NRO: What We Can Do in Libya

[Larry]

Nothing like assuming air power is yours for the asking ...what are they offering in return?

I like the idea of the Arab League/African Union doing it....bout time they did something worthwhile

I like that idea, too. Mainly because that way, it isn't The Great Satan plotting to overthrow another government.

For example, I've been wondering. I recall hearing that we supposedly had really good relations with the military in Egypt, and Egypt is right there next door, and has actual airbases, rather than a carrier or two. I could see an opportunity here to help improve our relations with Libya, and with Egypt, at the same time.

(Although I also have to admit that I have questions about whether the Egyptian Air Force could win that fight.)

Edit: And, if the rebels in Libya were to become the new government in Libya, with the aid of the Egyptian military, that might lead to better relations between two Mideast neighbors, too.

[visionary]

Hmmm. it seems that while France is moving towards a no-fly zone, Germany is backing off a bit.

I'm not sure what other sanctions we can impose that we haven't already.

I thought the ones we already did were supposed to solve everything and stop the mercenaries (from what Susan Rice was saying, lol).

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/live-blog-libya-march-3

4:59pm Guido Westerwelle, Germany's foreign minister, says that a foreign military action against Libya would be counterproductive and called for additional sanctions against Gaddafi's regime.

He said the current sanctions are not enough and it would be a "wise proposal proposal to freeze every money flow to Libya next months."

Whoa!

France is really coming out strong now.

05:24pm France rejected an offer by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to mediate in Libya and dismissed talk of any solution that would allow embattled leader Mouammar Gaddafi to stay in power.

"Any mediation that allows Colonel Gaddafi to succeed himself is obviously not welcome," Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said in response to Chavez's proposal, speaking after talks with his British counterpart William Hague.

Chavez and Gaddafi have discussed plans for an international peacekeeping mission to mediate the crisis in Libya, rocked by two weeks of bloody clashes with protesters seeking to topple his 41-year-old regime.

---------- Post added March-3rd-2011 at 11:05 AM ----------

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/03/libyan-rebels-reject-hugo-chavez?CMP=twt_gu

Libyan rebels reject Hugo Chávez mediation offer

Libya's rebel leaders have ruled out any attempt by Hugo Chávez to broker a truce between them and Muammar Gaddafi, who they insist must leave the country.

"No one has told us a thing about it and we are not interested anyway," said the spokesman of the national committee in Benghazi, Abdul Hafif Goga. "We will never negotiate with him."

The rebel leadership said the international community had yet to inform them of any initiative from the Venezuelan president, who reportedly contacted the embattled Libyan leader earlier this week in a bid to enter the fortnight-long violent standoff.

"Talk of peace is far too late," said a second member of the organising committee, Salwa Bogheiga. "A lot of people have died and there is no one to negotiate with. They lost that right when they started killing people on 17 February."

The nascent rebel committee in Benghazi and the military leadership that jointly run the eastern side of the country insist that they are now too committed to consider any sort of ceasefire. They say it would only be used by Gaddafi to reorganise his loyalist troops for a major assault on rebel-held cities.

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/live-blog-libya-march-3

06:25pm British Foreign Minister William Hague said that France and Britain want to put "bold and ambitious measures" to next week's emergency European Union summit on the Libyan crisis.

Following talks with French counterpart Alain Juppe on ways to stop Gaddafi suppressing a revolt against his rule, Hague said: "Today we discussed how Britain and France will do everything we can to increase the pressure.

"We also agreed the international community including us and other partners will continue to plan for different contingencies, including a no-fly zone, to ensure that we can respond swiftly and resolutely to the events in Libya."

[visionary]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/03/03/libya.no.fly.zone/index.html?hpt=T2

Senator: Army could train Libyan opposition in anti-aircraft defense

Washington (CNN) -- If the U.S. military is hesitant to enact a no-fly zone over Libya, the Army is capable of giving the opposition the capacity to use anti-aircraft defenses themselves, Sen. Joe Lieberman suggested Thursday.

