What the Islamist terrorist threat has become is an incoherent pretext to intervene militarily on the part of the west. The only principled position to adopt therefore is the rejection of both, for the self-determination and sovereignty of the peoples.

Libyans want stability. They want to live in a clean, safe, free society where rule of law and justice is paramount. However given the turmoil of the past few years and the weakness of the government, opinion is clearly divided over the best way to ensure such a society can blossom.

Libyans asked for assistance during the revolution and they received it: the Syrian opposition has been asking for international assistance for eighteen months yet has received little or no response.

The new regime in Libya claims the capacity and the will to see those who perpetrated atrocities under the old regime brought to justice. If the International Criminal Court reacts in favour of Libya's challenge, it will be complicit in the revenge of the new regime against the old.

A year on from Libya’s liberation many aspects of life have improved. The Libyan public, however, still needs to use their new found voice to stop the militias from hijacking their revolution, and call for peace and reconciliation instead of force and violence.

Much leftist analysis of Syrian events is trapped by a dogmatic outlook that combines a warped view of geopolitics with inattention to local realities, says Vicken Cheterian.

The 'secret courts bill' is heading through the Lords, just as former ministers and MI6 officials face the prospect of public court appearances over torture allegations.

These armed men think, act and make demands on the basis that they are revolutionaries, yet there is no longer a revolution to be fought. Once the heroes of the story, they have now become the villains.

Last week's attack against the US ambassador is a warning sign that large security gaps are threatening Libya's stability. Democratically electing a new government is no guarantee of better times to come.