Signs in Libya of Gaddafi regime weakening
As a Scud missile is fired by the Libyan government’s forces, the US Defence Secretary says the regime’s “days are numbered”.
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s forces have been weakened.
“Gaddafi’s forces are weakened and this latest defection is another example of how weak they’ve gotten,” Panetta said, in an apparent reference to reports that Libya’s Interior Minister Nasser al-Mabruk Abdullah had defected.
“I think the sense is that Gaddafi’s days are numbered,” Panetta said, speaking at event in Washington alongside Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Scud attack sign of desperation
Earlier, Nato confirmed information from a US defence official that Libyan government forces launched a Scud-type missile for the first time in the six-month civil war on Sunday but that the rocket landed in the desert and caused no damage.
While such a missile could hurt civilians, it would not have a military impact, the Western alliance said.
Nato said the attack was a sign of growing desperation among government loyalists, who lost strategic positions in recent days to rebels fighting to oust Gaddafi, and did not suggest an escalation of force.
The missile came down in the desert, injuring no one, said the official, who was speaking on condition of anonymity. There was no immediate comment from the government in Tripoli.
Rebels fighting to end Gaddafi’s 41-year rule seized two strategic towns near Tripoli over the past two days, cutting the city off from its supply lines and leaving the Libyan leader with a dwindling set of options if he is to stay in power.
However, pro-Gaddafi forces were encountering a fight-back in one of those towns, Zawiyah, west of Tripoli. The Scud missile was fired on Sunday morning from a location about 50 miles (80 km) east of Sirte, Gaddafi’s home town, and landed east of the coastal oil town of Brega where rebels are fighting for control, the US official said.
Meanwhile, the rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) denied it is having talks with the Gaddafi regime or the UN to resolve the months-long conflict.
“The NTC would like to assure that there are no negotiations either direct or indirect with the Gaddafi regime or with the special envoy of the United Nations,” NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil said at a briefing where he spoke through an interpreter.
Asked about reports of secret negotiations at the weekend on the Tunisian resort island of Djerba, Mustafa Abdel Jalil denied any back-channel communications with Gaddafi.
“I would like to affirm that the NTC has no knowledge and no backing of these talks … Any political consultations or contacts should be done through or with the council,” he said.
The NTC has consistently denied any bid to broker a compromise deal with the Libyan leader, insisting that after 41 years in power he must simply quit and leave or be ousted by force.
Read more from our correspondents on the Strike Against Gaddafi