A Libyan rebel military commander has been killed in an incident shrouded in mystery, dealing a blow to Western-backed forces fighting to oust Muammar Gaddafi.
Rebels said Abdel Fattah Younis, a longtime member of Gaddafi's inner circle before defecting in February, was killed by gunmen on Thursday after he was called to withdraw from the battlefield for talks with other rebel leaders.
The Reuters agency estimates that the killing of such a high figure is a shame and a blow to the rebels, regardless of who is responsible - Gaddafi's agents, apparently capable of penetrating deep into the inner circles of the rebels, or his own side.
It is known that there are deep divisions between people who turned their backs on Gaddafi and those who never cooperated with him, writes Reuters.
It is known that there are deep divisions between the people who turned their backs on Gaddafi and those who never cooperated with him,
The rebels did not say who killed Yunis or where. His death coincided with a new offensive by rebels in the west of the country and new international recognition of the rebels, which they hope will help unfreeze billions of dollars in Libyan government funds.
Yunis was Gaddafi's spy?
Officials have not released details about why Younis was called to Benghazi from the front line near the Brega oil port. Rumors circulated in Benghazi that he had secret negotiations with Gaddafi's government.
"If it was rumored that General Younis was passing information to Gaddafi, it would make sense that some renegade elements wanted to kill him," said Alan Fraser, an analyst at the London-based consultancy AKE.
Rebel Defense Minister Omar Hariri told Reuters that the investigation into the death was still ongoing and that it was a great loss.
Rumors circulated in Benghazi that he had secret negotiations with Gaddafi's government
Younis' relatives in Benghazi have expressed their loyalty to the rebel political leader.
"A message for Mustafa Abdel Jalil: We will be with you until the end," said nephew Muhammad Yunis, addressing hundreds of mourners in the square in the rebel stronghold.
However, later at the funeral, mourners expressed fears that he may have been a victim of other insurgents.
Sarraj, a soldier who identified himself as a relative, said he had heard that Younis and two other military officials who died with him left peacefully with the men who had invited them to Benghazi. "Later we heard he was killed," he said.
"It seems that this was an operation organized by Gaddafi's men," said Libyan activist Shamiz Ashour, who lives in London. "It must have been treason, some sleeper cells among the rebels".
Another analyst, Shashank Joshi of the London-based United Royal Services Institute, said another possibility was that Yunis was executed by rebels.
He pointed out that this explanation would emphasize the divisions in the ranks of the opposition, which are already known, and call into question how reliable a partner it is for Western countries.
"All this would humiliate the governments that supported the rebels. Especially Britain, which was the last to join, partly for reasons like this," he said.
One rebel commander said Islamists may be responsible.
Yunis helped Gaddafi come to power
Libyan state television has named the rebel who it said killed Yunis.
Younis, from eastern Libya, where the rebels are strongest, was Gaddafi's interior minister but switched sides to become military chief of the rebels' Transitional National Council, whose political leader Jalil announced his death.
Yunis, who participated in the 1969 coup that brought Gaddafi to power, did not enjoy the trust of all rebel leaders because of his previous role in cracking down on dissidents.
His death is likely to be a severe blow to the movement, which has gained the support of about 30 countries, but which is not doing very well on the battlefield, Reuters points out.
His death is likely to be a severe blow to the movement which has gained the support of around 30 states
Analyst David Hartwell of IHS in London said: "He was one of the few credible opposition military commanders and a key figure in helping to stabilize and reorganize rebel fighters."
Fighters on the front line near the city of Misrata said they saw Yunis as a martyr and would avenge his death.
"It will be an additional motivation for us in the fight against tyrants," said Khalid al-Uwajib.
Fighters on the front line near the city of Misrata said they saw Yunis as a martyr and would avenge his death
After rising in February against Gaddafi's 41-year rule of the oil-rich North African nation, the rebels have seized large swaths of Libya, but have recently faltered despite support in the form of NATO airstrikes.
Nick Whitney, an analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations in Paris, said the West had hoped for a simple conflict in which the rebels would prevail, but had ignored Libya's tribal politics.
"It was the brave and right thing to do, but I think our morale has dropped a bit and we've wandered into something that's going to be protracted and chaotic, and we're not in a position to sort it out."
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