Libya in crisis – live coverage

Colonel Muammar Gaddafi is defying calls from world leaders to end the violence against his own countrymen as sanctions against him are stepped up. Follow the latest from Libya and across the Middle East 11.21am: Residents in Tripoli say Gaddafi’s regime is arming civilian supporters to quash dissent, AP reports. Locals contacted by the news agency on Saturday said trucks of pro-regime civilians were patrolling the streets. The move follows a speech Gaddafi made to his loyalists in Green Square on Friday, in which he called on them to “retaliate” against the anti-government demonstrators. 11.08am: Here’s further details on the ongoing efforts to get foreign nationals out of Libya. • The latest flight left to retrieve Britons stranded in the crisis left Gatwick this morning and is expected back tonight. A Foreign Office spokeswoman said it was likely to be the last rescue flight, but that was not confirmed. SAS troops are understood to be ready to move in to evacuate around 170 British oil workers stranded in the desert. • Greek officials say 2,800 Chinese workers have arrived in Crete after sailing by ferry from the Libyan port of Benghazi. It is the first of three ferries transporting a total of 6,000 Chinese workers to the island. The Chinese government has chartered four ferries and 11 hotels on the island, and is expected to begin special flights from Crete to China on Monday, AP reports. 10.39am: In this audio clip on the February 17 Voices audioboo channel , a woman in Tripoli describes how government forces pursued anti-government protesters into their houses to kill them. She also claims that the dead have been buried immediately by Gaddafi’s soldiers in a bid to cover up their atrocities.(Please note, we are unable to independently verify these audio clips.) In another clip, a woman from Tripoli expresses her fear for her daughters, saying they only have knives to protect themselves against government forces. She also calls on the international community to take immediate action against Gaddafi: “If there’s anything you can [do to] help, do it now. Please do it now.” 10.24am: This video, posted on Al Jazeera English’s YouTube channel, purports to show an army officer carried on the shoulders of anti-government protesters in the city of Zuwiya. Protesters claim this scene is being repeated across the country as soldiers uneasy with the bloody crackdown defect. A female protester interviewed by Al Jazeera in the eastern city of Benghazi says they want Gaddafi to faces justice for killing his own people. We do not want him to flee to another country. We want to punish him because he shed Libyan blood. He killed our young people. 10.16am: Good morning and welcome to the Guardian’s live blog of the twelfth day of unrest in Libya where, despite growing international condemnation, Muammar Gaddafi’s regime continues it bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters. Here are the main developments overnight and so far this morning. • Anti-government protests are continuing across Libya, including in the capital, Tripoli, where protesters are reported to have taken control of some areas of the city. • The UN security council is to meet later on Saturday to decide what action to take against Gaddafi. This could include an arms embargo against the government, a travel ban and asset freeze against the Libyan ruler, his relatives and close allies, and referring the violent crackdown to the International Criminal Court so it can investigate possible crimes against humanity. • The US has announced sanctions against the Libyan government, with Barack Obama signing an executive order blocking property and transactions related to Gaddafi’s regime. • Libya’s UN ambassador, Mohammed Shalgham, has denounced Gaddafi, just three days after praising him as “my friend”. • Foreign governments are continuing efforts to evacuate their citizens from Libya. The latest – and probably last – flight from Gatwick to bring back Britons stranded in the country left early on Saturday morning. But further missions to rescue oil workers trapped in the desert are being prepared. Arab and Middle East protests Libya Middle East Egypt Muammar Gaddafi David Batty guardian.co.uk

Posted by on February 26, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry