rio wrote:
Sorry can someone fill me in on why the Swiss are going "cuckoo" (lol!!) about Gaddafi?
Various elements. A year ago, his son was arrested in Switzerland for beating, imprisoning and abusing his housekeeper. Then, a little while ago, Gheddafi took two Swiss people hostage (don't know the details, if they were soldiers, tourists, whatever). As a result, President Merz apologized to Gheddafi and his son was released. The hostages aren't back yet. Then, a few days ago, for the second time, Gheddafi proposed to the UN to dismantle Switzerland (give the Italian speaking part to Italy, German speaking part to Germany, etc). Needless to say, the UN told him to fuck off, but we're pretty pissed.
EDIT: sorry, not exactly. Here's what Wikipedia has to say:
The fifth eldest, Hannibal Gaddafi, once worked for General National Maritime Transport Company, a company that specializes in Libyan oil exports. He is most notable for being involved in a series of violent incidents throughout Europe, including charges against him for beating up his then pregnant girlfriend, Alin Skaf. On 15 July 2008, Hannibal and his wife were held for two days and charged with assaulting two of their staff in Geneva, Switzerland and then released on bail on 17 July. As a result, unless the Swiss government apologizes for the arrest, the government of Libya put a boycott on Swiss imports, reduced flights between Libya and Switzerland, stopped issuing visas to Swiss citizens, recalled diplomats from Bern, and forced all Swiss companies such as ABB and Nestlé to close offices. General National Maritime Transport Company, which owns a large refinery in Switzerland, also halted oil shipments to Switzerland.[56] Two Swiss businessmen are held hostages and not allowed to exit Libya since July.[57]