The Role of Tribal Dynamics in the Libyan Future - ISPI Analysis 172 2013 (original) (raw)

When Tribesmen do not act Tribal: Libyan Tribalism as Ideology (not as Schizophrenia)

Middle East Critique, 2014

The article seeks to problematize recent studies on Libyan tribalism. It argues that tribal identity is not, as some commentators suggest, a static reality that stands in opposition to ideological discourses like national identity. Rather, Libyan tribalism is an ideology in itself, and one that is compatible with national aspirations. The article offers also an analysis of the recent rise of tribal identity in Libya. In particular, the author suggests that Libya is not struggling to become a nation because of ingrained tribal identity. On the contrary, tribalism is growing stronger due to the legacy left by Qadhdhafi and the failure of the 'new' Libyan state to provide social security for its citizens.

Tribes and Democratization/Dedemocratization in Libya

G.M. Mudacumura and G. Morçöl (eds.), Challenges to Democratic Governance 121 in Developing Countries, Public Administration, Governance and Globalization, © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014, 2014

A Social and Economic Perspective on the Libyan Conflict. Tribalism and Oil Cases

Land Forces Academy Review, 2020

The Libyan conflict has become an issue at the global level since its beginning. The foreign aid and support help got by the revolutionaries in their attempt to overthrow the Qaddafi regime and the role of tribes not only during these events but also afterwards, the country’s strategic position and oil reserves are the main points of interest when considering the North African internationalized civil war. While the role played by the tribes in stabilizing the political and social framework still lays at crossroads, being extremely controversial, the economic value and strategic importance of oil, for domestic actors as well as the international ones, are above any doubt.

Tribal Structure as the Roots of Libyan Fragility

2021

According to the ‘Fragile State Index,’ Libya is the 20th most fragile state out of 178 countries in 2020. States' fragility is not that the state and society can experience suddenly. Rather, there might be several shaping factors from the time of state-building to the recent political crisis. It is hard to detect the causes of Libya’s state fragility only by looking at the fifteen-year data and its indicators. However, by studying Libya's dynamics and having an understanding of the country's recent past, a long-term perspective can be gained.

The History of Libya and its Peoples: the Road to an Exploitable Vulnerability

2021

It is an often-committed mistake that the currently still ongoing war in Libya is being associated with Qadhafi’s removal in some way. Finding a comprehensive analysis with sources on development of the society itself is not common even today. However, as this work is going to prove, examining this issue from the Ottoman era is more than essential. Regulations and relations amongst tribes living in the three major territories evolved during the centuries, but their development curve is hardly comparable to e.g. European countries’. The purpose of this article is to show that the current civil war is fundamentally still a domestic issue, even if throughout the past five years it became exceedingly more international in nature

“Libya: Tribal War or Popular Revolution?”

Th e London Middle East Institute (LMEI) draws upon the resources of London and SOAS to provide teaching, training, research, publication, consultancy, outreach and other services related to the Middle East. It serves as a neutral forum for Middle East studies broadly defi ned and helps to create links between individuals and institutions with academic, commercial, diplomatic, media or other specialisations.

State versus tribal borders: Problems of irredentism in modern Libyan state-building process

Routledge Open Research

This article sets out to examine the tensions that exist in post-Gaddafi Libya with respect to the establishment of central government and one of the sub-state actors, namely tribes. The study finds that, as a result of its colonial past, Libya as a state was created by negotiations between British, French and Italian colonial powers without regard to the indigenous populations such as the North African tribes with their natural tribal heartlands. This has led to an incoherence between identity and territory and in turn has created problems of irredentism and national security issues. After a detailed examination of Libya’s extensive East, West and Southern borders, the article finds that as a state, Libya is unable to control its borders and so cannot qualify as a fully functioning nation-state according to Western definitions of the phenomenon. The article then discusses the complex issue of the differences between state-building and nationhood and finds that according to the defi...