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Libya Live Blog - April 5

By Al Jazeera Staff in

Africa

on April 4th, 2011.

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As the uprising in Libya continues, we update you with the latest developments from our correspondents, news agencies and citizens across the globe. Al Jazeera is not responsible for content derived from external sites.

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(All times are local in Libya GMT+2)

• 0:00pm

  With oil tankers now docking at the eastern oil ports of Tobruk and Marsa el Hariga, and the rebels desperate for an inflow of funds, as much to prove their viability as a government as to  fund their opposition, Laurence Lee reports on the state of play on Libya's oil.
• 6:32pm

  Jordanian fighter jets are operating out of a European airbase to protect Jordanian transport aircraft that are delivering humanitarian assistance to the opposition in eastern parts of Libya.

  
  

  Nasser Judeh, the Jordanian foreign minister, said at a news conference today:

  The Jordanian fighters arrived at one of the military bases in Europe two days ago to protect Jordanian military aircraft carrying humanitarian aid to the Libyan people and to provide logistical support. Jordan sent a first plane carrying humanitarian aid to Benghazi yesterday [Monday]."

• 6:30pm

  More on NATO operations near Misurata: coalition aircraft launched 14 strikes on Monday, including "a number" targetting air defence systems, tanks and armoured vehicles in the area around the besieged Western town, the alliance says.

  The alliance also hit a rocket launcher near Brega on Monday., and ammunition storage facilities in other parts of the country.
• 6:21pm

  Hundreds of Libyans evacuated from Misurata by a Turkish hospital ship have arrived in the Turkish city of Cesme, where they are now being treated.

  Some 60 ambulances and two helicopters were on standby as the ferry docked on Turkey's Aegean coast. 
• 6:16pm

  Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, in an interview with the BBC, says that Moussa Koussa, the former Libyan foreign minister who left Libya for the UK, is "sick and old" and may make up "funny stories" about the Lockerbie bombing to tell authorities, but would have little of consequence to tell them.

  "The British and the Americans ... they know everything about Lockerbie so there are no secrets'' Koussa can reveal, Saif said.
• 6:15pm

  Jock Stirrup, Britain's former chief of defence staff, tells Al Jazeera that in order for political efforts to erode Gaddafi's support base to suceed, there must be an understanding of the nature of support for him and the motivations of those who do back him.

  He says that efforts for the political resolution of the crisis have only seriously been pursued "for the last couple of weeks", and that since these are "difficult" and "sensitive" issues, the hope is that while little is being said publically, much is being done behind closed doors. 
• 6:04pm

  The United Nations has doubled its aid appeal for Libya to $310 million, Elisabeth Byrs, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says.

  The funds, she said, would be used to provide relief to over 1.5 million people affected by the conflict, including more tha 400,000 refugees.

  So far, OCHA has received 70 per cent of its first appeal, which was for $160 million.

  The International Organisation for Migration on Tuesday has also repeated a plea for more funding, saying that there is currently "no more money for humanitarian evacuations" from Egypt and Tunisia.
• 6:02pm

  Mustafa Gheirani, a spokesman for the Libyan opposition's National Council, has told AFP that while the opposition has suffered "setbacks", it will fight on.

  There is no revolution without setbacks. But the people will win. Gaddafi cannot rule Libya with his machine -- his militias and his mercenaries... We are committed to fighting this tyrant, and either we will drive him out or he will rule a country with no people in it."

• 5:57pm

  The military action in Libya is costing the US Air Force $4 million a day, though those costs are likely to fall now that US fighter jets are not actively involved in sorties over Libya, the USAF says.

  USAF Secretary Michael Donley put the cost of the operation so far at $75 million.

  The total cost for the entire US military was estimated to be $500 million on March 28.
• 5:33pm

  Al Jazeera's Laurence Lee has been reporting from Benghazi on the status of the conflict near Brega, as well as other stories out of the opposition stronghold.

  
  
• 5:30pm

  Al Jazeera's Hoda Abdel-Hamid has just been reporting live from Ajdabiya.

  Since this morning we were trying to get as close as possible to Brega. We reached the junction on the road that would lead inside that town, but since mid-morning, opposition forces have been coming under a rolling artillery and mortar barrage that really pushed them about 20 to 30 km eastwards towards the town of Ajdabiya. 

