British Evacuation Day in Libya

Libya celebrates the anniversary of the evacuation of British military forces in the country in 1970 after the British government agreed to pull out its troops from Tobruk “Al Adam” (present day, Jalal Abdulnasir Base), the air base they established after the Second World War broke out.

At the end of the Second World War, Libya associated much of its foreign policies in the West especially the United States and Great Britain while maintaining full diplomatic relations with Italy, Greece, France and the dissolved Soviet Union.

The military coup led by Muammar al-Gaddafi in 1969 resulted in the decision to close the American and British military bases in Libya and hoped to nationalize most of government’s properties including the fossil fuels resources and other commercial businesses in the country. Moreover, Gaddafi’s temporarily embargoed the transport of oil to the US and other countries in the west as a means to convince the Western nations to halt the political and military support they were giving Israel in 1973.

The last British troops left Libya in 1970 marking this day as one of the important turning points in Libya’s colonial history. Today, this is celebrated as British Evacuation Day. British Evacuation Day is considered to be one of the most important holidays in Libya but it isn’t celebrated with festivities inasmuch as how religious holidays in Libya are celebrated. The employed consider this day as a time off from work.

Information from:

http://aglobalworld.com/holidays-around-the-world/libya-british-evacuation-day/

http://www.bank-holidays.com/pop_up_holidays.php?fete_id=4092&pays_id=218&jour_sem=5&annee=0&id_langue=2

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/africa/libya_pop_1974.jpg