Top Libya rebel 'shot by militia'

30 July 2011 Last updated at 11:59 GMT Younes was buried in the rebel capital, Benghazi Libyan rebel commander Gen Abdel Fattah Younes was shot dead by a militia linked to his own side, a rebel minister has said.

Ali Tarhouni said Gen Younes was killed by members of the Obaida Ibn Jarrah Brigade, which is an Islamist group.

Gen Younes defected to the rebels in February after serving in the Libyan leadership since the 1969 coup which brought Col Muammar Gaddafi to power.

Meanwhile Nato says it bombed Libyan state TV transmitters overnight.

The Libyan Broadcasting Authority said three of its technicians were killed and 15 other people injured in the attack in the capital, Tripoli.

The alliance said it had disabled three satellite transmission dishes through a "precision air strike".

It said the operation was intended to stop "inflammatory broadcasts" by Col Gaddafi's government.

Continue reading the main story Ian Pannell, BBC News, Misrata

The more information that comes to light about the murder of Abdel Fattah Younes the more troubling the affair becomes.

According to Ali Tarhouni, a minister with the National Transitional Council, members of the Obaida Ibn Jarrah Brigade, an Islamist group allied with the rebels, killed the general and two other commanders and burned their bodies.

This will feed growing doubts about the armed opposition, about its ability to govern and fight as a cohesive group and about the influence of Islamist factions.

The Libyan government in Tripoli has constantly warned that the rebels are under the influence of al-Qaeda. Although there is no evidence of this, it has called the murder of Gen Younes a "slap in the face" for Britain after it officially recognised the council in Benghazi as the government of Libya.

Nato said the strike would "reduce the regime's ability to oppress civilians" but also "preserve television broadcast infrastructure that will be needed after the conflict".

Libyan state TV was still on air following the Nato statement.

'Slap in the face'

Oil minister Tarhouni told reporters in Benghazi a leader of the militia had provided information on the circumstances of Younes' death.

Mr Tarhouni said Younes and two of his aides were killed after being recalled to the rebel stronghold for questioning.

Younes' shot and burned body, and the bodies of his aides, were found on the edge of Benghazi on Friday.

"His lieutenants did it," Mr Tarhouni said, adding that the killers were still at large, Reuters news agency reported.

The minister did not provide a motive for the killing, which he said was still being investigated.

Col Gaddafi's government said the killing was proof that the rebels were not capable of ruling Libya.

Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said: "It is a nice slap [in] the face of the British that the [rebel National Transitional] council that they recognised could not protect its own commander of the army."

Continue reading the main story Helped Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi take power in the 1969 coup that ousted King IdrisClose advisor to the Libyan leader for four decades, rising to the post of general and training Col Gaddafi's special forcesAppointed interior ministerQuit the government on 22 February 2011 and defected to the rebels - one of the earliest such moves by a senior officialAppointed as the opposition's military chief in April, but faced mistrust due to his past ties to Col GaddafiMr Ibrahim also said Younes was killed by al-Qaeda, repeating a claim that the group is the strongest force within the rebel movement.

"By this act, al-Qaeda wanted to mark out its presence and its influence in this region," he said.

"The other members of the National Transitional Council knew about it but could not react because they are terrified of al-Qaeda," he added.

Middle East analyst Shashank Joshi said the concern that emerges most sharply from the incident is not so much that the National Transitional Council will splinter before Tripoli falls, but that it might do so afterwards.

The general - Col Gaddafi's former interior minister - joined the rebels at the beginning of the Libyan uprising in February.

The BBC's Ian Pannell in the rebel-held city of Misrata says the death will feed international suspicions that the rebels cannot be trusted.

View the original article here

UK sends more warplanes to Libya

15 July 2011 Last updated at 10:51 GMT There will now be 16 British Tornados deployed to Libya The UK is sending four more Tornado warplanes to support the Nato mission in Libya, in addition to 12 aircraft it has already deployed.

Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt said the aircraft were well equipped for surveillance and reconnaissance.

"It is important to have this capability available," he said.

Earlier this week, Nato Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on members to provide more aircraft to protect Libyan civilians.

Nato said its warplanes had conducted more than 5,000 air missions since the action began in March.

Meanwhile in Turkey, Arab and Nato diplomats are meeting to consider the next phase of their campaign in Libya. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and UK Foreign Secretary William Hague are part of the group of 15 gathering in Istanbul.

It is the fourth meeting of the Libya Contact Group since March.

