Angry Libya Berbers threaten further protests

Members of Libya's Berber community, angered over what they believe is their marginalisation, have threatened further protests after storming the national assembly on Tuesday. Berbers "who had been demonstrating outside the seat of the General National Congress, broke in to the chamber... ransacking furniture and slinging out documents, as the president and members of the GNC were meeting with their representatives," an official told AFP. They also "threatened to use weapons against certain deputies," Ganor added. The Berbers, who make up about 10 percent of Libya's population, are demanding that their language, ethnicity and culture be recognised in the future constitution. They suffered decades of repression and discrimination during the rule of Muammar Gaddafi, who was overthrown during an uprising in 2011. At the beginning of July, they withdrew their representatives from the GNC to protest against marginalisation. On July 17, they joined with two other minorities - the Tuareg and the Toubou - in announcing a boycott of elections to a constituent commission. And they have threatened to launch a campaign of civil disobedience to pressure the GNC. On July 25, Berbers in the western district of Nalout shut down the pipeline leading to the Millitah gas facility. Berber, the main language of North Africa before Arabic arrived, is still spoken in the Sahara and in mountainous parts of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia as well as Libya.