Voice of Free Libya
Encyclopedia
Voice of Free Libya is the name used by three radio stations aligned to the Libyan rebels
, operating from the cities of Benghazi
, Bayda and Misrata. They began broadcasting in February 2011, playing an important role in the country's civil war
.
Other rebel-controlled radio stations are reported to operate in Tobruk
, Nalut
, Jadu, Libya
, Derna and Zliten
.
In many cases - and certainly for the stations in Benghazi, Bayda and Misrata - they use captured transmitters formerly run by the Libyan state broadcasting organisation
.
Output is in Arabic, with the Nalut station also said to use Berber (Tamazight)
. The outlets operate independently and with separate programing, although they share similar aims. They all carry material strongly supportive of the rebels and firmly critical of Gaddafi
.
Reporting of the stations' names has been imprecise. Some English-language media reports have referred to "Radio Free Libya", "Free Radio Libya", "Free Libya Radio" and other names, sometimes even in the same article. Others have referred to "Radio Free Benghazi" and "Radio Free Misrata" as shorthand names, rather than a full citation of the station identifications as announced on-air. Another variant seen in English-language reporting was "Misrata's Radio Freedom Voice".
outside Libya watched the frequencies of the country's transmitters for any unusual behaviour. The Bayda station was first heard by an enthusiast during the night of 20-21 February. The following night it was heard carrying material in English, including an appeal to US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
A press report said the Benghazi station began broadcasting at 2 p.m. local time on 21 February and it was confirmed by radio enthusiasts to be on the air later the same day.
A press report in late April 2011 said the Misrata station began broadcasting on 21 February. A report in late February 2011 had spoken of a rebel-controlled radio station operating in Misrata. At that time, the station is assumed to have been on FM only as Misrata's AM transmissions were not confirmed until 18 March, carrying continuous religious chants; voice programing was first heard on 21 March.
A journalist working for the Misrata station, Muhammad Ali al-Ma'dani, was killed on 28 May 2011 by a mortar fired by Gaddafi forces.
Speculation that Benghazi's AM transmitter is one formerly used by 1970s offshore pirate station
Radio North Sea International (Radio Nordsee International)
, RNI, has not been confirmed. The speculation arose because RNI's ship, Mebo II, and its transmitters were sold to Libya in 1977 and were used for broadcasting there for a few years. The transmitters' subsequent fate is unknown.A further Libyan connection with RNI arose when a timing device made by Mebo II's original owners, the Swiss electronics firm Mebo Telecommunications
, was alleged to have been used to trigger the 1988 Lockerbie bomb
.
Benghazi also reportedly transmits on FM, differing sources giving the frequencies as 88.9 and 89.9, 88.8 and 98.9, 89.3 and 98.8, or 98.9.
The Benghazi station uses an improvised studio at its transmitting station, as its studio headquarters were burnt down by protesters in the early days of the revolution.
None of the stations operates a website. However, in early April 2011, a live internet stream of the Benghazi station was established independently by a political activist, relaying off-air reception of the 675 AM signal. The location where the activist is receiving the 675 AM signal is not disclosed, though it must be within Libya or its immediate vicinity as it has daytime reception of the signal by ground wave propagation. The stream is not fully reliable.
A website called "Future for Libya", with a page called "Radio Free Libya", provides a link to the live stream and posts reports of Voice of Free Libya's broadcasts. However, there is no indication that this site is run by the station itself.
In late April 2011, the Misrata station was reported to be on the air 24 hours a day.
The Benghazi, Bayda and Misrata stations are all audible outside Libya. Numerous recordings made by radio enthusiasts in Europe have been posted to media-sharing websites.
(eastern Libya) in February 2011. The Tobruk station has not been reported to have been heard outside Libya, suggesting that it may only transmit on FM
, which generally has a shorter range than medium wave AM
. The FM frequency may be 98.0.
A report in late April 2011 described how "Radio Free Nalut" had begun broadcasting in that town
"this week". The station is said to transmit on 98.2 FM. In late July, a report said that "Free Nalut", the local radio station, was broadcasting updates from the front and sending encouraging messages to towns in the region still controlled by Gaddafi.
A tweet by @ChangeInLibya on 14 June 2011 said a "Radio Free Jadu" was broadcasting on 89.1 FM from the town of the same name
. Jadu and Nalut are in the Nafusa Mountains of western Libya.
A "Radio Free Derna" (in eastern Libya) was reported operating in June 2011. An Arabic-language video report posted to the internet on June 15 suggested that it operated on 89.3 FM.
The Facebook page of Voice of Free Libya in Misrata said on 22 June that "Radio Free Zliten
" (between Misrata and Tripoli) was operating there on 91 FM.
In May 2011, an English-language station, Tribute FM
, began broadcasting from Benghazi. A press report at the time dubbed the station "Radio free (sic) Benghazi" though there is no evidence that this name was used on the air. There is also no evidence that Tribute FM in Benghazi has any connection with the Voice of Free Libya station in the same city.
