Omar Al-Mokhtar

Done by: Sami.

OUT LINE •The History of Labiya .

•The history of Italian empire.

•Why  Italy have chosen Libya as colony, instated of other country's?   

Omar Al-Mokhtar

•His Biography.

•His resistance against Italy. •His Negotiate

with Italians Fascism.  

•his Execution.

• inspiration from Omar Mokhtar 

•Libya as a country, was under the control of Ottoman Empire. Libyans were living in peace under the Ottoman empire.For one main resone , because they share the same cultural , for both being Middle Eastern.

•That all have changed when Italians came to increase there colony over Libyans lands, they have started a war against ottomans at Libyans lands called the Italy-Turkish War on 1911. 

• Italy had won this war on 1912 ,  and both singed Treaty of Lausanne ,and led Italy to control and empire part of Libyan.

•However, the war kept going between Libyans and Italians.

The History of Libya 

•The Italy-Turkish War was the first in history to feature aerial bombardment.

1.Most of middle east were empires  from eather Britten or France.

2.South america were also empires from both Portugal and Spain.

•Why  Italy have chosen Libya as colony, instated of other country's?   

•So, when Italy thought about colonization. One of the last remaining areas were open for colonization ,was the African continent.

Note:Euro were scrambling over Africa. they wanted more powers in establishing colonies .

Fascism and the Italian Empire

•In 1922,there were big change in Italian history the leader of the Italian fascist movement, Benito Mussolini, became prime Minister of Italy after Overthrow military .

•Initially the Fascist took a hard line against Libyan Arab nationalists who had been fighting a aggressive war, mainly in Cyrenaica, for many years under the leadership of Omar Mukhtar.

Omar al-Mukhtar is national hero of Libya.was born on 1860 in a small village in  Janzour near Cyrenaica.

Omar was orphaned early and was adopted by Sharif El Gariani,, he studied and received his early education at the local mosque and then studied for eight years at the Senussi university at Jaghbub.  

•Biography

•Biography

Omar ,organized military functions, led the anti colonial resistance from 1912 to 1931, until he was captured by the Italians and condemned to death. 

Omar had never been to any military school, he was Naturally General and grate fighter. 

•Omar Al-Mokhtar, was ill couple of times and many of his comrades asked him to retire and leave the country, he was about 83 years old. But he refused and kept fighting and he deserved a name given to him as "The Lion of the Desert."

•Biography

•Biography

•Omar A teacher of the Quran by profession, Mukhtar was also skilled in desert tactics. He knew his country's geography well, and used that knowledge to his advantage in battles against the Italians, who were not used to desert warfare. He repeatedly led his small highly alert groups in successful attacks against the Italians, after which they would fade back into the desert terrain. Mukhtar's men skillfully attacked outposts, ambushed troops, and cut lines of supply and communication. The Italians were left embarrassed to have been outsmarted and tricked by mere "Bedouin." 

Feeling that they may lose Libya to the Mojahideen, the Italian authorities sent one of their bloodiest high ranking officers call Rodolfo Graziani who used the most inhuman measures to end the resistance. He did not just lead the fight against Omar Al-Moktar and his mans, but he also punished even those who were living peacefully in the cities and villages accusing them of helping the Mojahideen.  Mosoliny, the infamous Italian dictator, sent the high ranking officer to kill thousands and thousands of inocent Libyans, young and old. fighters and non-fighters. Mosolini thought that the solution to the Libyan problem was Rodolfo Grasiani and by sending him to lead the fight against the Libyans he was telling his cabinet that anything and everything must be done to control Libya. 

•His resistance against Italy.

•Rodolfo Graziani

Rodolfo Graziani built concentration camps where thousands of Libyans must live under complete control of the Italian army. Graziani built concentration camps in: Al-Aghaila, Al-Maghroun, Solouq and Al-Abiyar .By the end of November 1929 all Libyans who live in tents in Al-Jabal Al-Akdar, and all the members of any tribe that has one or more of its sons fighting with Mojahideen, all those and more, thousands and thousands of Libyans were forced to leave their land and live in one of the concentration camps mentioned above. 