Lieberman, I-Connecticut, raised the idea to Gen. Martin Dempsey, the Chief of Staff of the Army, who was testifying at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing regarding his renomination.Dempsey told Lieberman the Army does have the expertise to train in air defense and had done so with militaries around the world.

U.S. officials have also said that arming the opposition in Libya remains a difficult proposition because it is still unclear who will emerge as true leaders and what their motives will be.

The U.S. officials said the answer might lie with reaching out to grassroots organizations like the various tribes who make up Libyan society and disillusioned military officers.

However, Gates said Wednesday the potential capabilities of the opposition are still unclear.

"I think it remains to be seen how effectively military leaders who have defected from Gadhafi's forces can organize the opposition in the country," said Gates. "We are watching that unfold, as you are."

"We are working to understand who is legitimate, who is not, but it is premature in our opinion to recognize one group or another," Clinton said Wednesday. "I think it's important to recognize that there is a great deal of uncertainty about the motives, the opportunism, if you will, of people who are claiming to be leaders right now."

---------- Post added March-3rd-2011 at 01:58 PM ----------

http://twitter.com/wolfblitzercnn

Obama orders US military to fly Egyptian refugees fleeing #Libya and now in camps in Tunisia to get back to Egypt. 19 minutes ago via OpenBeak

I hope they don't get shot at by either side, if they're flying across Libya to get to Egypt.

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1549: Libya has appointed former Foreign Minister Ali Treki as its new permanent representative to the United Nations, a senior government source tells the Reuters news agency. The country's current envoy at UN headquarters in New York has renounced Col Gaddafi.

#1957: Two US military transport planes have landed in Djerba, Tunisia, with water, blankets and other supplies for migrant workers who have fled fighting in Libya, state department spokesman PJ Crowley tells reporters.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/03/04/libya.us.reaction/index.html?hpt=T2

U.S. focuses on Libyan humanitarian aid

Each aircraft carried three pallets of aid supplies, including 2,000 blankets, 40 rolls of plastic sheeting and 9,600 10-liter water cans, according to a statement from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The supplies, meant to help up to 2,000 people, will be handed off to Tunisia's Red Crescent organization for distribution, the statement noted.

The relief operation -- designed to help those who have fled the Libyan violence -- is named Odyssey Dawn, Pentagon spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said.

American authorities are considering multiple ways to assist in the crisis, but are currently focused primarily on humanitarian efforts, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told reporters. The Obama administration remains deeply "concerned with the ongoing violence ... initiated and perpetrated" by the government of Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi, she said.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/04/libya.allies/index.html?hpt=T2

Libya can still count on a few allies

Despite facing intense pressure from parts of the international community to relinquish power, the Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi can still count on the continued support of some prominent world leaders, say analysts.

Much of Gadhafi's overseas backing is based on a shared anti-colonial narrative and the instincts of some regimes to undermine the norms of the international community, experts believe.

So while many countries have criticized Gadhafi in the aftermath of protests that have left more than 1,000 people dead and many more injured, according to the U.N., some of his allies, including Venezuela and Zimbabwe, refuse to publicly criticize Libya.

"There is a natural alignment between all regimes which are into power maximization, that is, regimes trying to accumulate as much power as they can for themselves," says Barak Seener, a Middle East research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based thinktank.

There is also a second group of nations- including China, Russia and Turkey - which while unlikely to openly back Gadhafi, would not support an invasion and they would also be against a no-fly zone, said Seener.

"It is not simply a case of being anti-Western. Turkey for example is increasing diplomatic and economic links with Iran and as it does so it is entering the Iranian sphere of influence. They will not condemn what Gadhafi is doing in Libya," says Seener.

[Larry]

#1549: Libya has appointed former Foreign Minister Ali Treki

I like the sound of this already.

[visionary]

Just saw this on Twitter:

http://twitter.com/ochocinco

Anyone else watching @cnn with @andersoncooper about the fighting going on in Libya? Gadhafi don't play that ****, is the US gone step in? 7 minutes ago via Seesmic for Android

---------- Post added March-4th-2011 at 10:52 PM ----------

Just posted this in the Gaddafi thread too.

I thought it was fairly interesting to see both Zakaria and Richardson come out so strongly.

