Bin Laden behind Libya protests, Kadhafi claims

Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi has blamed Osama bin Laden for the uprising in his country. Addressing the people of Zawiyah, which his supporters have tried to retake from rebels, Kadhafi said that young people have been duped by the Al-Qaeda leader.

Reuters/Télévision nationale libyenne

In contrast to attacks on Western powers in his previous television address, Kadhafi, who spoke by phone to a Libyan TV station, blamed bin Laden and "international terrorism" for  the wave of protests against his rule.

Kadhafi insisted that the Libyan people control their own country, through the revolutionary committees set up when he took power over 40 years ago, and can root out corrupt officials or make any other changes they want.

“The demonstrators are serving the interests of bin Laden,” he declared, as much of the east of the country lay in his opponents' hands.

Kadhafi repeated claims that young people have been supplied with drugs, adding that they have arms are and are attacking police stations.

“How can Zawiyah have arrived at this situation?” he asked, addressing tribal leaders there.

Kadhafi distinguished between the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood and Al-Qaeda, saying that the Brothers have renounced violence and want only reform.

“Shame on you to allow such things to take place!” Kadhafi told his audience. "It's not people's power, it's international terrorism led by Al-Qaeda."

Referring to the UK's Queen Elizabeth, Kadhafi stressed that he has no official position and hinted that he could play less of a role in political life. He also inidicated that some improvements might be made to Libyans' living standards.