•Life in the camps was miserable and thousands of Libyans died of hunger, illness and some of them were hanged or shot because they believed to be helping the Mojahideen. By the end of 1930 all Libyans who live in tents were forced to go and live in the camps. 55% of the Libyans died in those camps. In November 1930 there were at least seventeen funerals a day in the camps due to hunger, illness and depression. 

•Peoples life in the Camps: 

•No respect of human laws: 

•when Grasiani agreed to go to Libya , Mosolini had let him do the job without any consideration or respect for the rules and laws in Italy, and Mosolini agreed on that immediately. He planned his murderous attack on the Libyans, all Libyans according to Mosoliny's Motto "If you are not with me, you are against me!" which means the only way to control the country is by killing almost half of its population and the Italians did cause the death of half of Libya's men, women, and childern, directly through public hangings and shootings and indirectly (hunger, illness and horror) for the sake of one thing: showing the world that they have the power to invade and capture colonies just like the other powers in the world. 

•Resistance against Italy.

•Although the Italians succeeded in controling most of Libya after years of resistance and struggle , they could not control the whole country because the Libyan fighters left their homes and headed for the mountains where they planned their attacks against the Italian armies. Some of the major Libyan fighters  against the Italians were Omar Al-Moktar, Ramazan As-Swaihli, and Mohammad Farhat Az-Zawi,  .Omar Al-Moktar is considered the great symbol for the Libyan resistance  against the Italian occupation. He reorganized the Mojahideen in The Green Mountain (Aj-Jabal Al-Akdar) North East Libya and he reignited the resistance against Italy after World War I when the Italians thought that they succeeded in silencing the Libyan resistance.

• Resistance against Italy.

•At the end of October 1929 Omar denounced the compromise and reestablished a unity of action among Libyan forces, preparing himself for the ultimate confrontation with General Rodolfo Graziani, the military commander from March 1930. Having failed in a massive offensive in June against Omar's forces. 

•Negotiate with Italians Fascism.

•Due that lost Italians had managed a negotiate meeting with Omar Al-Mokhtar on 1929, at place call ''sedee haroma'' but Italians didn't want peace or negotiating  , they gave Mokhtar two solution , one is to leave the country ,or two, is to gave up his Resistance against Italy by offering moneys. 

•Mokhtar refused the Italians offer , and pucked up his own chose to keep the Resistance against Italy.

•Rodolfo Graziani plan to stop the resistance

•Graziani in full accord with Benito Mussolini, thought about a strong plan to decisively break off the resistance. The plan was to built a wired wall 300 Kilometers long, 2 meters high and 3 meters wide from Bardiyat Slaiman port North Libya to Al-Jagboub South East Libya, thus preventing any foreign(Egypt) help to the fighters and breaking up the solidarity of the population. 

•Resistance against Italy.

•From the beginning of 1931. The rebels were deprived of help and reinforcements Omar courageously continued the fight, but on September 11, 1931, he was ambushed near Zonta because they were out of food, out of mens, out of information and very little weapon left. 

•his court and Execution.

•Mukhtar's nearly twenty years struggle came to an end when he became wounded in battle and was captured by the Italian army. The Libyan hero was treated like a prize catch by the Italians. Though in his late eighties, Mukhtar was shackled with heavy chains from his waist  because of the army's fear that he just might escape. Mukhtar's capture was a serious blow to his people. \

•Mukhtar was tried, convicted, and sentenced to be executed by hanging in a public place. The fairness of his trial has been disputed by hscholars. When asked if he wished to say any last words, he replied with the clause 

"From Allah we have come, and to Allah we will return."

•inspiration from Omar Mokhtar 

•Today his face is shown on the Libyan 10 Dinar bill. His final years were immortalized in the movie The Lion of the Desert (1981), starring Anthony Quinn.

•Streets are named for him not only in his native Libya but in many other Arab countries as well. In particular, many fighters which they are fighting for their rights have taken inspiration from his struggle.