On CNN Bill Richardson just called Gaddafi a butcher and said a no fly zone was a viable option.

Fareed Zakaria said we need to arm the opposition, but a no fly zone might not help all that much and might be more disadvantages than helpful.

Bill Richardson agrees that we need to aid the opposition with training and weapons.

He says it is reaching the point where diplomacy is not much of an option.

---------- Post added March-4th-2011 at 11:25 PM ----------

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/live-blog-libya-march-5

4:52am The Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) bloc of Latin American countries says it will back a proposal by Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, to mediate the crisis in Libya.

"Alba supports (Chavez's) peace and unity initiative to create an international humanitarian commission for peace and the integrity of Libya," said a statement, read out by Chavez after a meeting with foreign ministers.

It said the commission would aim to "avoid military aggression from NATO as part of the efforts the international community should make to help the Libyan people".

The members of the bloc are: Antigua & Barbuda, Bolivia, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, Nicaragua, St Vincent & the Grenadines and Venezuela.

4:59am Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela's foreign minister, says he has received a message from his Libyan counterpart authorising Venezuela to "take all measures necessary to select the members and coordinate their participation" in a mediation effort to be led by the country.

I wonder if they'll be bringing money for Gaddafi and his buddies too.

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/live-blog-libya-march-5

4:48pm French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said his country was seeking a United Nations Security Council resolution to impose a no-fly zone in Libya.

"We are working in New York with the British to get a UN Security Council resolution creating an air exclusion zone to avoid bombings," he said in Bordeaux.

"We are on the side of all those who want to win their freedom and make a successful democratic transition," Juppe said shortly before leaving for Egypt and his first official visit outside Europe since being appointed.

[visionary]

I wish the international community would condemn the attacks on Az Zawiyah, and demand Gaddafi withdraw his troops from there to allow humanitarian aid. Don't know if it would make much difference, but it would at least make it look like other countries care. (of course no one actually seems to want to send any aid to anyone in Libya itself anyway)

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/SkyNewsBreak

Sunday Times: Up to eight members of an SAS unit and a junior UK diplomat have been detained in Libya 15 minutes ago via SkyNews Alerts - Breaking

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/03/201135165632260669.html

British minister demands "unfettered access" to help thousands of migrants fleeing violence amid anti-Gaddafi uprising.

Andrew Mitchell, Britain's minister for international development, has said that migrants fleeing violence in Libya are in a "desperate position" and demanded that Libya allow world powers "unfettered access" to help them.

In an interview with Al Jazeera on Saturday, Mitchell blamed Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, for the plight of those fleeing and said that world powers should be prepared to act.

"The whole of the international community should recognise that there are people in a desperate position inside Libya thanks to the way Colonel Gaddafi is behaving and that the international community must make sure it is able to respond to every eventually," he said.

"We call immediately for unfettered access into Libya for the international community ... It has been cut off by Colonel Gaddafi and we call for it immediately to be reopened."

[Larry]

Sunday Times: Up to eight members of an SAS unit and a junior UK diplomat have been detained in Libya

:yikes: I thought the SAS were like, almost Chuck Norris guys. Libya has people tough enough to capture these guys?

[visionary]

:yikes: I thought the SAS were like, almost Chuck Norris guys. Libya has people tough enough to capture these guys?

http://twitter.com/ShababLibya

The 8 SAS soldiers were accompanying a junior diplomat as they tried to speak to the opposition council, of course will not be harmed #Libya

Maybe they should have contacted them to let them know they were coming first.

Though I suppose they didn't want to draw too much attention.

Still SAS sneaking around eastern Libya is bound to look suspicious.

[Larry]

Yeah, I'm thinking that if England (and I recall reading, other countries) are sending troops into a civil war, and they're getting captured, then this thing has the potential to get a whole lot uglier, in a hurry.

Edit: Or, possibly, to get ended a whole lot quicker.

[twa]

There have been a number of covert military extractions of citizens by different countries...including ours

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1305: On the detained UK special forces, a source in the rebel movement in Benghazi tells Reuters he expects the situation to be resolved soon. "They are safe and in good hands. We do not know why they [the British government] did not get in touch first or [detail] the purpose of their mission."