The conflict in Libya began with protests against Col Muammar Gaddafi's regime and has escalated into a bloody battle for territory between government and rebel forces in the west and east of the oil-rich country.

The uprising, inspired by events in neighbouring Tunisia and Egypt and sparked by the arrest of a Libyan human rights campaigner, began in February. Many were killed as authorities tried to suppress the revolt.

View the original article here

Libya rebels advance on key town

7 July 2011 Last updated at 17:48 GMT Rebels say they want to control the main north-south road to Tripoli Libyan rebels have advanced against government forces on a strategically important road south of Tripoli.

They have moved between 10-15km (6-16 miles) in the last 24 hours towards the government-held town of Gharian, a BBC correspondent says.

The town controls access to one of the main roads leading from the desert northwards towards the capital.

Earlier, rebels in Misrata said progress towards Tripoli was being hampered by a lack of ammunition.

They also said support from Nato was inadequate.

Moving carefully

The new front line has brought the rebels closer to Gharian, an important garrison for Col Muammar Gaddafi's forces, the BBC's Mark Doyle in Libya reports.

This is the most significant confirmed advance the rebels have made in this part of Libya in the past few weeks, our correspondent says.

He adds that empty ammunition boxes and spent bullets litter the ground, along with army uniforms discarded by the government troops. Fires caused by the clashes are still smouldering.

If the rebels can take Gharian, they will control the main north-south road to Tripoli.

But rebel fighters say the town is heavily defended, and they are moving forward carefully to avoid civilian casualties.

Our correspondent adds that the rebels are obviously also moving slowly because Col Gaddafi's forces are resisting them each step of the way.

Misrata stalemate

On Wednesday, officials in the rebel-held city of Misrata said 17 of their fighters were killed and more than 60 wounded.

A rebel spokesman said Nato air cover was patchy, with deadly consequences.

Misrata has been the scene of heavy fighting for many weeks

"When the aircraft is flying in the sky... it means Gaddafi's forces cannot use rocket launchers on the ground, they are afraid [of] aircraft... observing them and... striking them," Fatti Bashada told the BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse, near Misrata.

Mr Bashada said that despite repeated requests to keep patrolling the skies, Nato aircraft have, in recent days, disappeared half-way through a battle.

"When there's no flight, it means they are free to use any weapons against us," he said, adding that rockets fired by Col Gaddafi's fighters were killing an increasing number of rebels.

Rebel forces and soldiers loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi have been locked in a stalemate to the west of Misrata for more than six weeks.

Libya is under an international arms embargo and fresh supplies from the rebel stronghold of Benghazi in the east of the country have been slow in coming.

Rebels have said that, until this changes, their progress towards Tripoli will be both slow and painful.

UN Security Council resolution 1970 imposed an arms embargo on Libya but US and UK officials have argued that a subsequent resolution, 1973, could nonetheless allow weapons to be supplied to rebels fighting to topple the Libyan leader.

Rebels hold much of Libya's east, plus Misrata and several towns in the Nafusa mountains near the Tunisian border.

Those in the mountains have been boosted by deliveries of arms dropped by French aircraft last month.

Russia has condemned France for supplying weapons to the rebels and, along with China, has said that the Nato campaign has gone beyond the remit of resolution 1973.

Nato and several Arab states mandated to defend civilians have been carrying out air strikes against military targets linked to Col Gaddafi for more than three months.

Pressure has been growing to find an end to the conflict. The rebels insist Col Gaddafi must step down.

View the original article here

Libya rebels back AU talks offer

2 July 2011 Last updated at 23:03 GMT The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Gaddafi last month Libyan rebel leaders have welcomed an African Union offer to open talks with the government in Tripoli without the direct involvement of Muammar Gaddafi.

The Transitional National Council said it was the first time the AU had recognised the people's aspirations for democracy and human rights in Libya.

The talks offer was agreed at an AU summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.

The AU also told members not to execute an arrest warrant for Col Gaddafi from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The warrant "seriously complicates the efforts aimed at finding a negotiated political settlement to the crisis in Libya, which will also address, in a mutually reinforcing way, issues related to impunity and reconciliation," delegates said in a statement.

The chairman of the AU Commission, Jean Ping, said they were not against the ICC, but felt that the court was "discriminatory" and targeted only officials from the African continent.

A total of 31 states in Africa are signatories to the ICC, representing nearly a third of the nations where the mandate applies.

Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim welcomed the decision.

"The ICC is a European Guantanamo Bay. It's only against the African leaders. It never deals with the crimes committed by the United States of America... and by the European powers," he told reporters in Tripoli.

Col Gaddafi, along with his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanussi, has been accused of crimes against humanity. The ICC said it had grounds to believe they ordered attacks on civilians.

Ceasefire call

The offer of talks without Col Gaddafi's involvement followed intense debates between African leaders at the summit over two days.

The AU also called for an immediate ceasefire and the lifting of the UN no-fly zone which paved the way for Nato's military intervention.

It said both parties should formally request the deployment of a UN peacekeeping mission in Libya to monitor the implementation of a cessation of hostilities.

Rebel representatives at the summit said they would need a number of guarantees from the AU before they could agree to a ceasefire.

TNC representative Mansour Saif al-Nasr told reporters that the rebels were prepared to end hostilities if Col Gaddafi stepped down.

"If we see that Gaddafi withdraws, we are ready to stop and negotiate with our brothers who are around Gaddafi," he said.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

View the original article here

Libya: French arms drop condemned

30 June 2011 Last updated at 11:34 GMT France is said to be concerned at the military stalemate in Libya African Union Commission chief Jean Ping says France's decision to air-drop weapons to Libyan rebels is dangerous and puts the whole region at risk.

He told the BBC the action risked creating problems similar to those in war-torn Somalia.

France has confirmed it dropped arms to Berber tribal fighters in the mountains south-west of the capital, Tripoli.

Some analysts said the move might contravene the UN Security Council embargo on arms supplies to Libya.

Mr Ping was speaking from Equatorial Guinea where African heads of state are meeting for an AU summit.

Libya is expected to be high on the summit's agenda.

'Somalia-sation'

"There are several problems," he said.

"The risk of civil war, risk of partition of the country, the risk of 'Somalia-sation' of the country, risk of having arms everywhere... with terrorism.

"These risks will concern the neighbouring countries."

Mr Ping said that an AU peace plan for Libya set out in March was still valid. The road map calls for a ceasefire to allow political talks to take place.

News of France's weapons delivery to the rebels emerged in a report by Le Figaro newspaper on Wednesday.

The newspaper said France - a leading force in the Nato operation in Libya - did not inform its allies about the move.

The report said the weapons included rocket launchers and anti-tank missiles, although French officials would only confirm light arms and ammunition had been dropped to rebel fighters.

The decision was reportedly taken after a meeting in April between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and the Chief of Staff of the Libyan rebels, Gen Abdelfatah Younis.

France is said to have been concerned at the stalemate in the Libyan conflict that started in February.

Rebels have recently been making gains and hope to advance on Tripoli from the existing front line on the other side of the Nafusa mountains about 65km (40 miles) from the capital.

Russia and China have criticised the Nato campaign, saying it has gone beyond the remit of UN resolution 1973, which authorised international military action in Libya.

However, the US has argued that resolution 1973 allows countries to provide arms to rebels despite an earlier resolution - 1970 - that imposed an arms embargo on the whole of Libya.

The BBC's Thomas Fessy in Equatorial Guinea's capital, Malabo, says Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi is well known for his extravagant arrivals at African Union summits, but he is not taking part this time.

Nevertheless, his name was probably mentioned more than any other during a week of preparatory meetings, our correspondent says.

He says African leaders are divided over whether the Libyan leader should step down.

View the original article here

Libya rebels 'face health crisis'

28 June 2011 Last updated at 04:51 GMT By Bridget Kendall BBC News, Benghazi Hospital staff say they have to share out what drugs are left among the sick children A medical crisis is looming in eastern Libya with hospitals in Benghazi running short of supplies, the rebels' health minister says.

Stocks of drugs and other items such as surgical gloves are said to be running out.

Dr Nagi Barakat told the BBC that most emergency aid donated from abroad went straight to the front line.

He said that if a new offensive broke out, hospitals would face a major crisis.

On the cancer ward of Benghazi's children's hospital, most patients are not getting the right dosage. There aren't enough drugs to go round.

Dr Amina Bayou says she and her colleagues juggle supplies to give everyone a little.

"We try to divide the drugs between this patient and that patient. It's not good," she said.

"We are treating more than 200 children. We ask parents to go to Egypt to buy medicines and when they bring them back, we divide them up like parcelling out food."

