NATO: Gaddafi Looks Close To Defeat
- June 9th, 2011
- Posted by EUEditor
The NATO alliance says it will see its mission in Libya through to the fall Muammar al-Gaddafi, but will not be committing troops to keep order there after he goes.
The affirmation came from the Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, as NATO aircraft continued attacks on the Libyan capital, Tripoli, and as Ministers from the allied countries met in Brussels, 8.6.11.
They will have to deal with some discord, with the countries leading the campaign, especially Britain and France, calling on others to commit forces, or increase small commitments already made.
The alliance believes it has pushed the Libyan leader close to losing his last hold on power, and points to heavy losses it has been inflicting, in the bombing campaign — taken up after initial allied bombings in mid-March. See EUAustralia Online, “Week of warfare in Libyaâ€, 22.3.11.
It has been issuing regular communiqués detailing the extent of destruction inflicted by its forces on the Libyan army.
The following is the latest, issued on 7.6.11:
NATO took control of all military operations for Libya under United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1970 and 1973 on 31 March 2011. The aim of Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR is to protect civilians and civilian-populated areas under attack or threat of attack. The mission consists of three elements: an arms embargo, a no-fly-zone and actions to protect civilians from attack or the threat of attack.
Over the past 24 hours, NATO has conducted the following activities … PROTECTOR:
Air Operations
Since the beginning of the NATO operation (31 March 2011, 08.00GMT) a total of 10177 sorties, including 3860 strike sorties*, have been conducted.
Sorties conducted 07 JUNE: 157
Strike sorties conducted 07 JUNE: 66
*Strike sorties are intended to identify and engage appropriate targets, but do not necessarily deploy munitions each time.
Key Hits
07 JUNE: In Tripoli: 5 Command & Control Facilities, 1 Vehicle Storage Facility, 2 Self-Propelled Antiaircraft Guns, 1 Air Surveillance Radar. In the vicinity of Tripoli: 1 Command & Control Facility. In the vicinity of Brega: 2 Truck-Mounted Guns.
Arms Embargo Activities
A total of 19 ships under NATO command are actively patrolling the Central Mediterranean.
17 Vessels were hailed on 07 JUNE to determine destination and cargo. 4 boardings (no denials) were conducted.
A total of 1226 vessels have been hailed. 80 boardings and 8 denials have been conducted since the beginning of arms embargo operations.
International Humanitarian Assistance Movements as recorded by NATO
Total of Humanitarian Movements***: 338 (air, ground, maritime)
Ships delivering Humanitarian Assistance 07 JUNE: 2
Aircrafts delivering Humanitarian Assistance 07 JUNE: 4
***Some humanitarian movements cover several days.
Reference
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, Brussels, “News from NATO HQ: Operational Media Update for 7 June 2011â€, 7.6.11.
Pictures
Defence Ministers gathering, NATO