Good The Lion Of The Desert Essay Example

The movie “The Lion of the Desert” depicts the latter days of the fierce battle between the Italian forces and the Libyan Bedouins. Prior to World War II, the Bedouins resisted the colonization by Italy under their leader Omar Mukhtar, a teacher by profession, but a guerilla by obligation. After his troops failed to win over the resistance of the Bedouins, Benito Mussolini, the Italian dictator, appointed General Rodolfo Graziani to crush the rebellion using any means available so as to restore the glories of the Imperial Rome. Through the use of aircrafts and tanks in the desert and the extreme barbarities: imprisoning populations in concentration camps behind barbed wire, destruction of crops and slaying of prisoners of war, Graziani was able to control Libya. Even so, Mukhtar and his men had done a howling feat of barring the Italians from colonizing Libya for a period exceeding two decades. Unfortunately, Mukhtar is finally arrested and rather than being treated as a prisoner of war, he was tried as a rebel and thus executed by being hanged publicly.
Regardless of the sad ending of the movie, the movie presents a whole new level of insights into the issue of colonization and the rebellion heroes. After watching the movie, I learned that Mukhtar and Bedouins were able to trammel the efforts of the Italians to colonize Libya for such a long period. Initially, I was aware of the fact that colonies often posed resistance; however, their resistance would be subdued after a short period. Nevertheless, this was not the case in Mukhtar’s battle against the Italians. With inferior weapons, Mukhtar was able to organize his team in such a way that they used their guerilla skills in the desert, which was the battlefield, to an extent that they prevented the success of the Italian army for over twenty years (“Lion of the Desert”). In fact, Graziani managed to eliminate the rebels through contravening human rights and the laws of war, as well as the use of aircrafts and tanks. Otherwise, Mukhtar would prorogue the victory of the Italians perhaps for another decade or even longer.
In addition, I learned of the strict adherence to the Muslim customs even when Mukhtar was faced with a critical situation, battle against Italian imperialism. At one point in the movies, Mukhtar spares the life of a defenseless Italian soldier and instead gives him the Italian flag to return with. One would wonder why Mukhtar, a dedicated and skilled warrior, would spare the life of an adversary. In fact, the main obligation of Mukhtar and his men was to eliminate the Italian army from Libya and this meant killing as many as possible (Tunzelman, “Lion of the Desert roars for Libya's rebels”.). However, here is Mukhtar refusing to do what he is expected to do and argues that Islam forbids the killing of captured soldiers. Intrinsically, Mukhtar only killed Italian soldiers who were charged and spared those who he and his team captured. Perhaps, if it were not for Mukhtar’s staunch following of the Islamic law, Libya would have successively rebelled Italian imperialism, and we would regard Libya to be among the uncolonized African countries.
The movie tells a story of a hero, akin to Nelson Mandela or Mahatma Gandhi. During the era of colonization, rebellions were prevalent, and the leaders of the rebels emerged to be heroes of the various nations. For instance, the independence of South Africa is attributed to the hero, Nelson Mandela. In the same vein, the Mukhtar is depicted as a hero. The struggle that the African continent underwent in its struggle for independence cannot be complete without regarding the Mukhtar’s struggle to fight for the independence of Libya. Mukhtar was purposed to fight the oppression of the Italians in his homeland and even gave up his teaching profession to fight for his country (“Lion of the Desert”). In this regard, it can be conceived that just like other heroes who relentlessly fought for the independence of their nations, Mukhtar was selfless and determined to do the same.
However, the story in the movie greatly influenced my thinking in regard to the issue of colonization. The ferociousness of the colonizers was unwarranted. The hanging of Mukhtar portrayed the inhumane nature of the Italians. On one hand, Mukhtar is full of clemency insofar that he even spares the Italian soldiers that he captures and sets them free. However, Graziani goes ahead to oppress event he innocent Libyans by killing and imprisoning them in the concentration camps. Moreover, the court, under the influence of the Italians, gives a verdict of execution on the case of Mukhtar, rather than considering him as a prisoner of war. In this regard, I began to see the colonizers from a completely different point of view. Despite the developments the colonizers made to their colonies, it cannot match the degree of atrocity committed on the inhabitants of the colonies, especially the rebels. The rebels had the right to protect their nation from intruders, and the Italians would just give up Libya once they saw the stiff rebellion and instead concentrate on the array of colonies they had secured. Killing innocent women and children is the most flagitious act that any human being can commit, and I doubt if God can ever forgive such a sin.
All in all, the issue of independence has long been solved in Libya. Libya gained its independence twenty years after the hanging of Mukhtar under the leadership of King Idris. Besides, Idris leadership helped the nation discover its rich oil reserves. However, Muammar Gaddafi recently carried out a coup détat on the monarchy and plundered the resources of the nation. The present and future of Libya is worrying and bleak due to the lines of divisions across the nation. Nonetheless, Mukhtar’s legacy lives on, and he forever remains the symbol of strength and unity in precarious present (Ismael, “Omar Mukhtar, Lion of the Desert”).

Works Cited

Ismael, Noora. “Omar Mukhtar, Lion of the Desert”. Theqafa Magazine, Sept. 11, 2014. Web. 25
Lion of the Desert. Dir. Moustapha Akkad. Perf. Anthony Quinn, Oliver Reed, and Rod Steiger.
Anchor Bay Entertainment, 1981. Film.
Tunzelman, Alex. “Lion of the Desert roars for Libya's rebels”. The Guardian, Jun. 30, 2011.
Web. 25 Apr. 2015