[Thiebear]

SAS: They were looking out for their own countrypeople and not as much on their own as they normally would.

[Larry]

There have been a number of covert military extractions of citizens by different countries...including ours

And I can understand the motivation to do so.

Although I also wonder. Is the Libyan government (or somebody else) preventing them from leaving? Are they being held hostage, or something? Why is a military invasion necessary, so that an American, say, can leave?

All I'm observing is that when a country decides that it's interests justify a (really small, temporary) military invasion, you run the risk that the Libyans will view it as, well, as a military invasion during a civil war.

[twa]

There are many that were in isolated regions(isolated both geographically and by the outbreak of fighting)that makes travel through contested areas rather risky

It would certainly not be the first time foreign citizens were seized as bargaining chips...that is more common than not.

a nation that does not protect it's citizens in time of peril becomes......Lybia

[visionary]

And I can understand the motivation to do so.

Although I also wonder. Is the Libyan government (or somebody else) preventing them from leaving? Are they being held hostage, or something? Why is a military invasion necessary, so that an American, say, can leave?

All I'm observing is that when a country decides that it's interests justify a (really small, temporary) military invasion, you run the risk that the Libyans will view it as, well, as a military invasion during a civil war.

Well this wasn't a military invasion, just a badly planned mission to meet with the opposition.

The SAS were just a bodyguard to keep the diplomat safe, I'm assuming.

---------- Post added March-6th-2011 at 10:51 AM ----------

#1259: The UK's Foreign Secretary William Hague has told the BBC the possibility of implementing a no-fly zone over Libya was still being considered: "Let me stress, that is contingency planning. Any implementation of a no-fly zone would have to be legal, it would have to have strong international support, of course... so that we will be ready if Col Gaddafi turns even more vengefully on his own people and uses air power... against civilians on a large scale."

#1405: The Red Cross and the United Arab Emirates plan to build two new camps on Tunisia's border with Libya in anticipation of a fresh arrival of refugees, an aid official tells AFP.

Yeah, that's going to help a lot when people probably aren't being let out any more.

I haven't heard anyone from the international community condemning the way the soldiers on the Libyan side of the border completely robbed everyone who went through earlier either.

#1406: Military intervention in Libya would have "negative" effects, the French foreign minister says according to AFP.

#1428: The UK Prime Minister David Cameron has told a party conference that the UK will continue to intensify pressure on the Libyan regime, ensure crimes against humanity are punished, and provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the crisis. "And we will continue to plan, with our allies, for every eventuality... It is time for Col Gaddafi to go," Mr Cameron said.

#1455: There has been a sudden, worrying drop in the number of foreign workers crossing into Tunisia from Libya, the UK International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell has told Reuters in an interview. "Two days ago there were 10,000 or 11,000 people coming across," he said. "Yesterday there were only 1,863 people... Something has happened." The UN has speculated that they may be trapped or prevented from reaching the Tunisian border.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1604: The US may have missed an opportunity to oust Col Gaddafi by "dragging its feet" on helping rebels in the first weeks of Libya's uprising, Libya's former immigration minister Ali Errishi tells CNN talk show, State of the Union.

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-6-0

5:58pm Catherine Ashton, EU foreign minister, has sent a "fact-finding mission" to Libya, led by Italian humanitarian assistance official Agostino Miozzo. Ashton said:

I have decided to dispatch this high level mission to provide me with first-hand, real-time information to feed into the discussions leading up to Friday's extraordinary European Council when I will update heads of state and government on the situation.

6:18pm Confirmed: The eight members of a British mission earlier reported 'captured' in Benghazi have boarded the HMS Cumberland and have left the country, Al Jazeera's Hoda Hamid reports.

She saw them board the boat, and believes they are headed toward Malta. The ship's destination cannot be confirmed.

She also said she was shown an official letter explaining seven of them were providing the security detail for the eighth, a diplomat, who was attempting to get in contact with opposition forces.

Members of the opposition have said the eight were released, as anti-Gaddafi groups were also attempting to make contact with international diplomats.

