“Libya Was Better Before Gaddafi’s Fall - Africa Still Paying the Price for Western Interference”

More than a decade after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya remains in disarray, and growing voices across Africa are pointing fingers not just at internal chaos but at Western powers, especially the United States, for the long-term damage.

Critics say the U.S.-backed military intervention in 2011  during President Barack Obama’s administration turned one of Africa’s most stable and wealthy nations into a fractured territory plagued by violence, poverty, and lawlessness.

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“They knew what they were doing. Libya was not perfect, but people lived well. Now it’s a playground for warlords and smugglers,” said a Nigerian political analyst on condition of anonymity. “The fall of Gaddafi wasn’t just Libya’s loss it was Africa’s loss.”

Under Gaddafi, Libya had free education, healthcare, and one of the highest GDPs in Africa. Citizens enjoyed subsidized housing and fuel. Despite his controversial rule, Libya was seen as a country with structure, national pride, and pan-African ambitions.

Today, those gains have collapsed. Libya is now divided between rival governments, with militias and foreign interests fighting for control. Thousands have died in the conflict, and human trafficking routes through Libya have turned it into a hub for forced migration and prostitution.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama later called the Libya intervention the “worst mistake” of his presidency. But for many Africans, that acknowledgment came too late.

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“You destroyed a whole country and admitted it was a mistake? That mistake cost us the soul of North Africa,” said a Cameroonian activist on Facebook.

The power vacuum left behind has not only affected Libya but also destabilized neighboring countries, fueled terrorism in the Sahel region, and left a deep wound in pan-African unity.

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With renewed calls for African sovereignty and accountability, some leaders and thinkers believe it’s time for Africa to reclaim its narrative, learn from Libya’s story, and resist outside control over the continent’s future.