Tripoli: Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi addressed supporters in Tripoli Wednesday amid international criticism of his regime and ongoing unrest in the country.
Gaddafi blamed the problems on former prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who were released to Libya and then freed by Libyan authorities after they pledged to reform. However, Gaddafi said, they were actually members of al Qaeda sleeper cells.
In speech in which he briefly discussed several topics, Gaddafi responded to protesters' demands that he step down by saying he has "no authority" that he can relinquish. He said the Libyan people hold power in the country, explaining that he and others gave it to them in 1977.
Hours earlier, opposition members successfully fought to regain control of al-Brega in eastern Libya after armed forces loyal to Gaddafi tried to take over the town, a resident said. The town is home to a refinery and natural gas processing plant.
The resident said there were casualties in the fight, but the number is unclear.
The clash took place the same day as military aircraft bombed military camps on the outskirts of Ajdabiya, a tribal leader said.
The tribal leader, who did not want to be identified for safety reasons, said youth in Ajdabiya were amassing and heading toward the conflict area to help defend the town, which has been in the control of opposition forces in recent days. Some military bases in eastern Libya have fallen into the hands of protesters as more members of the military have abandoned Gaddafi's regime and joined demonstrations.
The developments in eastern Libya are the latest in a weeks-long conflict between Gaddafi's government and protesters who demand an end to his regime of four decades.
International efforts to persuade Gaddafi to step down have also ratcheted up.
The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution Tuesday to suspend Libya from its seat on the 47-member chamber Human Rights Council. It was the first time the assembly had suspended a member of the council.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the General Assembly that he welcomed the decision and urged the international community to investigate allegations of human rights violations in Libya. "The world has spoken with one voice," he said. "We demand an immediate end to the violence toward civilians and full respect for their fundamental human rights, including those of peaceful assembly and free speech."
He added that reports from the ground "are sobering," with deaths and ongoing repression.
"Arms depots and arsenals have reportedly been opened to gangs who terrorize communities. There are reports that government forces have fired indiscriminately on peaceful protesters and bombed the military bases in the east of the country," Ban said.
The death toll from nearly two weeks of violence is unknown, but likely to exceed 1,000," with thousands more wounded, he added, using the same fatality figure he had used Friday.
Libya's ambassador to the United States estimated Monday that the death toll was about 2,000.
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the leader's 38-year-old son who has spoken on behalf of the regime during the protests, told CNN his talks with the opposition were in "chaos" because the opposition is divided, with no clear leaders.
US officials made similar comments about the opposition. A US official who wanted to remain anonymous because the official was not authorized to speak on the record said it's "unclear who the leaders in the opposition are and that makes it difficult" for the United States to provide assistance.
The capital city of Tripoli remained under the control of Gaddafi's rule, though opposition forces have taken control of the eastern city of Benghazi and other cities amid deadly unrest.
Reports have surfaced of ongoing clashes between government forces and armed opponents in western Libya, Ban said Tuesday.
He noted "allegations of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, detentions and torture" and said Gaddafi's supporters "appear to be holding a tight grip on western parts of the country, chiefly Tripoli."
He warned of "serious indications" that the numbers of refugees and displaced persons were reaching crisis proportions and worried that the violence could disrupt distribution networks and lead to food shortages.
The UN refugee agency reported that nearly 150,000 people had crossed Libya's borders into Egypt and Tunisia, and thousands more were arriving hourly at the borders.
Ban called for immediate action by the international community. "Time is of the essence," he said. "Thousands of lives are at stake."
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that "Gaddafi must go."
And US President Barack Obama's administration is considering whether it should cut diplomatic ties with Libya, a senior US official told CNN. "Whether to maintain relations or sever them is under review," the official said. The United States imposed sanctions against Tripoli last week.
The amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge and the amphibious transport dock USS Ponce were being repositioned in the Mediterranean to "provide us a capability for both emergency evacuations and also for humanitarian relief," US Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters. But, he noted, the UN Security Council has not authorized the use of armed force.
The government of Canada has frozen $2.3 billion in assets tied to the Libyan government, an action taken after Canada enacted sanctions over the weekend, Canadian Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Lynn Meahan said Tuesday. A number of other countries have ordered an asset freeze, including the United States, which froze at least $30 billion in Libyan government assets under US jurisdiction.
Clinton said the imposition of a no-fly zone is another option under consideration, but Admiral Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said doing so would be "an extraordinarily complex operation."
US Central Command leader Gen. James Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday that any effort to establish a no-fly zone over Libya would include eliminating Libya's air defences.
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