In one room, a two-year-old called Bubaker lies listlessly. His leukaemia is advanced and he is not responding to treatment, says Dr Bayou, because the dose isn't strong enough.

Next door, six-year-old Melak is doing better. She too has leukaemia and is recovering from a severe lung infection. Doctors found anti-fungal drugs to treat her after a desperate search - the last medicine of its kind in all Benghazi. Without it, she would now be dead.

It is not just cancer drugs that are running out in Benghazi's hospitals.

Shelves are rapidly being cleared of what medical supplies are left, rebel officials say

Dr Barakat, a Libyan doctor who returned from London to take up the post of health minister in the rebels' interim government, says the situation is critical.

The list of 150 items needed urgently include surgical gloves and gauze as well as a whole array of drugs needed for cardiac patients and, critically, in the intensive care units.

At the Hawari General Hospital, director Dr Ezzedin Benomran is at his wits' end.

He reckons that more than 20 patients have died since February because of the lack of medical supplies.

Stocks of the narcotics needed for anaesthetic procedures are so low that the hospital has had to close nine of its 12 operating theatres.

The surgeons only operate on emergency cases - four a day - and many of those are patients with serious gunshot wounds, transferred to Benghazi from the front line in Misrata.

Cash shortage

Dr Barakat says here is little left over for women who need caesarean sections, or casualties from car accidents or other domestic accidents.

In any case, he adds, the amounts donated by foreign governments and NGOs cannot meet the demands of all the hospitals in a large city like Benghazi, which services the entire population of eastern Libya.

Medical stocks were already low in February. Now they have been run down in some cases almost to zero, he says.

Critically wounded fighters are among those requiring scant hospital resources

"We have only 2-3 weeks' supply of cancer drugs," said Dr Barakat. "They used to be allocated to us from a central point in Tripoli. We have no access to that now."

The rebel leadership says it would willingly pay for new supplies if only it had the money, but its stock of cash has also run out.

A week ago rebel leaders appealed to the outside world to help unlock funds and loans to sort out the cash flow problem and avoid a social and medical crisis in the city.

A week on - according to senior sources in the leadership - there is still no sign of any cash being made available.

Dr Barakat says this is only one of his worries.

So far the hospitals are just about keeping afloat, despite the shortages. But if there were to be any new pressure on the system, he fears it could break it.

"If Tripoli falls tomorrow, we will have major crisis," he said.

"If there are new mass casualties on the front line here in the east because of an assault on Brega and Ras Lanuf there will be too.

"I am worried because any time the army moves forward and there are mass casualties, I am sure we will not be able to cope."

View the original article here

Libya rejects ICC arrest warrant

27 June 2011 Last updated at 21:10 GMT The ICC said it had grounds to believe Col Gaddafi had ordered attacks on Libyan civilians Libya has rejected a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for the arrest of Col Muammar Gaddafi, saying the tribunal has no authority.

The ICC earlier accused the Libyan leader of crimes against humanity.

The court had grounds to believe he had ordered attacks on civilians during Libya's four-month uprising, it said.

The Hague-based court also issued warrants for two of Col Gaddafi's top aides - his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanussi.

Thousands of people are believed to have been killed in the conflict.

Anti-Gaddafi forces said on Monday they had launched a new push towards Tripoli, with heavy fighting near the strategic town of Bir al-Ghanam, to the south-west of capital.

The rebel defence minister told the BBC that forces opposed to Col Gaddafi may also make a move on the capital from the east.

'Unquestioned control'

Libya's justice minister said Libya did not accept the ICC's decision to call for Col Gaddafi's arrest.

Continue reading the main story Bridget Kendall BBC News, Benghazi

This is in some way Libya's 'Wild East': Since the uprising began in February, Benghazi has become a city stocked with arms and a population of young men eager to let off exuberant volleys at the slightest provocation. But there was real passion in their reaction to the ICC's announcement.

Many in the rebels' eastern stronghold seem impatient to see their former leader brought to justice, not just for his attempts to crush their uprising, but also for what they remember as brutal oppression by his regime for more than 40 years. And many appear to be increasingly optimistic that it could happen soon.

The rebel leadership says there is still a plan to advance on Tripoli from all sides, squeeze Col Gaddafi's supporters, and undermine him through uprisings from within the city. But they also seem to be hoping they can avoid a final military showdown, and instead force the Libyan leader out of office without more bloodshed.

Mohammad al-Qamoodi told a Tripoli news conference the court was "a tool of the Western world to prosecute leaders in the third world".

