The Tripoli Bombing and the Peace Movement

A century of aerial warfare and the forgotten legacy of Alfred Hermann Fried
By Andreas Hermann Landl – originally published in 2011 – This article has been read 29,167 times until May 22, 2025 and was last updated on May 23 2025 for reasons of broken picture links and translated

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Part 1: Tripoli and the Origins of Aerial Warfare

“Tripoli is the city with the longest history of aerial barbarism.” — Bertha von Suttner (1912)

In 1911, the first aerial bomb in history was dropped over Tripoli. A hundred years later, in 2011, NATO again bombed the city — under the pretext of protecting civilians.

This article was originally written for the commemorative volume “100 Years of the Nobel Peace Prize for Alfred H. Fried”.

What Peace Journalism Offers

Since 2002, I have worked through friedensnews.at, inspired by Johan Galtung and Mahatma Gandhi’s “Experiments with Truth”. Peace journalism challenges the narratives of war by focusing on causes, context, and nonviolent alternatives.

Who Was Alfred H. Fried?

Alfred Hermann Fried (1864–1921) was a journalist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. In 1911, he denounced the Italian invasion of Libya as “a war of conquest without any moral cover.”

More about Fried: Nobel Prize Biography

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Part 2: Osama Bin Laden, NATO Bombs and the Control of Narratives

On May 1, 2011, a NATO airstrike killed Gaddafi’s son, his wife, and three grandchildren. Hours later, Obama announced: “Bin Laden is dead.”

Coincidence or Diversion?

Church sources confirmed the deaths. Western media framed them as “collateral damage.” UN Resolution 1973 was cited as justification.

Read the resolution: UN Resolution 1973

What Was Left Unsaid?

Mainstream headlines turned to Bin Laden, ignoring the civilian deaths. Even in Austria, media narratives largely ignored the deeper questions.

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Part 3: Colonial Ghosts and Double Standards

1911: Italy’s First Massacre in Libya

Italy’s invasion of Tripoli resulted in mass killings. Fried’s documentation in Die Friedens-Warte warned of rising militarism.

Original source (German): friedensnews.at

France’s Brutal Record in Algeria

Between 1954 and 1962, France fought a bloody colonial war in Algeria. Techniques of torture and suppression were systematized and exported.

Watch: ARTE’s Documentary on Death Squads

Austria’s Arms Trade Legacy

Despite neutrality, Austria exported weapons during the Iran–Iraq War. A hidden study on arms conversion was suppressed, motivating Van der Bellen to join the Greens.

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Part 4: Oil, Water and the Real Motives

Why Libya and Not Saudi Arabia?

Libya was bombed, Saudi Arabia wasn’t. Both had human rights violations. Gaddafi, however, was developing independent systems, especially in water and energy.

The Southern Mistral Operation

France and the UK began war planning against Libya before the 2011 uprising.

More: Solidarwerkstatt

The Great Man-Made River

Gaddafi created the largest irrigation project in the world without Western loans. It threatened global water markets. Estimated value: €14.85 trillion.

Video: Great Man-Made River Project

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Part 5: Peace Journalism – A Century Later, Still Radical

The Lost Legacy of Fried

Fried’s “White Press” stood for ethics, context, and peace. War journalism continues to dominate, but peace journalism is essential for democracy and survival.

What Peace Journalism Does

• Humanizes all sides
• Investigates root causes
• Tracks diplomacy and reconciliation
• Gives voice to the voiceless

Why It Matters Today

As global rearmament and ecological collapse accelerate, peace journalism is not a luxury — it’s a survival strategy.

Conclusion

War destroys truth. Peace journalism rebuilds it — patiently, radically, humanely.

Falamaleikum
Falamaleikum –
falamalaitum –
falnamalautum –
fallnamalsooomanyum –
And when the war’s been over long enough –
they’re all back again –
or is someone missing?

German original: Falamaleikum
Falamaleikum -
falamaleitum -
falnamaleutum -
fallnamalsooovielleutum –
Wennabereinmalderkrieglanggenugausist – sindallewiederda. –
oderfehlteiner) — Ernst Jandl

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Contact

Andreas H. Landl
www.friedensnews.at
ahl@zimd.at

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