Anti-Gaddafi forces
The anti-Gaddafi forces were Libyan groups that opposed and militarily defeated the government of Muammar Gaddafi, killing him in the process. These opposition forces included organised and armed militia groups, participants in the 2011 Libyan civil war, Libyan diplomats who switched their...
, operating from the cities of Benghazi
Benghazi
Benghazi is the second largest city in Libya, the main city of the Cyrenaica region , and the former provisional capital of the National Transitional Council. The wider metropolitan area is also a district of Libya...
, Bayda and Misrata. They began broadcasting in February 2011, playing an important role in the country's civil war
2011 Libyan civil war
The 2011 Libyan civil war was an armed conflict in the North African state of Libya, fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to oust his government. The war was preceded by protests in Benghazi beginning on 15 February 2011, which led to clashes with security...
.
Other rebel-controlled radio stations are reported to operate in Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
, Nalut
Nalut
Nalut is the capital of the Nalut District in Libya and is home to a Berber granary and community.Nalut lies approximately half way between Tripoli and Ghadames, at the western end of the Nafusa Mountains coastal range, in the Tripolitania region.-Architecture:Nalut is home to the Ksar Nalut,...
, Jadu, Libya
Jadu, Libya
Jadu [p] , in other languages also: Giado and Gado, is a mountain town in western Libya, in the Jabal al Gharbi District and the Nafusa Mountains. Jadu was the site of an Italian concentration camp during the Second World War...
, Derna and Zliten
Zliten
Zliten is a town in the Misrata District of Libya. It is located on the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea west of the Gulf of Sidra. It was the capital of the former Zlitan District.-Location:...
.
In many cases - and certainly for the stations in Benghazi, Bayda and Misrata - they use captured transmitters formerly run by the Libyan state broadcasting organisation
Libyan Jamahiriya Broadcasting Corporation
Libyan Jamahiriya Broadcasting Corporation was the state-run broadcasting organization in Libya. It distributed news in coordination with the Jamahiriya News Agency in accordance with state laws controlling Libya media....
.
Output is in Arabic, with the Nalut station also said to use Berber (Tamazight)
Berber languages
The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert...
. The outlets operate independently and with separate programing, although they share similar aims. They all carry material strongly supportive of the rebels and firmly critical of Gaddafi
Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
.
Names
The stations have been heard using the name Radio Free Libya (Arabic: Idha'at Libya al-Hurra) in addition to Voice of Free Libya, but the latter identification is the one most commonly used by Benghazi and Bayda.Reporting of the stations' names has been imprecise. Some English-language media reports have referred to "Radio Free Libya", "Free Radio Libya", "Free Libya Radio" and other names, sometimes even in the same article. Others have referred to "Radio Free Benghazi" and "Radio Free Misrata" as shorthand names, rather than a full citation of the station identifications as announced on-air. Another variant seen in English-language reporting was "Misrata's Radio Freedom Voice".
Launch history
Following the start of the Libyan uprising on 15-17 February 2011, DX radio enthusiastsDXing
DXing is the hobby of tuning in and identifying distant radio or television signals, or making two way radio contact with distant stations in amateur radio, citizens' band radio or other two way radio communications. Many DXers also attempt to receive written verifications of reception from the...
outside Libya watched the frequencies of the country's transmitters for any unusual behaviour. The Bayda station was first heard by an enthusiast during the night of 20-21 February. The following night it was heard carrying material in English, including an appeal to US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
A press report said the Benghazi station began broadcasting at 2 p.m. local time on 21 February and it was confirmed by radio enthusiasts to be on the air later the same day.
A press report in late April 2011 said the Misrata station began broadcasting on 21 February. A report in late February 2011 had spoken of a rebel-controlled radio station operating in Misrata. At that time, the station is assumed to have been on FM only as Misrata's AM transmissions were not confirmed until 18 March, carrying continuous religious chants; voice programing was first heard on 21 March.
A journalist working for the Misrata station, Muhammad Ali al-Ma'dani, was killed on 28 May 2011 by a mortar fired by Gaddafi forces.
Transmitters, frequencies, internet streams and websites
The Benghazi station transmits on 675 AM (medium wave), Bayda on 1125 AM and Misrata on 1449 AM. The output powers of the three transmitters are substantial - 100 kilowatts (kW), 500 kW and 500 kW respectively - but variable reception indicates that they may sometimes operate on reduced power.Speculation that Benghazi's AM transmitter is one formerly used by 1970s offshore pirate station
Pirate radio
Pirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
Radio North Sea International (Radio Nordsee International)
Radio North Sea International
Radio North Sea International also known as Radio Nordsee International in German and Radio Noordzee Internationaal in Dutch, was a European offshore radio station, run by the Swiss firm Mebo Telecommunications, jointly owned by Swiss engineer, Edwin Bollier, and his business partner, Erwin Meister...