He added: "The leader of the revolution and his son do not hold any official position in the Libyan government and therefore they have no connection to the claims of the ICC against them."

The warrants refer to early weeks of the uprising, from 15 February until "at least 28 February".

There were "reasonable grounds to believe" that the three men were "criminally responsible" for the murder and persecution of civilians, said a statement read out by the ICC's presiding judge, Sanji Monageng.

Col Gaddafi had absolute and unquestioned control over Libya as its undisputed leader, and had introduced a policy to quell civilian demonstrations by any means, including by the use of force, said the court.

While Saif al-Islam Gaddafi held no official position in Libya, he was "the most influential person" in Col Gaddafi's inner circle, it added.

Mr Sanussi, said the court, had "directly instructed the troops to attack civilians demonstrating" in Benghazi, the city that has become the rebels' stronghold.

The warrants had been requested by chief ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo in May, to protect Libyan civilians.

There was celebratory gunfire in the streets of the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and the besieged city of Misrata as the news emerged.

Continue reading the main story Issued against Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and Abdullah al-Senussi For alleged criminal responsibility for the commission of murder and persecution as crimes against humanity from 15 February 2011 onwards Charges relate to actions of Libyan State apparatus and security forces in Tripoli, Benghazi, Misrata and elsewhere in LibyaThe rebel Transitional National Council's Ibrahim Dabbashi welcomed the decision, saying people close to Col Gaddafi should now urge him to step down.

"Those who are working with Gaddafi now… know that they are working with at least a suspected criminal, if they don't believe that he is a criminal," Mr Dabbashi, a former Libyan ambassador to the UN, told the BBC's Newshour programme.

"I think they have to convince Gaddafi to step down and to try to safe his life and the lives of his family."

On the military front, meanwhile, the rebels advanced some six miles (10km) towards Tripoli on Monday, says the BBC's Mark Doyle on the front line about 40 miles south-west of the capital.

The fighting was taking place on a plain of rock and sand between Bir al-Ghanem and Bir Ayyad a few miles to the south, with shells whistling overhead in both directions and plumes of smoke and sand rising into the air, he says.

The rebels seemed better armed in this strategic area than elsewhere in the country, adds our correspondent, who saw several pick-up trucks full of rebel soldiers - in clean uniforms and new-looking rocket launchers and rifles - heading for the front line.

The ICC announcement came as the international air operation in Libya, aimed at protecting civilians, entered its 100th day.

It was welcomed by Nato Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, as well as the governments of Nato allies France, the UK and the US.

View the original article here

PM criticises comments over Libya

21 June 2011 Last updated at 12:35 GMT The RAF is involved in a Nato mission to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya The prime minister has expressed irritation at comments from military chiefs about the UK's role in Libya.

It comes after the RAF's second-in-command said "huge" demands were being placed on equipment and personnel.

David Cameron said: "There are moments when I wake up and read the newspapers and think: 'I tell you what, you do the fighting and I'll do the talking'."

He said military leaders were "absolutely clear" the mission could be kept going for as long as necessary.

"Time is on our side, not on Gaddafi's side," he said in a news conference.

Last week, the First Sea Lord, Sir Mark Stanhope, warned that continuing operations in Libya beyond September would mean taking ships away from other tasks.

And in briefing notes obtained by The Daily Telegraph and published on Tuesday, Air Chief Marshal Sir Simon Bryant, said morale among personnel was "fragile" and their fighting spirit was being threatened by being over-worked.

He said the service was being stretched by intense air operations in Afghanistan and the Middle East.

'Morale fragile'

According to the briefing paper, ACM Bryant warned MPs in May that many areas of the RAF were "running hot", while service personnel's sense that the nation valued their efforts was being undermined by the government's defence cuts.

ACM Bryant said: "The true strength is in our people in continuing to deliver, despite all that's asked of them.

Continue reading the main story

It is time to listen to military advice, review the review and provide our forces with capabilities which match our foreign policy ambitions”

End Quote Jim Murphy Shadow defence secretary "Morale remains fragile. Although fighting spirit remains positive, this assessment will be challenged by individual harmony targets as Operation Ellamy [in Libya] endures [after September]."

He continued: "The impact of SDSR [strategic defence and security review] continues to undermine the sense of being valued. There is concern over the perceived lack of strategic direction which is restricting confidence in the senior leadership."

The RAF faces cuts of 5,000 personnel over the next three years - a reduction of almost 15%.

Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy said the assumptions on which the government's defence review had been based were "fundamentally flawed".

"It is time to listen to military advice, review the review and provide our forces with capabilities which match our foreign policy ambitions," he said.

Armed forces minister Nick Harvey said tough but necessary measures had to be taken in the strategic defence and security review but the MoD continued to have the resources it needed.

The RAF is involved in a Nato mission to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya to protect civilians using "all necessary measures" short of a ground invasion.

View the original article here

Nato loses Libya drone helicopter

21 June 2011 Last updated at 12:24 GMT Libyan state TV has shown wreckage of a helicopter

Nato has lost a helicopter drone involved in the Libyan campaign, a spokesman has said.

Wing Cmdr Mike Bracken said Nato's command centre in Naples, Italy, had lost contact with the unmanned aircraft at 0720 GMT.

His statement came as Libyan state TV showed images of what it claimed was the wreckage of a Nato Apache attack helicopter that had been shot down.

Wing Cmdr Bracken said no attack helicopters had been lost.

"This drone helicopter was performing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance over Libya to monitor Colonel Gaddafi's forces threatening the civilian population," he said.

"We are looking into the reasons [for the loss]. We can confirm we have not lost any attack helicopters."

Earlier, Libyan state TV aired footage of what it said was an Apache helicopter shot down by pro-government forces in the western district of Zlitan.

Nato deployed Apache attack helicopters in Libya earlier this month during its UN-sponsored mission to protect civilians from forces loyal to Col Gaddafi.

Nato officials have not identified the exact type of drone helicopters being used, but analysts say the alliance has been operating the MQ-8 Fire Scout helicopter drone, made by US firm Northrop Grumman.

The drone is the first aircraft reported lost by Nato over Libya since it took over the no-fly mission on March 31.

View the original article here

Top Libya rebel holds China talks

21 June 2011 Last updated at 05:46 GMT China has tried to distance itself from the military actions in Libya The top foreign affairs official in Libya's opposition has arrived in China for talks with the Beijing government.

Mahmud Jibril is expected to discuss bringing to an end the crisis in Libya, where China has oil interests.

Beijing follows what it calls a policy of non-interference and neutrality in the domestic affairs of other nations.

It abstained in the United Nations Security Council vote which led to the Nato military campaign and has since criticised air strikes.

It has also not joined in calls for the Libyan leader, Col Muammar Gaddafi, to resign.

However, the BBC's Beijing correspondent Martin Patience says Mr Jibril's visit will be seen as another blow to Col Gaddafi's rule.

Beijing has recently been stepping up efforts to persuade the two sides to reach a political agreement.

Chinese officials have already held two meetings with the head of the National Transitional Council, Mustapha Abdul-Jalil, the rebels' umbrella organisation.

The Libyan Foreign Minister, Abdelati al-Obeidi, also spent three days in Beijing earlier this month, with China saying a ceasefire should be the "top priority" of both sides.

Beijing may be asked to consider giving financial assistance to the rebels; Italy, France, Kuwait and Qatar have pledged money so far.

Mr Jibril is scheduled to stay in China for two days.

China has oil interests in the north African state and evacuated 30,000 of its workers at the start of the conflict in February.

View the original article here

Libya PM claims talks with rebels

18 June 2011 Last updated at 02:16 GMT The BBC's Andrew Harding followed a student in the UK joining the rebels

Libya's prime minister has said his government has been in talks with the rebels fighters, despite denials from the rebels themselves.

Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmudi called for new negotiations between the government and rebel leaders to resolve the conflict.

He also accused Nato of crimes against humanity in its attacks on Libya.

Earlier, Libyan rebels said that 10 civilians had been killed and 40 wounded in a rocket attack by Col Gaddafi's forces on Misrata.

"Our doors are open to all and we are in contact with all the parties," Mr Mahmudi said, according to Agence France-Presse.

He said meetings had taken place in Egypt, France, Norway and Tunisia, and that he could "name the persons" who attended from the rebels' side.

'No negotiation'

But Mahmoud Jibril, the head of international affairs in the rebel National Transitional Council, said earlier on Friday that there had been "no negotiation" between the council and the regime.

Continue reading the main story

This is the first time they [Nato] are facing an armed nation of millions... They will be defeated”

End Quote Col Muammar Gaddafi Speaking in Naples after meeting Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, he said that were negotiations to take place, the TNC would "announce it out of commitment to our friends all over the world".

