
Following are excerpts from Libyan Leader Mu'ammar Al-Qadhafi, which aired on Al-Jazeera TV on October 10, 2010:
Mu'ammar Al-Qadhafi: On behalf of the Arabs, I'd like to condemn, apologize, and express deep sorrow for the conduct of some Arabs – especially the wealthy among them – towards their African brothers. The wealthy Arabs treated their African brothers in a disgraceful way in the past. They bought children and took them to North Africa, to the Arabian Peninsula, and to the other Arab regions. They subjugated them and traded in them. They engaged in slavery and human trafficking in a most abominable fashion, to tell you the truth. We are ashamed, along with our African brothers, when we recall this.
We are ashamed of those who behaved in this manner, and especially the wealthy Arabs, who viewed their African brothers as inferior slaves. This is no different from the way the West – America and Europe – behaved towards the Africans. They would hunt them like animals, treat them like slaves, and act like colonialists. They engaged in colonialism and exploited them, and this continues to this day. We extend our apology and express our sorrow for these acts.
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