On the surface, it's seen to be a bit of an embarassing misunderstanding for all sides involved. What more there is to be uncovered remains to be seen.

Opposition officials said the man carried advanced computer equipment with them, which they will display "in the near future".

---------- Post added March-6th-2011 at 12:09 PM ----------

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1707: The US and its allies should plan for a no-fly zone over Libya, US Democratic Senator John Kerry told CBS television, saying that it should not go into operation without an international agreement. He said he didn't see a no-fly zone as stepping over the line into military intervention.

---------- Post added March-6th-2011 at 12:31 PM ----------

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-6-0

7:15pm Al Jazeera's Hoda Abdel Hamid, reporting from Benghazi, reveals more about those newly released British soldiers - apparently on a "diplomatic mission".

She reports they were found outside the town of Suluq, about 50km south of Benghazi - and at least 200km from any oil installations. they were brought back to Benghazi, handed over to the National Council and rebel commanders.

One carried a diplomatic passport, while the other seven did not, confirm sources within the new "Libyan Transitional National Council".

Hoda reports the British said they had entered via the Egyptian passport - but none had recent Egyptian entry or exit stamps in their passports.

Instead, Hoda's sources tell her, anti-Gaddafi fighters near Suluq saw a helicopter landing close to them early on Friday, investigated, came across the eight - and picked them up.

While claims of being on a diplomatic mission remain credible, she says, members of the National Council are asking: "Why didn't they just establish direct contact with us?"

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-6-0

8:56pm Our colleagues in our London newsroom tell us people appear to have ignored appeals on Twitter for a pro-Gaddafi demonstration called for outside the Libyan embassy in the British capital this afternoon.

A few dozen anti-Gaddafi protesters turned up, however.

8:45pm The Libya Agency for Relief and Humanitarian Assistance is calling for aid to help shortages of food, medical supplies, fuel supplies and ambulances equipped to perform operations - as well as insulin for diabetics, hygiene pads for patients, water sanitation filters, communications equipment and LPG liquid gas.

If you have access to any of those things, you can get in touch with them by clicking here. http://www.libaid.net/eng/

Not quite sure who runs that though. Hopefully not the Gaddafi family. (I heard on the news that the only NGOs in Libya are run by them)

9:06pm The Libyan Transitional National Council expects soon to be formally recognised by some countries, its head told Al Jazeera Arabic. Former justice minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil, formally appointed today to lead the council, said:

There are official contacts with European and Arab countries. Upon the release later today of a statement, some countries will announce their recognition.

He also said a military force, led by defecting members of the Libyan army, would make its way to the strategic Mediterranean coast city of Sirte, held by some 4,000 Gaddafi loyalists, before heading on to the capital Tripoli.

---------- Post added March-6th-2011 at 02:32 PM ----------

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1926: Amr Moussa, head of the Arab League, has called on Col Gaddafi to begin "immediately" a "process of reconciliation with his people" if he wants to stay in power. Speaking to French media, he added: "But I do not think the people will let that happen, and that's sad."

Um...lame. Guess that rules out the Arab League for help.

#1939: "Lots of people throw around phrases like no-fly zone - they talk about it as though it's just a video game," William M Daley, the new White House chief of staff, said in at appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press" TV news programme.

http://twitter.com/bencnn

Met courageous Libyan-American neurosurgeon Rida Mazagri from Charleston, West Virginia operating on wounded in Ras Lanouf hospital. #Libya 7 minutes ago via web

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1956: The rebels defending Bin Jawad would certainly welcome an international no-fly zone. "We only want planes, but we want nothing else," one told the Associated Press. "They should only come in with planes, but we don't want them to come into our country with troops on the ground." Another said: "We ask European countries for just one thing: to enforce a no-fly zone and block passage by sea. That's it. We only ask for this."

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#2037: Former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw tells the BBC's Newshour programme that enforcing a no-fly zone over Libya may be counter-productive, as any international military action may have "unintended consequences", in terms of possible civilian casualties, and entrenching Col Gaddafi's leadership.

#2040: Mr Straw describes Col Gaddafi's claims that al-Qaeda may be behind the Libyan uprising as "nonsense", describing the rebel forces as "internal and secular".

