Muammar Gaddafi blames uprising in Libya on Osama bin Laden

PanARMENIAN.Net - Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi on Thursday alleged that al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden is behind the uprising in his country. Gaddafi made the comments in a phone call to Libyan state TV.

"People were getting all their daily needs ... why did you have to get involved with the Bin Laden ideology," Gaddafi asked.

The Libyan leader added that unrest the unrest in his country is "not 'people's power,'" but "international terrorism" in action.

He reiterated the contention that protesters were using drugs.

"People with any brains wouldn't take part in these protests," said Gaddafi, adding that demonstrators were kids who obtained "illegal" pills.

Gaddafi repeatedly compared himself to England's Queen Elizabeth II, saying he was a merely symbolic leader.

The Libyan leader said that he did not know when the violence in the country would end.

He did, however, offer his condolences to the families of four Libyan security officers killed during the uprising, asking if bin Laden would compensate them, The Jerusalem Post reported.