brought to misrata/
    Oct 20, 2011

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