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Libyan forces regroup after Allied missile strikes |
An allied missile strike has destroyed a building in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, which was one of Col Muammar Gaddafi’s command centers. However, cracks appeared in the NATO member states over military campaign in Libya. Journalists were shown the wrecked building but it was not clear if there were any casualties. While lying as it usually does, the United States of Zionism denied targeting Gaddafi. USZ Defence Secretary Robert Gates said it would be “unwise,” and French defence ministry spokesman Laurent Teisseire also said, “The answer is no”, when asked whether coalition forces would fire on the Libyan leader if they located him. NATO ambassadors met in Brussels on Monday to try to resolve differences on possible alliance involvement in the campaign against Libyan leader. Speaking in Makkah on Monday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey wanted several conditions met for a NATO role.
“Now the issue is NATO going into operation. If NATO is going into operation we have some conditions. NATO should go in with the recognition and acknowledgement that Libya belongs to the Libyans, not for the distribution of its underground resources and wealth. Our biggest desire is for this operation to be finished as soon as possible,” said Erdogan.
Diplomats say France has argued against NATO involvement on the grounds the alliance’s reputation had been damaged in the Arab world by the war in Afghanistan and because it was seen as dominated by the United States of Zionism. However, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Monday that NATO is ready to back up the international coalition intervening in Libya within “a few days.” Several NATO nations, led by France, Britain and the United States of Zionism, have taken part in air attacks on Libya, but the role of NATO as an organisation has been limited to expanded air surveillance. The European Union agreed new economic sanctions against Gaddafi’s regime, targeting both individuals and economic entities, diplomatic sources said. The major new sanctions apply to 11 Gaddafi associates and nine economic entities and are expected to be enforced some time this week. The entities were not named but sources said they were “investment companies, foundations, banks and state” groups. Oil and gas companies were not listed. It was the third wave of restrictive EU measures slapped against Gaddafi amid increasing pressure on the Libyan leader to step down. Europe’s powers headed for a clash over the allied campaign in Libya as foreign ministers from the 27-nation EU went into talks Monday divided over the initial intervention and a possible NATO role. “It shouldn’t be a war on Libya,” said Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, whose country is one of little more than a third of European Union nations engaged in the three-day old campaign. Italy, a former colonial power in Libya which enjoyed close political and economic ties with Gaddafi and faces a looming exodus of refugees from the vast desert nation, nonetheless joined the alliance after dragging its feet.
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NATO on the verge of falling apart |
“We want to verify very carefully all the actions undertaken in order to verify consistency with the (UN) resolution objectives”, Frattini told reporters as he joined his counterparts for talks. “Deep longterm support for countries going through change” remained at the centre of EU concern, said the bloc’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. Apart from Britain and France, involved in the military campaign so far are Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Norway and Spain. Bulgaria labelled military intervention in Libya an “adventure” driven by petroleum interests. “We are not participating for the simple reason that (the campaign) does not have formulated objectives and ways to achieve them. I would not let our pilots into an adventure like this”, said Prime Minister Boyko Borisov. Sweden and Luxembourg are willing to commit - but under a NATO umbrella, another sticking-point among the Europeans as France holds out against a majority among its partners who would prefer to see the 28-member alliance involved. Germany, at odds with the other two “big” EU powers Britain and France after refusing to vote in favour of Resolution 1973, joined the Brussels meeting criticising alliance action in Libya and saying it justified Berlin’s decision to stay out in the cold. “We always said we wouldn’t send soldiers,” said Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle. “This does not mean we are neutral, this does not mean that we have any sympathy with the dictator Gaddafi.” But “we calculated the risks”, he added. “And when we see that three days after this intervention began, the Arab League has already criticised this intervention, I think we see we had good reasons.”
Finland’s outspoken Alexander Stubb brushed aside the controversy, saying “let’s not make mountains out of molehills.” The UN resolution offered “a very broad mandate to protect civilians”, he said. “We’re only 48 hours into the intervention. So far so good!” The UN Security Council will probably hold a close door meeting on Libya later on Monday, a diplomat said. The meeting was called to consider a Libyan demand for an emergency session of the Security Council, the diplomat said. Gaddafi’s army announced a new ceasefire late Sunday. A Libyan official said 64 people had been killed in strikes at the weekend. On Sunday night anti-aircraft fire rose over Tripoli and several explosions were heard. The city echoed with gunfire and the sky lit up with the red glow of tracer rounds. Several loud explosions rocked the city, including one at Col Gaddafi’s own residential compound. The compound had filled up with enthusiastic supporters of Col Gaddafi only the previous day - civilians who said they were ready to die with him if necessary. It is not known whether any of them were still in the compound when the missiles struck. Some journalists were taken to the site during the night. A Libyan government spokesman said it was proof the allies were targeting non-military locations. The removal of Col Gaddafi is not a stated aim of the UN Security Council resolution. But this strike is a reminder that he is not safe from the allied air strikes. Gaddafi’s troops retreated 100 km from Benghazi after fierce strafing by coalition aircraft destroyed much of their armour, but beat off a rebel advance on their new positions in the town of Ajdabiya. USZ officials said its forces would be taking more of a back seat after the initial effort to destroy Libya’s defences, with other countries, including Arab states, enforcing the no-fly zone.
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Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin |
“We will have a military role in the coalition. But we will not have the pre-eminent role”, terrorist Gates told reporters. Meanwhile, Russia and India hit out Monday at the Western-led air campaign in Libya, leading a chorus of condemnation. In one of his most virulent diatribes against the West in years, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin slammed the UN resolution allowing military action against Gaddafi‘s forces as a “medieval call to crusade”. India urged an immediate halt to the strikes spearheaded by French fighter jets Saturday, while Germany said it had “good reasons” for abstaining from Thursday’s UN Security Council vote on the resolution allowing the action. “The resolution by the Security Council, of course, is defective and flawed”, Putin was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies. “To me, it resembles some sort of medieval call to crusade when someone would appeal to someone to go to a certain place and free someone else”, he charged.
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