Libya: Nato must do more, say France and UK

Nato must do more to destroy heavy weaponry used by Muammar Gaddafi's forces in Libya, the French and British foreign ministers have said.

Libyan civilians remain at risk, France's Alain Juppe said, despite the ongoing Nato-led bombing campaign.

The UK's William Hague urged Nato allies to intensify military operations, but a Nato general said the alliance was "doing a great job".

Libyan rebels opposing Col Gaddafi have been pushed back despite the air raids.

Meanwhile in the UK, the Foreign Office has confirmed that the most high-profile minister to flee Libya, Moussa Koussa, has left the UK for meetings in Qatar.

On Monday Mr Koussa told the BBC Libya must not slide into civil war or risk becoming a failed state.

William Hague later echoed Mr Juppe's comments, stressing that Col Gaddafi needed to step down: "We must maintain and intensify our efforts in Nato.

"That is why the United Kingdom has in the last weeks supplied additional aircraft capable of striking ground targets threatening the civilian population.

"Of course it would be welcome if other countries also did the same," he said on arrival at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

In France's National Assembly, Defence Minister Gerard Longuet said there was a limit to Nato's current capability.

"Today we have no support in the ground attack role, without which there's no chance of breaking the siege of towns like Misrata or Zenten," he said.

That sentiment was echoed by a senior Libyan rebel, Mustafa Abdel Jalil. He said Nato could not relieve besieged cities and appealed for arms and supplies.

"Nato's air fleet cannot deliver the occupied cities where Gaddafi's forces, using the civilian populations as a human shield, have now taken cover," Reuters news agency reported him as saying. The rebels needed time to build a viable army, he added.

Speaking at Nato HQ in Brussels, Dutch Brig Gen Mark Van Uhm said he felt Nato was doing well "with the assets we have".

The alliance had been successful in establishing a no-fly zone, protecting civilians and enforcing an arms embargo using its current capabilities, he said.

The US and other Western allies began air strikes on 19 March after UN Security Council Resolution 1973 authorised "all necessary measures" to protect civilians from Col Gaddafi's forces.

After initial sorties were flown under US command, Nato took over operational responsibility for the campaign on 31 March.

Despite this, heavy weapons are still being used to bombard the rebel-held western Libyan city of Misrata, reports say.

Mortars and rocket launchers are thought to be hidden in built-up areas that are difficult to target safely from the air.

Libyan government forces began a renewed attack on Misrata on Monday, hours after news emerged of an African Union ceasefire plan.

"It [Nato] must play its role today which means preventing Gaddafi from using heavy weapons to shell [civilian] populations," Alain Juppe said on Tuesday.

Nato said the scope of Resolution 1973 was the guide to how intense its air campaign should be.

"Nato is conducting its military operations in Libya with vigour within the current mandate," the alliance said.

'A new Somalia'

State TV in Libya said on Tuesday that Nato air attacks killed a number of civilians overnight in the town of Kiklah, south-west of Tripoli. The report could not be independently confirmed.

In clashes reported on Tuesday, rebels near the town of Ajdabiya said three of their fighters had been killed overnight amid battles with pro-Gaddafi forces, Reuters news agency reported.

Mr Juppe and Mr Hague's remarks came after the African Union (AU) proposed a ceasefire plan that was rejected by rebel leaders in Benghazi.

The plan included a call for an immediate end to hostilities, unhindered humanitarian aid, protection of foreign nationals, dialogue between opposing sides and an end to Nato air strikes.

The AU said Col Gaddafi has accepted the plan, but the rebels said it was unfeasible as it did not include a provision for the Libyan leader to step down.

On Tuesday the AU urged the rebels to reconsider, blaming the Transitional National Council (TNC) - in effect the rebels' parallel government in Benghazi - for imposing preconditions.

In the UK, officials confirmed that the former Libyan Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa had travelled to Qatar and would meet the emirate's government and Libyan representatives in the capital city Doha.

A spokesman said that Mr Koussa was "a free individual, who can travel to and from the UK as he wishes".

On Monday Mr Koussa told the BBC that his country risked becoming "a new Somalia".

source : bbc.co.uk

'Intensify efforts'

Speaking out about the military campaign, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Nato needed to be more assertive in its operations in Libya.

"Nato must play its role fully. It wanted to take the lead in operations," Mr Juppe said, calling efforts so far "not enough".