At least 48 people have died since the US, Britain and France began pounding Libya with air strikes and Tomahawk missiles, according to an initial toll given to AFP by a Libyan official early today.

Missiles were fired from US and British destroyers and submarines at radar stations and anti-aircraft positions and near the Tripoli headquarters of strongman Muammar Gaddafi, prompting barrages of anti-aircraft fire from Libyan forces.

Bombs were also dropped by RAF Tornado aircraft which flew a long-range mission from the UK, and French Mirage and Rafale aircraft.

Libya demanded an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.