Geographical and Tribal Factors at Play in Kufrah, Libya
September 22, 2011 at 7:38 AM
Al-Kufrah is a small desert town (also known as Al-Jawf) in the southeast corner of Libya. It is the provincial capital of the Kufrah district, which is the largest by area in Libya, but it is remote from the current fighting. The Kufrah district has the lowest population density in Libya, being two-thirds smaller than the next lowest density district, Ghat. Al-Kufrah is the most isolated town in Libya, and one of the most inaccessible towns in the world.
So why would this remote town be significant in the ongoing conflict in Libya?
Al Kufrah is the gateway to Sudan, southern Egypt, Chad and Niger, and the “backdoor” to the coast of Cyrenaica and the city of Ajdabiya. It is an important hub of communications with the eastern Sahara. Al Kufrah’s connection with the border countries of Egypt, Sudan and Chad are via desert roads. Al Kufrah controls the desert and access to Libya’s largest oil field, Sarir. The predominant tribe in the Kufrah district and in the town of Al-Kufrah is the Zuwayah tribe. Although flooded by other Libyans seeking work in the oil industry, the town of Ajdabiya and its surroundings were traditionally made up of Zuwayah tribesmen.
GSI posits that the brutal killings of Ajdabiya demonstrators by the regime led to the Zuwayah tribe collectively coming out against Qaddafi. These ruthless killings effectively triggered a blood feud between the regime and the tribe, something that will likely linger in the Zuwayah’s collective memory, even if they are ultimately forced to reconcile with Qaddafi.
Geographical_and_Tribal_Factors_at_Play_in_Kufrah_Libya_rev.pdf
Tags: Human Geography, North Africa, Libya, Al-Kufrah, Al-Jawf, Tribes in Libya, Zuwayah Tribe, Tibu Tribe, Sarir Oil Field
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Comments:
Posted by
Essence
on
Jan 16th, 2012
I'm not easliy impressed. . . but that's impressing me! :)
Posted by
Daveigh
on
Jan 17th, 2012
Going to put this aritlce to good use now.
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