  "Now we haven't seen such a push for a few days, over the past few days it actually seemed as if the opposition forces were able to hold some sort of position around the town of Brega. Well, today the situation was completely different. The Gaddafi forces were much more aggresive than they had been in the past days, it seem that maybe they had received new supplies, but certainly they have been pounding much more intensely than over the past few days."

• 5:05pm

  These pictures were taken near Brega at various points today. [First two pictures: Reuters; Next three: EPA]

  

  

  

  
• 4:55pm

  Libyan authorities had decided that they were prepared to kill anti-government protesters even before the opposition's movement against Gaddafi had really gotten going, International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo tells Reuters.

  We have evidence that after the Tunisia and Egypt conflicts in January, people in the regime were planning how to control demonstrations inside Libya ... They were hiding that from people outside and they were planning how to manage the crowds ... the evidence we have is that the shooting of civilians was a pre-determined plan.

  "The planning at the beginning was to use tear gas and [if that failed to work]..., shooting."

  Moreno-Ocampo says that the court has "judicial responsibilities" to collect evidence regarding the possible prosecution of Muammar Gaddafi and his allies, but that the "political responsibilities" of deciding whether or not Gaddafi is to be offered immunity in return for leaving the country "are in the hands of the [UN] Security Council".
• 4:53pm

  Anita McNaught, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Tripoli, reports that Libyan state television is planning to broadcast live from Brega at some point this evening.

  Hoda Abdel-Hamid, our correspondent who has been reporting from the frontlines, says that it can be said with a fair degree of certainty that Gaddafi's forces have taken all of Brega, given the intensity of their assault this morning towards Ajdabiya. 
• 4:48pm

  Angelina Jolie's not the only one at Ras Ajdir, the Tunisian border crossing with Libya. The Tunisian state news agency reports that Salam Mabrouk Abdallah and Jomaa Ibrahim Ammar, external communication and international cooperation advisors of the Libyan Popular Committee entered Tunisia at Ras Ajdir on April 4th, bound for Djerba airport.

  TAP, the news agency, says they took off for Bamako, in Mali. 
• 4:42pm

  NATO has termed the deaths of civilians in an airstrike on Friday an "unfortunate accident". Rebels had fired an anti-aircraft gun in celebration at seeing NATO fighter jets, who then fired on the vehicle in self-defence, the alliance said.

  The assessment of the incident has now "closed", NATO says, as opposition forces "have already stated that it was their fault".

  Brigadier General Mark van Uhm, NATO's commander of allied operations, said that the opposition appears to have "learned their lesson", and is now only using more experienced fighters at the front line and has strictly banned celebratory firing.

  Oana Lungescu, a NATO spokesperson, said of the incident:

  We take any reports of civilian casualties very seriously, but clearly if somebody fires on our aircraft, those aircraft have the right to fire, it is their right of self defence."

• 4:40pm

  Chris Stevens, the US deputy ambassador to Libya, has arrived in Benghazi to hold talks with the opposition's national council there, according to a US official who was speaking to the Associated Press.

  Stevens will be discussing humanitarian and possible financial assistance to be provided to the opposition by the US.
• 4:38pm

  The Associated Press reports that diplomats are dangling offers of immunity from prosecution and the lifting of asset and travel freezes to members of Gaddafi's family in order to persuade them to withdraw their support for the Libyan leader.
• 4:34pm

  A tanker has docked at the eastern Libyan oil port of Tobruk to pick up the first oil cargo to leave Libya for 18 days, says Michelle Bockmann, markets editor of shipping news and data provider Lloyd's List.

  The boat is expected to be loaded on April 6.
• 4:21pm

  Brigadier General Mark van Uhm, NATO's chief of allied operations, says that coalition airstrikes have continued apace since NATO took command of bombing operations from the US.

  Van Uhm says that Misurata is the new priority for NATO. Residents of the western town report that they have come under constant bombardment from pro-Gaddafi forces, and have repeatedly called for NATO to intervene in the city.

  Misurata is a number one priority because of the situation on the ground over there. We have confirmation that in Misurata tanks are being dispersed, being hidden, (and) humans being used as shields in order to prevent NATO sorties to identify targets."

