An empty crude tanker arrived in Lybia today near one of the rebel strongholds. The tanker can carry up to 1 million barrels of crude oil. The shipping company that owns the tanker is refusing to give details about the shipment. The buyer of the crude is unknown, but it is believed to be UK oil refiners Vitol:

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20110405/tot-uk-libya-oil-loading-1c89468.html

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Libyan-rebels-to-resume-oil-exports-through-tanker-1322911.php

The tanker is registered in Liberia, a country notorious for its illegal black market in diamonds and other minerals.

"The rebel-led government said it had concluded a deal with Qatar to market crude oil and had discussed plans with a U.N. envoy to exempt its oil exports from sanctions that have been imposed on Gaddafi entities."

"Jakob Larsen, maritime security officer with BIMCO, the world's largest private shipowners' association, said a tanker had been diverted last month by coalition naval units."

So the heroic NATO allies are already making a profit from oil trading, and helping the rebels make money to buy weapons.

" "The current wording of the U.N. Security Council resolution leaves considerable room for interpretation as to which cargoes are regarded as contraband and can therefore not be discharged legally in Libya," Larsen said."

So the UN resolution is nothing more than a favoritist excuse for attaking Gaddafi, while trading weapons and oil with the rebels.

That might be OK if the rebels had an interest in true democracy in Lybia, but as I mentioned a few posts ago, the rebels have been infiltrated by Al Qaeda's AIQM forces.

In essence NATO is helping the rebels trade oil for weapons, and those weapons will end up in the hands of Al Qaeda's army in North Africa.

Way to go empire, you just shot yourself in the foot!