, RNI, has not been confirmed. The speculation arose because RNI's ship, Mebo II, and its transmitters were sold to Libya in 1977 and were used for broadcasting there for a few years. The transmitters' subsequent fate is unknown.A further Libyan connection with RNI arose when a timing device made by Mebo II's original owners, the Swiss electronics firm Mebo Telecommunications
Mebo Telecommunications
Mebo Telecommunications AG is owned by Swiss businessmen Erwin Meister and Edwin Bollier.-Radio Nordsee International – the Mebo I and II:...
, was alleged to have been used to trigger the 1988 Lockerbie bomb
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103 was Pan American World Airways' third daily scheduled transatlantic flight from London Heathrow Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport...
.
Benghazi also reportedly transmits on FM, differing sources giving the frequencies as 88.9 and 89.9, 88.8 and 98.9, 89.3 and 98.8, or 98.9.
The Benghazi station uses an improvised studio at its transmitting station, as its studio headquarters were burnt down by protesters in the early days of the revolution.
None of the stations operates a website. However, in early April 2011, a live internet stream of the Benghazi station was established independently by a political activist, relaying off-air reception of the 675 AM signal. The location where the activist is receiving the 675 AM signal is not disclosed, though it must be within Libya or its immediate vicinity as it has daytime reception of the signal by ground wave propagation. The stream is not fully reliable.
A website called "Future for Libya", with a page called "Radio Free Libya", provides a link to the live stream and posts reports of Voice of Free Libya's broadcasts. However, there is no indication that this site is run by the station itself.
Broadcasting hours
In late March and early April 2011, the broadcasting hours of the Benghazi station were reported to be 10 a.m. to midnight local time or 3.30 a.m. to 1.50 a.m local time However, it was also reported at the time that the station did not adhere to such a precise schedule and that it had sometimes been heard later than 2350 GMT/UTC.In late April 2011, the Misrata station was reported to be on the air 24 hours a day.
Foreign reports and reception
In the early stages of the Libyan uprising, the activities of the stations were reported by foreign journalists in the country, including video reports on the Benghazi and Bayda stations, which showed their staff, premises, transmitters and makeshift studios, and gave a vivid impression of improvised radio broadcasting in a civil conflict.The Benghazi, Bayda and Misrata stations are all audible outside Libya. Numerous recordings made by radio enthusiasts in Europe have been posted to media-sharing websites.
Tobruk, Nalut, Jadu, Derna and Zliten stations
A "Radio Free Libya" was reported operating in the city of TobrukTobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
(eastern Libya) in February 2011. The Tobruk station has not been reported to have been heard outside Libya, suggesting that it may only transmit on FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
, which generally has a shorter range than medium wave AM
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
. The FM frequency may be 98.0.
A report in late April 2011 described how "Radio Free Nalut" had begun broadcasting in that town
Nalut
Nalut is the capital of the Nalut District in Libya and is home to a Berber granary and community.Nalut lies approximately half way between Tripoli and Ghadames, at the western end of the Nafusa Mountains coastal range, in the Tripolitania region.-Architecture:Nalut is home to the Ksar Nalut,...
"this week". The station is said to transmit on 98.2 FM. In late July, a report said that "Free Nalut", the local radio station, was broadcasting updates from the front and sending encouraging messages to towns in the region still controlled by Gaddafi.
A tweet by @ChangeInLibya on 14 June 2011 said a "Radio Free Jadu" was broadcasting on 89.1 FM from the town of the same name
Jadu, Libya
Jadu [p] , in other languages also: Giado and Gado, is a mountain town in western Libya, in the Jabal al Gharbi District and the Nafusa Mountains. Jadu was the site of an Italian concentration camp during the Second World War...
. Jadu and Nalut are in the Nafusa Mountains of western Libya.
A "Radio Free Derna" (in eastern Libya) was reported operating in June 2011. An Arabic-language video report posted to the internet on June 15 suggested that it operated on 89.3 FM.
The Facebook page of Voice of Free Libya in Misrata said on 22 June that "Radio Free Zliten
Zliten
Zliten is a town in the Misrata District of Libya. It is located on the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea west of the Gulf of Sidra. It was the capital of the former Zlitan District.-Location:...
" (between Misrata and Tripoli) was operating there on 91 FM.
Other "Radio Free Benghazi" stations
A web-based facility was operating as early in the uprising as 18 February 2011. One source at the time referred to this as "Radio Free Benghazi", operating with "breathless amateur announcers", and said it was based in that city. However, there is no evidence that it was anything more than a chat facility enabling supporters of the uprising (perhaps outside the country) to speak to each other, or that it had any connection with the "Voice of Free Libya" radio in Benghazi that began broadcasting on 21 February.In May 2011, an English-language station, Tribute FM
Tribute FM
Tribute FM is an English-language radio station targeting a Libyan audience both inside and outside the country. It was launched in May 2011 during the country's civil war. It is opposed to the government of Muammar al-Gaddafi....
, began broadcasting from Benghazi. A press report at the time dubbed the station "Radio free (sic) Benghazi" though there is no evidence that this name was used on the air. There is also no evidence that Tribute FM in Benghazi has any connection with the Voice of Free Libya station in the same city.