Context
According to intelligence sources, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has played a discreet but vital role in the international efforts to broker a ceasefire between the Libyan government and rebels. Her envoy arrived silently in Libya’s capital Tripoli with NATO’s permission. The visit comes at a time when a peacemaking delegation of the African Union led by South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma is also in Tripoli to help negotiate a truce. The involvement of a European country to end the fighting highlights Col. Muammar Gaddafi’s military success against the rebel forces and the failure of NATO, France and Britain to overthrow his regime. It also reflects on the growing divide with in NATO in dealing with the Libyan crisis.