1/ While European parties of all political stripes have finally woken up to the continuous & inherent link btw "peaceful" Islamists & violent Islamism, the narrative on #Libya has long been captured by those who do their utmost to deny that such a link is even possible.

2/ One should never assign to bad will what can be explained by incompetence, but sometimes, the coincidences pile up and one is left with the distinct feeling that "impartial analysis" is not as central a principle to some of the "scholarly" output on #Libya as one would like.

3/ For example, can someone who regularly downplays & dismisses the role, ambitions & influence of Islamists in #Libya's conflict, be considered impartial on the matter if they also go around quoting members of CAGE?

4/ In the wake of the Manchester Arena bombing, the role of Islamist networks in the Manchester area (known for many years) has come to the fore. At its core are Libyan Islamists affiliated to the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group. #Libya https://www.spiked-online.com/2020/12/01/britains-libyan-islamist-problem/

5/ One would expect that any "experts" on the group - especially those working Europe - might feel the need to mention this (even in passing) in any "report" on the LIFG, especially one purporting to "assess" their "de-radicalization". #Libya

6/ Yet, a recent report coauthored by the above researcher on exactly that subject makes no mention of the LIFG's UK presence, its impact on UK Salafism, nor even the fact that Salman & Hashem Abedi grew up in an LIFG dominated milieu & are the sons of an LIFG member. #Libya

7/ The involvement of LIFG figures with the Benghazi Shura Council - a coalition of Islamist militias involved in the murder of Ambassador Stevens in 2012, & a subsequent terror campaign against Libyan civilians & public officials who opposed them, also goes unmentioned. #Libya

8/ The paper purports to "assess" the "de-radicalization" of a group central to the spread of Salafi Jihadism in http://N.Africa  & Europe, & yet these high-profile events, directly linked to the LIFG *years after* their "de-radicalization" escape all mention. #Libya

9/ This is by no means an isolated example - just an illustrative one. Meanwhile, this author & others like him eagerly circulate entire academic papers on the influence of Facebook disinformation networks on the subject of #Libya. Entirely impartially, of course.

10/ Speaking of impartiality, I should lay *my* cards on the table: I believe that Islamism is a totalitarian ideology that justifies & uses violence against any man, woman or child that gets in its way. There is no such thing as "peaceful" Islamists. Only tactically quiet ones.