nick
February 26th, 2010, 07:08 AM
Colonel Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, has called for a jihad or armed struggle against Switzerland branding it an "infidel state".
He said Muslims everywhere had a duty to act against the country, which he claimed had been destroying mosques.
"Any Muslim in any part of the world who works with Switzerland is an apostate, is against (the Prophet) Mohammad, and God and the Koran," he told a meeting in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.
In his rambling address he added: "The masses of Muslims must go to all airports in the Islamic world and prevent any Swiss plane landing, to all harbours and prevent any Swiss ships docking, inspect all shops and markets to stop any Swiss goods being sold."
Libya's relations with Switzerland broke down in 2008 when one of Colonel Gaddafi's sons, Hannibal, was arrested in a Geneva hotel and charged with assaulting a member of his staff.
He was detained for two days before being released, but in protest Libya cut oil supplies to Switzerland, withdrew billions of dollars from Swiss bank accounts and arrested two Swiss businessmen working in the North African country.
Gaddafi told supporters the Swiss referendum last year, in which 57.5 per cent of voters called for a ban on the construction of minarets, proved it was an "infidel state".
The federal government had however urged voters to reject the vote, warning it would contravene religious freedom.
But Gaddafi said: "Let us fight against Switzerland, Zionism and foreign aggression."
The Libyan dictator, who has been in power since 1969, said what he was proposing was not terrorism and he condemned the work of al-Qaeda branding it a "kind of crime and a psychological disease".
He told the crowd: "There is a big difference between terrorism and jihad which is a right to armed struggle."
The Swiss Foreign Ministry refused to comment on his remarks.
Source here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/7321934/Colonel-Gaddafi-calls-for-jihad-against-Switzerland.html)
He said Muslims everywhere had a duty to act against the country, which he claimed had been destroying mosques.
"Any Muslim in any part of the world who works with Switzerland is an apostate, is against (the Prophet) Mohammad, and God and the Koran," he told a meeting in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.
In his rambling address he added: "The masses of Muslims must go to all airports in the Islamic world and prevent any Swiss plane landing, to all harbours and prevent any Swiss ships docking, inspect all shops and markets to stop any Swiss goods being sold."
Libya's relations with Switzerland broke down in 2008 when one of Colonel Gaddafi's sons, Hannibal, was arrested in a Geneva hotel and charged with assaulting a member of his staff.
He was detained for two days before being released, but in protest Libya cut oil supplies to Switzerland, withdrew billions of dollars from Swiss bank accounts and arrested two Swiss businessmen working in the North African country.
Gaddafi told supporters the Swiss referendum last year, in which 57.5 per cent of voters called for a ban on the construction of minarets, proved it was an "infidel state".
The federal government had however urged voters to reject the vote, warning it would contravene religious freedom.
But Gaddafi said: "Let us fight against Switzerland, Zionism and foreign aggression."
The Libyan dictator, who has been in power since 1969, said what he was proposing was not terrorism and he condemned the work of al-Qaeda branding it a "kind of crime and a psychological disease".
He told the crowd: "There is a big difference between terrorism and jihad which is a right to armed struggle."
The Swiss Foreign Ministry refused to comment on his remarks.
Source here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/7321934/Colonel-Gaddafi-calls-for-jihad-against-Switzerland.html)