He added: "We pursue every means possible, whether political, whether military, to liberate our country and establish democratic government based on a constitution and equal rights."

The prime minister's comments came as Nato planes carried out further raids on the capital, Tripoli, attacks which Mr al-Mahmudi said constituted war crimes.

He called for "an urgent meeting" of the United Nations to examine "these crimes committed by Nato against Libyan civilians".

On Friday, Libyan government forces bombarded the western rebel-held city of Misrata and territory held by rebel fighters between Dafniya and Zlitan.

'They ruined it'

These are the next towns on the road to Tripoli from Misrata, as they continued trying to advance westwards after weeks of being besieged by Col Gaddafi's forces.

Ambulances ferried wounded rebel fighters from the front line west of Misrata

The rebels returned fire from the front line, about 32km (20 miles) from Misrata, with their own artillery and rocket launchers.

A rebel commander, Mohammed Ali, said they were aiming at tanks and munitions stores in Naima, near Zlitan.

"We had a strategy to finish everything today but some of the fighters think it's a game," he told the Reuters news agency. "They shot when they weren't supposed to shoot and they have ruined it."

Nato military spokesman Wing Cdr Mike Bracken told reporters that there were "some positive signs that civilians are unifying against the Gaddafi regime" in the area.

What started as a peaceful uprising against Col Gaddafi's 41-year-rule four months ago has grown into a civil war, with the rebels now holding a third of the country in the east and pockets in the west, including Misrata.

Tripoli remains firmly under the control of the government, despite Nato launching more daytime air strikes.

Following fresh air raids on Friday, Libyan state TV broadcast an audio message from Col Gaddafi, in which he shouted: "We are in our country and we are determined to stay and defend it. We are staying, we are staying. Let them even use nuclear bombs."

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

View the original article here

UK Apaches to join Libya mission

27 May 2011 Last updated at 13:22 GMT Colonel Richard Kemp: "This will enable rebel forces to unlock a comparative stalemate"

The UK is sending four Apache attack helicopters to the mission in Libya, after approval by the prime minister.

If called upon, they will allow for swifter attacks on a wider range of smaller targets in urban areas.

The Apache helicopters, normally based at Wattisham, in Suffolk, are expected to go into operation within days.

Downing Street says intelligence suggests Col Muammar Gaddafi is "on the run" and hiding in Tripoli hospitals in the belief he will be safe there.

The Apache helicopters and their pilots, who are part of the Army Air Corps, are on exercise in the Mediterranean.

Meanwhile, a Russian diplomat has been quoted as saying the country could mediate Gaddafi's exit from Libya.

There had been speculation about the move to deploy the helicopters since Monday, after France said it would be deploying French Tiger helicopters and the UK would be sending Apaches.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "Ministers have given clearance in principle for the deployment of attack helicopters in Libya. It is a matter now for military commanders to make decisions on deployment."

Vulnerable

The final decision rested with David Cameron, who earlier on Thursday had requested more information about possible risks, while he was en route to the G8 Summit in France.

Continue reading the main story Caroline Wyatt Defence correspondent, BBC News

The Apache is prized by its crews and the troops it supports because it can operate day or night, in bad weather and in climates ranging from the chill of the Arctic to the heat of the desert, with dust and sand kept out of the engine by special filters...

The deployment of Apaches in Libya means there will be less chance of civilian casualties in operations that currently rely on the use of Tornado and Typhoon aircraft.

But the Apaches operate at lower altitudes and could be targeted by Libyan forces loyal to Col Gaddafi, which still have access to thousands of surface-to-air missiles.

The deployment was discussed at a meeting of the UK's National Security Council at Downing Street on Thursday.

John Baron, the only Conservative MP to vote against intervention in Libya, told BBC Radio 4's World at One he felt the introduction of Apaches was "an escalation" of military action.

He said: "Yet again, we are getting drawn further and further into this intervention... It is quite clear that this mission is as much about regime change as it is about humanitarian aid."

Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy said it marked a serious intensification of Britain's military commitment in Libya.

Civilian disguise

"It's a totally different order from those in a fixed wing aeroplane thousands of feet up in the air. These are close combat, fast attack helicopters, vulnerable to ground attack," he said.

