Pro-Gaddafi forces have started their ground assault of Ajdabiya, the last rebel-held stronghold before Benghazi as diplomatic efforts continued at the UN to garner support for a military no-fly zone over Libya.
Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi pushed forward after bombing rebel positions in Ajdabiya, considered a crucial gateway to the rebel headquarters in Benghazi and the border city of Tobruk.
Government forces yesterday also shelled Misrata, the last city in the west to be in rebel hands as Col Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam boasted with Euronews that “everything will be over in 48 hours”.
The gains by pro-Gaddafi forces in the past days have made the rebels’ plea for a no-fly zone more urgent but foreign diplomatic sources said negotiations were taking “the normal course”.
Lebanon yesterday submitted a resolution at the UN Security Council calling for a no-fly zone over Libya and more sanctions against the regime. It is backed by France and the UK but Russia and China are sceptical about military intervention and doubts have also been raised by Germany and India.
“There is hope among French, UK and Lebanese delegations that the Security Council will adopt some form of resolution that empowers the UN to protect civilians from the onslaught of pro-Gaddafi forces in the shortest and quickest time possible,” the sources said, admitting though this was a race against time.
For Isabelle Calleja, head of the international relations department at the University of Malta, approval of the resolution was crucial at this juncture of the events unfolding in Libya.
“You cannot go on issuing condemnations of Gaddafi’s regime without backing those statements with concrete action,” she said.
She admitted it would not be easy to convince those members of the Security Council that are sceptical about military intervention but the Arab League’s decision to back a no-fly zone could help sway the argument in favour because the organisation holds legitimacy in the region.
“It was wise to have Lebanon table the resolution because it brings the Arab League’s argument to the table,” Dr Calleja said.
The sense of urgency spurned by the military gains of Col Gaddafi’s forces though could possibly be a double-edged sword.
“It can make things easier for the resolution to pass because now is the time to do something. But it can also work against as some countries still need to be convinced and that may need more time,” Dr Calleja said, adding it was difficult to speculate when the vote would be taken.
The government should step up pressure for a no-fly zone to be imposed immediately in Libya, Alternattiva Demokratika said.
“Does the international community want to have a genocide on its conscience before taking action?” its spokesman on EU and international affairs, Arnold Cassola, asked.
The regime was decimating the badly armed opposition and its forces were heading towards Benghazi, he said, urging Foreign Affairs Minister Tonio Borg, Labour leader Joseph Muscat and EU Commissioner John Dalli to act immediately. “Any further silence on their part could lead to the decimation of thousands of other innocent Libyans,” he warned.
Following the assent of the Arab League, it was now the turn of the UN Security Council and the EU to act swiftly on the issue of the no-fly zone, AD chairman Michael Briguglio said, urging Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to take the lead in pushing the international community to act.
The government said World Health Organisation officials would be visiting the island in connection with the humanitarian assistance Malta had extended to Libya. They will be meeting officials from the Health Ministry and other entities.
The Civil Protection Department has continued to raise funds to buy medicinal supplies for those needing them in Libya. In under two weeks, it collected about €40,000. Donations can be made through the following bank accounts: HSBC 078-002391-050, BOV 40018758443, Lombard Bank 01440800001, APS 20000889551 and Banif Bank 00083224181.