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-6-0

10:15pm After the numbers of people crossing the borders from Libya appears to have dropped dramatically almost overnight, Ahmed Shebani, Libya Relief spokesman, tells Al Jazeera the group is only able to get help to those in the east of the country.

Tripoli and Az Zawiyah are very difficult to get to at the moment.

In the east, however, there's stuil a shortage of fuel. The 'interim government' in Benghazi has requested fuel, so their vehicles can move around and attempt to liberate other areas - but they need food and medicines - and they want international recognition as the new government of Libya.

I've heard they have about 8-10 days of fuel to food suplies, so pretty quickly, this will become a crisis.

Nice!

11.14pm Valerie Amos, the top UN relief official called for urgent humanitarian access to Misrata in western Libya following reports of violence and killings in the area.

"Humanitarian organizations need urgent access now. People are injured and dying and need help immediately," she said.

"I call on the authorities to provide access without delay to allow aid workers to help save lives."

11:54pm A US state department official was asked if the US administration had contacted Drs Mahmoud Jabril and Ali el-Assawi - the two men named by the Libyan "Transitional National Council" as their foreign relations representatives. The US official replied:

We continue to evaluate the situation which obviously remains very fluid. We are in contact with the Libyan opposition as events unfold, and we continue to urge Gaddafi to leave power.

[twa]

Egypt Quietly Invades Libya

March 6, 2011: The rebellion against the Kadaffi dictatorship in Libya has not produced any official outside help, but Egypt has apparently sent some of its commandos in to help out the largely amateur rebel force. Wearing civilian clothes, the hundred or so Egyptian commandos are officially not there, but are providing crucial skills and experience to help the rebels cope with the largely irregular, and mercenary, force still controlled by the Kadaffi clan. There are also some commandos from Britain (SAS) and American (Special Forces) operators are also believed wandering around, mainly to escort diplomats or perform reconnaissance (and find out who is in charge among the rebels).

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsf/articles/20110306.aspx

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1125: Dr Ahmed Sewehli is a Libyan psychiatrist who has given up his job in England to help the medical community back in Libya. He told the BBC World Service that Misrata's hospital was struggling to cope with the number of casualties. "Unfortunately, there are not enough ventilators in the hospital to cope with the severely injured, and there is a shortage of anaesthetic agents," he said.

#1129: Dr Sewehili also said it was difficult to get supplies into the country. "We are trying to get medicines, infant milk and doctors into Libya but it's proving very, very difficult. We've been trying to get people through the borders, especially at the Tunisian end, but unfortunately that's been closed. We have had contacts with people who are able to use smuggling routes. That is costing a lot of money and is also very, very dangerous. The Libyan authorities, as in Gaddafi's men, are not allowing people in with supplies," he explained

#1153: A spokesman for the rebel National Libyan Council has warned that Col Gaddafi could seek to destroy Libya's oil industry if there is no foreign military intervention soon. "The West needs to move or this crazy guy will do something to the oilfields. He is like a wounded wolf. If the West does not intervene with tactical air strikes he could put the oilfields out of commission for a long time," Mustafa Gheriani told the Reuters news agency.

#1154: Mr Gheriani also told Reuters that there were almost 17,000 rebel fighters "out there in Ajdabiya and beyond, but they are scattered".

#1202: The Arab League supports the creation of a military no-fly zone over Libya to protect civilians, the French foreign ministry has told the AFP news agency. On Sunday, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe held talks in Paris with Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.

Really? That seems different than what they were both saying the other day.

Moussa sounded like he wanted Gaddafi to stay in power.

#1233: Former Czech President Vaclav Havel, who helped bring about the end of communist rule in his country, has said foreign military action should be used to oust Col Gaddafi if his forces continue to attack civilians. He told the Hospodarske Noviny newspaper that the world might have to stop the Libyan leader from committing "more and more crimes". "The entire world was wrong," he said, when it considered Col Gaddafi "an eccentric weirdo", because "it turned out that he was a mad criminal". Mr Havel said one option was "a targeted attack aimed at the places where Gaddafi is hiding".

