The Warfalla (Arabic: ورفلة) are a major Arab or Arab-Berber tribal group of Tripolitania, Libya.
The Warfalla historically inhabited the area of what is between the towns of Bani Walid, Sirte, Sabha, and Benghazi approximately 125 kilometres (78 mi) South and East of Tripoli. Due to their support to the Gaddafi during 42 years of his reign, the Warfalla tribe became the most armed and powerful tribe in Libya, and Gaddafi was deliberately misleading the public about their population by claiming they are millions to suppress the other tribes.[1].
The Warfalla tribe is composed of 52 sub-tribes that consist of Individual bayts or Clans. They claim lineage from the Banu Hilal tribe which swept North Africa from Arabia via Egypt in the 11th century. Intermarriage with Berber tribesmen resulted in the complete Arabization of the region by the time of the Ottoman conquest in the 16th century.[2]
During the Italian invasion of Libya the Warfalla tribe, under the leadership of Bel Khayre, remained neutral until the Italians reached the Warfalla tribe's territory.[3] There was a civil war between the tribes and peasants of the Jabal al-Gharbi from 1920 to 1922.[4]
Gaddafi has drawn many of his security personnel from the Warfalla tribe,[5]:407 and placed certain Warfalla leaders in his "revolutionary committees" (besides members of the Maqarha and his own Qadhafa tribe),[6] Members of the Warfalla tribe had participated in the unsuccessful 1993 Libyan coup attempt against Gaddafi, as a result, a number of Warfalla leaders and civilians were either imprisoned or executed.[7]
It is unclear whom the Warfalla tribe supports in the Libyan civil war. An anonymous caller and reports from Twitter claim that the Warfalla tribe defected to the Libyan rebels, but Libyan state television claimed on March 17, 2011 that the leader of the Warfalla tribe had called Gaddafi to confirm their support. There is no 'tribe leader' for Warfalla, however, mainstream media and Gaddafi propaganda claim there is. Since then, there have been reports that the tribe is fed up with Gaddafi's tactics and more and more changing and turning against him. Younger educated members of the tribe have voiced their opposition to Gaddafi's regime. The head of the National Transitional Council (NTC), Dr. Mahmoud Jibril hails from the Warfalla tribe. Mr. Abdul Hafiz Ghoga is also a member of this tribe.
After NATO started bombing, however, Sheik Ali, chief of the Warfalla tribe, as well as all 2,000 tribal leaders in Libya met at a conference in Tripoli on May 5th and unanimously condemned the actions of NATO and its rebel allies, a position that was reiterated in a manifesto on June 3, 2011.
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