  Van Uhm also says that pro-Gaddafi forces are changing their tactics to cope with coalition airstrikes.

  What we have seen is that pro-Gaddafi forces have changed their tactics over days, what we see is that they are more and more using trucks and light vehicles to move their personnel to the frontline. We are trying to identify where those heavy assets like tanks and armoured vehicles are because we have seen that they have chosen to hide in urban areas, even using human shields in order to not be targeted."

• 3:59pm

  Denmark and Norway have expressed their support for an open-ended military campaign against Gaddafi, while all five Nordic nations have called for him to immediately step down.

  The foreign ministers of five Nordic states met in Helsinki today to discuss the crisis in Libya.

  Lene Espersen, the Danish foreign minister, said her country would will "stay there for as long as it takes to protect civilians", and that Denmark would be willing to send ships to enforce an arms embargo.

  Norway, Denmark and Sweden have all sent warplanes to take part in the international military action in Libya. 

  Carl Bildt, the Swedish foreign minister, pointed out that the challenge going forward in Libya would be building a democracy, when and if Gaddafi left power.
• 3:09pm

  Angelina Jolie, everyone's favourite actress-cum-UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, visited refugees from Libya at a UN-run camp on the Tunisia-Libyan border today.

  More than 400,000 people have fled Libya in the last month, headed to Tunisia, Egypt, Niger, Algeria, Chad and Sudan. The majority have gone to Tunisia and Egypt, with the former receiving more than half of the outflow.

  Transit facilities have been set up by the UN 7km inside Tunisia to provide temporary shelter for refugees. The UN says it has helped 70,000 people reach "home safely", but more continue to arrive, and 11,000 people are still in transit.

  Jolie, the Goodwill Ambassador, said:

  The outpouring of generosity from the Tunisian people says so much for the future of this country. “It is a sign of the openness sweeping across the region ... “The international community has done well to reinforce Tunisia’s remarkable relief effort. But with 2,000 people still crossing each day, we cannot let the funding dry up and need to sustain the momentum."

  
• 3:01pm

  NATO says that air strikes on Gaddafi targets have destroyed nearly a third of the military power available to the Libyan leader.

  "The assessment is that we have taken out 30 percent of the military capacity of Gaddafi," Brigadier General Mark van Uhm, a senior NATO staff officer, told a news briefing.
• 1:00pm

  Reuters news agency has reported that  an oil tanker has arrived at the rebel-held east Libyan port of Marsa el Hariga.
• 10:30am

  Reuters news agency has reported that Libyan pro-democracy fighters hoped to begin their first independent oil shipment on Tuesday. The tanker Equator, which can carry 1 million barrels of crude, was due to arrive at the east Libyan port of Marsa el Hariga.
  
  The pro-democracy leadership says Qatar agreed to market oil from east Libyan fields no longer under Gaddafi's control after the Gulf state recognized the revolutionary council in Benghazi as Libya's legitimate government.
  
  Italy, a major investor in Libyan oil, also sided with the rebels on Monday, promising them weapons and demanding that Gaddafi and his family, who enjoyed warm ties with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, leave Libya.
• 9:30am

  A YouTube video shows a very funny old guy cracking jokes about Gaddafi in Zawiya one day and then very disturbing images of the same old guy being beaten/taunted in the back of a vehicle by soldiers a week or so later.
  
  Al Jazeera can not independently verify the authenticity of the video. WARNING the language is very disturbing.
  
  
• 9:15am

  Al Jazeera's Hoda Abdel Hamid reports from the town of Ajdabiya on how the opposition there says the  momentum is changing.
  
  
• 8:15am

  Al Jazeera's Sue Turton reports on how the pro-democracy fighters have managed to push Gaddafi’s troops into the old town of Brega. And how many of the residents are desperate to leave due to shortage of basic supplies.
  
  
• 8:00am

  US fighter jets have ended their combat missions in Libya, with Nato to take full command of operations.
  
  
• 7:00am

  Moussa Ibrahim, the Libyan government spokesman, tells reporters that they are ready for negotiations as long as it is from within Libya.
  