Continue reading the main story Crew: 2 Main weapon: 16 Hellfire anti-tank missiles Length: 17.76m (58ft 3in) Rotor span: 14.63m (48ft) Cruising speed: 161mph (259km/h)Range: 334 miles (537km) Max mission duration: 2h 45min

Source: AgustaWestland

"So the government's got to reassure itself and reassure the public about the safety and the risk to our pilots. And in doing that they also have to be clearer about what's the exit strategy, what's the end game in Libya? What's the politics that goes alongside the military effort?"

Col Richard Kemp, former commander of forces in Afghanistan, told BBC Breakfast that Apaches can target individual soldiers, or groups of soldiers, on the ground as opposed to tanks or artillery or buildings.

"They are much more use at dealing with Gaddafi's latest tactics, which include using individuals in civilian clothes," he said.

"They are going to be critical in taking the campaign further and possibly unlocking what is not far off stalemate at present."

Retired Rear Adm Chris Parry, a defence analyst, said there was the potential for the Apaches to escalate the mission in Libya.

"It really depends how you want to use the Apaches. If you use them for protecting civilians, for defensive operations and for interdicting Colonel Gaddafi's re-supply convoys, then I would guess not.

"If you use them for assault operations and in reinforcing the rebels in their attacks on the Gaddafi regime I would say, yes, it is."

UN Security Council Resolution 1973 authorised air strikes to protect Libyan civilians from attacks by forces loyal to Col Gaddafi.

The UN vote followed the violent suppression of protests against Col Gaddafi's regime and military strikes against Col Gaddafi's forces in support of the rebels, which began on 19 March.

View the original article here

US moves closer to Libya rebels

24 May 2011 Last updated at 11:46 GMT The EU has already established ties with the rebels US Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman has said Libya's rebels have accepted an invitation to open a representative office in Washington.

Mr Feltman is the most senior US diplomat to visit the rebels in their de facto capital Benghazi.

The US has insisted that Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi step down, but has not given the rebels full recognition.

The visit came as Nato planes launched a series of air attacks on Libya's capital, Tripoli, the heaviest so far.

Libyan officials say three people were killed and dozens injured in an attack on the barracks of the popular guard.

Nato says it bombed a vehicle depot next to Col Gaddafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound which had been used by his forces in attacks on civilians. However, the Libyan government described it as a reserve military base and said the casualties were civilians.

On Monday, France announced it and the UK would also deploy attack helicopters to escalate strike power.

Nato is enforcing a UN resolution to protect Libyan civilians, following the uprising against Col Gaddafi's rule.

'Assets release'

Mr Feltman said the US was not negotiating with Col Gaddafi, and that the rebel Transitional National Council (TNC) was the legitimate representative of the Libyan people.

The BBC's Andrew North says a large plume of smoke rose from near Col Gaddafi's compound

"I delivered a formal invitation to the council for the opening of a representation in Washington," Mr Feltman said at a news conference. "We are happy they accepted it."

"We have no office in Tripoli now. And we asked the Gaddafi people to close their embassy in Washington. Our officials see members of the council, the council sees us," he added.

"There is an ongoing diplomatic, political relationship and dialogue with members of the council who are considered by our fellows credible and legitimate representatives of the Libyan people."

But Mr Feltman said there was no point in formally recognising the council as "its job is to go out of business" - it plans to wind itself up in the event of the country being reunited and Col Gaddafi overthrown.

He said the US had already contributed $53.5m (?33.1m) in humanitarian aid and $25m in non-lethal military supplies.

Mr Feltman also expected the US Congress to release frozen Libyan government assets to be used for purely humanitarian purposes, he added.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton opened an office in Benghazi on Sunday. Germany has also announced the establishment a liaison office there.

AFP news agency reported that the rebels would shortly nominate someone to represent them in Paris.

Only a handful of countries, including France and Italy, have recognised the TNC as Libya's legitimate government.

Deployment 'soon' UK Apache attack helicopters would deploy from HMS Ocean

On Monday, French Defence Minister Gerard Longuet confirmed media reports France was deploying attack helicopters to Nato's Libya mission.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said 12 Tiger- and Gazelle-type helicopters were being despatched to Libya.

He also said Britain would send helicopters. But in Parliament on Tuesday UK Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey said "no decision" had been taken to send attack helicopters although it was being considered.

Nato jets have been targeting Col Gaddafi's military infrastructure, but have been unable to stop the fighting.

Rebels control much of Libya's east, while Col Gaddafi's forces control most of the west of the country.

The rebellion against his rule began in February, spurred on by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt that saw the presidents of those countries overthrown.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

View the original article here