Libya’s Jihadist Minority

Libya's Ansar al-Shariah Brigade has been accused of orchestrating the attack on the US Consulate in Benghazi that killed the American ambassador and three others. But the picture is more complex, given not only the group's denial, but also the disarmament and political reintegration of many of Libya's former jihadists.

DOHA – “They are armed, I am not going to fight a losing battle and kill my men over a demolished shrine,” said Fawzi Abd al-‘Aali, the former Libyan interior minister, before he “resigned” last August. He was referring to the armed Salafi groups that were accused of destroying Sufi shrines. One of the accused groups was the Ansar al-Shariah Brigade, which was quick to support the demolition, but denied any responsibility for it.

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