  
• 6:15am

  Hani Faris, a political science professor at the University of British Colombia in Vancouver, spoke to Al Jazeera about the current situation in Libya and the way forward to solve the issues.
  
  "We have arrived at a junction in the Libyan crisis where diplomacy needs to play a role, all parties involved in the Libya crisis have seen that they can not have their way, there needs to be a settlement the sooner the better.
  
  "The Libyan people really need to put a stop to the war that is taken place. 
  
  "It is well known that the regime in Libya can not survive, Ghaddafi himself must go, and he will go.
  We know that there is a fusion between the state and Ghaddafi, there are no autonomous state institutions. and when Ghaddafi leaves his regime will fall apart.     
  
  "The Arab world should not leave the negotiations and intervention in Libya to non Arab states, Egypt and Tunis have a very special role to play, both of them are highly regarded in the world today. Both of them are neighbors. They can both play a major role in bringing a settlement to Libya that recognizes the needs and demands for freedom and peace in the country."
• 4:15am

  Ordinary Libyans, and those families worst affected by the fighting on the front lines, are in no mood to compromise to end Libya's crisis. Al Jazeera's James Bays reports from Benghazi, where people continue to stand resolute in their call for Gaddafi and his entire family to leave power.
• 4:03am

  The European Union said it could provide special assistance to member countries facing a refugee crisis and ease refugees' conditions after political upheaval in north Africa.

  "In case of a massive inflow of displaced persons and refugees (from Libya, Tunisia or Egypt), the European Commission would be ready to make use of the 2001 directive that provides immediate protection" to these people, said Cecilia Malstroem, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, on Monday, the AFP news agency reported.

  This comes as more than 22,000 migrants, mostly from Tunisia, have landed on the Italian island of Lampedusa since theTunisian revolution in January.
• 3:20am

  Libyan rebels fighting Gaddafi's forces are worried about their financial resources and want to start exporting both oil and natural gas, the UN special envoy to Libya said.

  Abdelilah al-Khatib spoke to the Security Council about his recent visits to Libya, where he met with the rebels' Transitional National Council and members of Gaddafi's government in Tripoli.

  "The council raised concerns about the lack of funds as well as issues surrounding the marketing and sale of oil and gas, stressing that the issue required urgent attention in order to enable the economy to function effectively," he told the 15-nation Security Council on Monday.
• 2:27am

  The US Treasury is ending its freeze on former Libyan foreign minister Moussa Koussa's assets following his decision to sever ties to Gaddafi's government and flee to Britain last week, a senior US Treasury official said.

  "Koussa's defection and the subsequent lifting of sanctions against him should encourage others within the Libyan government to make similar decisions to abandon the Gaddafi regime," David Cohen, the Treasury's acting undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a blog posting on the Treasury website.
• 1:05am

  Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi told Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Abdelati Obeidi that Gaddafi and his family must relinquish power. Obeidi was in Malta following talks with government officials in Greece and Turkey on ways to end the Libyan conflict.

  "The Prime Minister reiterated the Maltese government's position that the resolutions of the United Nations must be respected, that the Gaddafi government must step down, that Colonel Gaddafi and his family should leave and there should be an immediate ceasefire and a process to enable the Libyan people to make its democratic choices," the government said in a statement.
• 12:37am

  The Libyan government says it's ready to hold elections, a referendum or any other reform to its political system, Reuters reports.
• 12:31am

  Libya has said Gaddafi must stay, but the country is ready to discuss reforming its political system, Reuters reports.

  The government said only Libyans themselves can decided if Gaddafi should stay or not.
• 12:23am

  A Libyan government spokesperson said Libya is ready for a "political solution" with world powers, the Reuters news agency reports.
• 12:14am

  Libyan state television late on Monday showed live footage of Muammar Gaddafi saluting supporters from a jeep that drove outside his fortified compound of Bab al-Aziziyah in Tripoli.

  A written newsflash read: "The brother leader among his supporters."

  For other updates you may have missed from yesterday, click here.
• 12:00am

  Welcome to today's liveblog.

  We'll be keeping you up to date with breaking news and reports as they emerge from Libya. You can also check out yesterday's blog by clicking here.

  And don't forget, you can also tune into our live TV feed online: Watch Al Jazeera