Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Libya: France and Italy to send officers to aid rebels

France and Italy have said they are to send small teams of military officers to advise Libyan rebels who are seeking to topple Col Muammar Gaddafi.
French officials said fewer than 10 would be sent, while Italy's defence minister announced that 10 would go.
The UK said on Tuesday it was sending a similar team to the city of Benghazi.
Meanwhile, the UN has said the reported use of cluster munitions by Col Gaddafi's forces in the city of Misrata "could amount to international crimes".
"Reportedly one cluster bomb exploded just a few hundred metres from Misrata hospital, and other reports suggest at least two medical clinics have been hit by mortars or sniper fire," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a statement.
"There are also repeated reports of snipers deliberately targeting civilians in Misrata, as well as in other Libyan towns."
Ms Pillay said the deliberate targeting of medical facilities was a war crime, and the deliberate targeting or reckless endangerment of civilians might also amount to serious violations of international human rights law or international humanitarian law.
"I urge the Libyan authorities to face the reality that they are digging themselves and the Libyan population deeper and deeper into the quagmire. They must halt the siege of Misrata and allow aid and medical care to reach the victims of the conflict," she added.
She also urged Nato forces to exercise the utmost caution and vigilance so as not to kill civilians by mistake. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has promised to intensify the alliance's air strikes.
'Real issue' Inspired by uprisings in neighbouring Tunisia and Egypt, the rebels have been fighting Col Gaddafi's forces since February. The rebels, based in Benghazi, hold much of the east, while Col Gaddafi's forces remain in control of Tripoli and most of the west.
Nato is currently in charge of the no-fly zone and coalition operations have been largely confined to air attacks.
British journalist James Hider in Misrata: "The rebels say they will fight until they die" (This video footage cannot be verified independently for authenticity)
On Wednesday, Libyan state television reported that Nato aircraft were bombarding telecoms and broadcasting infrastructure in several cities.
And Maj Gen John Lorimer, a spokesman for the UK Chief of Defence Staff, said that on Tuesday, RAF Tornado and Typhoon aircraft had used precision-guided weapons to attack three tanks and a vehicle-mounted artillery piece "in and around" the besieged western city of Misrata.
French government spokesman Francois Baroin reaffirmed that France had no intention of sending a military force to Libya. "We do not envisage deploying combat ground troops," he said.
However, Defence Minister Gerard Longuet said the idea of such a deployment was "a real issue" that deserved consideration by the UN Security Council.
The BBC's Hugh Schofield reports from Paris that in France, as in Britain, there is concern about the Libyan campaign turning into an open-ended commitment as both governments push to its limits the UN resolution endorsing the protection of civilians in Libya.
Nicolas Sarkozy and Mustafa Abdul Jalil in Paris (20 April 2011) French President Nicolas Sarkozy held talks with rebel leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil in Paris
The comments came as the chairman of the Libyan rebel Transitional National Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, met French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris, where he thanked the French "for their brave decision to support the Libyan revolution".
Mr Sarkozy said the rebels had pledged to build democracy in Libya "by the ballot box, not atop a tank".
He also pledged to "intensify the strikes", an aide said, although no further details were given.
The British team, which like the French and Italian teams is expected to comprise about 10 advisers, is set to provide logistics and intelligence training in Benghazi.
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said the officers would advise the NTC [opposition National Transitional Council] on how to "improve their military organisational structures, communications and logistics", and would not be involved in any fighting.
The move complied with a UN resolution to protect civilians in Libya, which forbids foreign occupation forces, Mr Hague said.
'Mountain towns bombarded' UN Security Council Resolution 1973, passed in March, authorised "all necessary measures short of occupation" to protect civilians.
Libyan Foreign Minister Abdul Ati al-Obeidi said the presence of foreign military personnel would be a "step backwards".
He proposed that there should be a ceasefire followed by an interim period of maybe six months to prepare for an election which would be supervised by the UN, as proposed by the African Union roadmap.
He said countries he had visited had been supportive of a suggested ceasefire and helping the humanitarian effort, but said the UK, France and Italy were being unhelpful.
Misrata, the rebels' last stronghold in the west, has faced weeks of heavy bombardment.
Fighting was continuing on Wednesday in the centre of the city, with rebels telling Reuters that they had made some gains.
The conflict in Misrata has turned the city into a battlefield, causing hundreds of deaths. Col Gaddafi's forces have been accused of using heavy weaponry to fire indiscriminately on civilian areas.
curtsy-BBC
The Libyan government says it is trying to protect the citizens of Misrata and to help international aid organisations provide aid there.
Violence was also reported in Libya's western mountains, where rebels said Col Gaddafi's forces had been shelling several towns, forcing thousands of residents to flee to Tunisia, the Associated Press reported

No comments:

Post a Comment