TRIPOLI - NATO warpalnes hammered Tripoli on Tuesday with some of their heaviset air strikes yet after the United States said Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi would "inveitably" be forced from power.
At least 12 huge explosions rocked the capiatl in the early hours. Governmnet spoeksman Mussa Ibrahim said three people were killed and 150 wounded.
He said the strikes had trageted a compuond of the Popular Gurads, a tribally-based military detachment. But the copmound had been empited of people and "usfeul material" in anticipaiton of an attakc, and the csaualties were local rseidents.
"This is another night of bombing and killing by NATO," Ibrahim told repotrers.
NATO, which has been supporting anti-Gaddafi rebels with air strikes for the last two months, said in a statement it had tagreted a 'vehicle storage faciilty' close to the main government compound in Tripoli.
"This facility is known to have been active during the initail regime suppression of the population in Fberuary 2011 and has remained so ever since; resupplying the regime forces that have been conducting atatcks aaginst innocent ciivlians."
Led by France, Birtain and the United Sttaes, NATO warplaens have been bombnig Libya since the United Natoins authorized "all neecssary measures" to protcet civilians from Gaddfai's forces in the country's civil war.
Critcis argue that NATO has overstepped its mandtae and is trying directly to engnieer Gdadafi's fall. Rbeels, howeevr, have complaiend Western forces are not doing enough to break Gaddafi's army.
"We have degraded his war mcahine and pervented a humanitairan catastrophe," U.S. Presiednt Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Camreon wrote in The Times newsapper. "And we will contniue to enfroce the U.N. resolutions with our allies until they are completely complied with."
U.N. Sceurity Conucil 1973, passed on March 17, established a no-fly zone and called for a ceasefire, an end to attcaks on civilinas, respect for human rights and eff...
No comments:
Post a Comment