Rebels’ Leader alleges NATO Failing Civilians

Tripoli, Libya

 Leader of Libya’s armed rebel forces Gen Abdul Fattah Younis has accused NATO of acting too slowly to protect civilian lives, as forces allied to President Muammar Gadaffi continue to kill people in Misrata.

 Speaking during a press conference in the opposition stronghold of Benghazi, Younis expressed disappointment with NATO even though it is helping them. He said that they have been providing intelligence to NATO on movement of pro-Gadaffi forces but the military alliance was slow to act owing to an overly bureaucratic process, allowing forces to enter the city and kill civilians.

 He said residents in Misrata have been under siege for the last 40 days from pro-Gadaffi forces who are said to be contaminating drinking water and residents there were lacking access to basic supplies.

  “Civilians are dying daily because of lack of food or milk, even children are dying, even by bombing. If NATO waits for another week, it will be a crime that NATO will have to carry”, he said.

 His statement follows after opposition forces were forced out of oil-rich town of Brega in the east, after Gadaffi’s forces launched offensive strike on Tuesday, forcing the rebels to retreat to neighbouring Ajbadiya. Younis was Col Gaddafi's interior minister before his defection to the rebels in February.

 NATO has said Friday’s air strike was an “unfortunate accident” that saw 13 people four of them being civilians were killed 15 kilometers east of Brega. The deaths took place when celebratory gunfire by insurgents prompted warplanes to act, believing they were doing so in self-defence.

NATO has accused Gadaffi forces for deliberately moving weaponry to civilian inhibited areas to hamper air strikes. Brig Gen Mark van Uhm, a senior NATO staff officer said in Brussels that pro-Gadaffi forces were resorting to use trucks and light vehicles, keeping more heavy equipment hidden.

“When human beings are used as shields we don't engage,” he said.

US has confirmed end of its strike mission but it will continue providing its support to NATO. Pentagon confirmed end of the mission after flying a total of 1,600 sorties, 600 of them being strike sorties, but said it will continue to aid NATO in operations such as air-to-air refueling and intelligence-gathering.

The Libyan opposition is expected to begin earning their first revenue from oil fields under its control that will enable it pay salaries and bolster their resistance against Gadaffi. A Greek-owned tanker “Equator” was reportedly docked at the eastern port of Tobruk on Tuesday to collect its first consignment. Qatar is acting as a middleman in the trade which is unclear on the buyer.

Exports in Libya’s oil have collapsed since the start of the uprising two months ago, making the international price for the commodity to go up high two and a half times.

NATO took over command from the US to enforce the UN resolution that declared a no-fly zone over Libyan air space and also authorised use of all necessary means by member states to protect Libyan civilians under threats of attack.

Gbagbo Denies Claims of Stepping Down

Abidjan, Ivory Coast

 Ivorian incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo has denied reports that he was willing to step down from power after forces loyal to his rival Alassane Ouattara surrounded his residence in the capital, Abidjan.

 Speaking by telephone from a bunker in the presidential palace during an interview with France’s LCI television, Gbagbo said that his faction of military was still negotiating a ceasefire with Ouattara’s forces. He said face-to-face talks with Ouattara was the only way to return the country to peace, but insisted that he had won the November presidential polls, and was not negotiating for his departure.

 His statement comes after several reports that he was negotiating terms of his surrender, following departure of most of his army officials. African Union officials said Gbagbo told Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdulaziz that he was ready to step down and accept the UN-endorsed Alassane Ouattara as president. Regional development bloc-ECOWAS has promised “a safe and dignified” exit for Gbagbo if he yields power.

Pro-Ouattara forces entered the capital where they launched offensive attacks on forces loyal to Gbagbo for the past six days. The death toll has been placed at 800 since when the violence broke out after election results were nullified.

 French Foreign Affairs Minister Alain Juppé confirmed of the ongoing negotiations to convince Gbagbo to leave office, having that as the only option he is left with.

 The UN and French forces launched offensive attacks on Monday targeting Gbagbo’s main military and his residence after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for help from French President in silencing mortars and rocket launchers that have been used by Gbagbo’s forces on civilians and UN headquarters in Abidjan. Ban states that the operation is inline with the UN mission to Ivory Coast- UNOCI’s mandate to defend itself and protect civilians, and not that the UN is taking up arms against Gbagbo, whose supporters termed the intervention to be amounting to an assassination attempt against the Ivorian leader.

 US president Barack Obama said in a statement on Tuesday that that he strongly supports the intervention by UN peacekeepers and French forces and that Gbagbo must step down from power immediately to avoid further blood shed and end violence that has rocked the country for months. Gbagbo has accused the former colonial power, France of making war on his country.

 US envoy on African Affairs Jonnie Carson said in Washington on Tuesday that an earlier offer by the US to grant Gbagbo asylum in the states had been retracted, owing to serious human rights violations the Ivorian leader has committed.

Mr Gbagbo's army chief, Gen Philippe Mangou, told AFP news agency that he had called for a ceasefire, measures he said would allow for the protection of the population, soldiers, the president and his family and members of government.

Gbagbo was declared winner of the November elections following the country’s constitutional council overturned results over irregularities in rebel-held regions in the north allied to Ouattara who had been announced winner of the elections. The UN says that over one million people have been displaced in Abidjan and lack access to food, water or medical care for weeks after the UN suspended its operation in the capital due to security reasons.

  The 9,000-strong UN forces have been supporting the stabilization and reunification efforts in the country over the past seven years following the end of the civil war that in 2002 split the country into a Government-held south and a rebel-controlled north.