Today we visit Libya, a country almost everyone associates with oil, desert, Muammar Gaddafi and the two devastating civil wars lasting from 2011 to 2020.
For me though, every time I think of Libya, I think of Danish trains.
Unlike Denmark, Libya has no operational railways and has had none since 1965. It’s kind of surprising then, that a brand new train ordered by the Danish rail operator DSB went missing and turned up in Libya.
The reason for the missing train was Silvio Berlusconi’s government was trying to bribe Gaddafi into selecting Italian firms for a whole host of ambitious Libyan railway projects. The IC4 train was decorated in a special paint scheme and fitted out with a luxury VIP interior. Today it sits unused and stranded on a tiny unconnected section of track collecting dust.
All aboard the train to no-where. Image courtesy of Oryx
Denmark eventually got its trains, and despite huge delays, cost overruns and breakdowns, you can now ride the IC4 all over Denmark. You can read a more in-depth account of this bizarre train theft on the Oryx blog.
The situation in Libya also seems to be finally looking up. There has been a ceasefire in Libya since October 2020 and the UN is deploying ceasefire monitors and supporting Libya’s new unity government in preparing for free elections in December.
Let’s hope Libya’s future is finally peaceful, democratic, and prosperous.
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