#1242: Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen tells BBC World News: "It is absolutely outrageous what we are witnessing in Libya. These systematic attacks against the civilian population may, as stated by the UN Security Council, amount to crimes against humanity. The government of Libya has a responsibility to protect its own population."

#1244: Asked about the debate between the alliance's member states on whether to impose a no-fly zone, Mr Rasmussen says: "Nato stands united. We have asked our militaries to conduct prudent planning for all eventualities. However, Nato has no intention to intervene. I would assume that any operational role would in accordance with, and pursuant to a UN mandate."

#1245: He adds: "The current UN Security Council resolution does not authorise the use of force. However, I cannot imagine the international community would stand idly by if Col Gaddafi continues to attack his own people."

Everyone seems to be coming out more strongly today.

---------- Post added March-7th-2011 at 09:01 AM ----------

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1349: Japan is set to impose sanctions on Col Gaddafi, his family and associates in line with last week's UN Security Council resolution, the Kyodo news agency has reported. The sanctions would be approved by the cabinet on Tuesday, a government source was quoted as saying.

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698

#1359: The British Conservative MP, John Baron, who is on the parliamentary foreign affairs select committee, tells the BBC: "I have to admit I don't know what we're up to. I think we've got to learn to stop meddling in other countries' affairs. I think Iraq and Afghanistan have taught us that. And we've got to be very careful not to be hypocritical, promoting democracy in one breath and yet selling crowd-control arms to these very regimes in the next."

#1406: Up to a million foreign workers and others trapped in Libya are expected to need emergency aid because of fighting in the country, the UN has said. Emergency Relief Co-ordinator Valerie Amos said the UN needed $160m to pay for camp co-ordination and management, food security, nutrition, health care, water, sanitation and hygiene for the next three months. "This appeal is based on a planning scenario projecting up to 400,000 people leaving Libya - including the 200,000 who have left to date - and another 600,000 people inside Libya expected to need humanitarian aid," she said.

#1411: Baroness Amos also told the BBC that getting help to rebel-held areas which had come under attack by government forces was essential: "You would normally have a situation where the Libyan Red Crescent would get access and where we could support them with a flow of supplies. To have the Benghazi Red Crescent and the Libyan Red Crescent ringing us up and saying: 'We can't get in, we urgently need you to call for access,' is unprecedented."

#1414: Dr Ahmed Sewehli, a spokesman for Libyan Doctors Relief, has told the BBC that the Libyan authorities are not allowing doctors and medical supplies over the western border with Tunisia. "It is quite bewildering. [Col Gaddafi] is not allowing his own people to be treated for the injuries that of course he and his regime have been causing," he added.

---------- Post added March-7th-2011 at 10:18 AM ----------

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-7

5:12pm Reuters reports: European Union member states are set to extend sanctions imposed on Libya to include the Libyan Investment Authority, a $70 billion sovereign wealth fund with major European investments, diplomats said.

---------- Post added March-7th-2011 at 10:28 AM ----------

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/03/201137104542799242.html

UN sends mission to Tripoli

The United Nations are sending a humanitarian assessment team to Tripoli, a request that was agreed to by Musa Kusa, the Libyan foreign minister.

In a telephone conversation, Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, urged Kusa to "consider the best interests of the Libyan people, and listen to the united voice of the international community".

He also called on the authorities in Tripoli to uphold their responsibility to protect the country's citizens and to heed the Libyan people's legitimate aspirations to live in dignity and peace.

Ban has appointed Abdelilah Al-Khatib, the former foreign minister of Jordan, as his special envoy to Libya to undertake consultations with the Libyan government on the humanitarian situation of the crisis.

Al-Khatib will travel to New York in the next few days before taking up his responsibilities in the region.

The secretary-general has expressed deep concern about the fighting in Libya, "which is claiming large numbers of lives and threatens even more carnage in the days ahead," according to a statement from his office.

He noted that civilians are bearing the brunt of the violence, and called for "an immediate halt to the government's disproportionate use of force and indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets".

He also stressed that those who violate international humanitarian law or commit grave crimes must be held accountable.