Sunday, March 27, 2011

Fresh Airstrikes Aid Rebels in Libya

By SAM DAGHER And STEPHEN FIDLER

Rebels fighting Col. Moammar Gadhafi's regime saw a revival in their fortunes Sunday as international airstrikes that started more than a week ago helped them regain territory previously lost to government forces.

The turnaround came the same day the North Atlantic Treaty Organization agreed to take full command from the United Nations of all international military operations in and around the country.

Coming one day ahead of President Barack Obama's speech on Monday to address U.S. involvement in Libya, the NATO decision frees up the U.S. to play a more subordinate role in the operations. The decision extends NATO's responsibilities to cover the protection of civilians beyond its existing task of enforcing a no-fly zone and an arms embargo. But it doesn't change the nature of the military mission in Libya.

The hope for the West is that a continuation of military pressure on Col. Gadhafi's forces, even at somewhat lower levels in coming days, combined with continued forward movement by the rebels, will be enough to make the Libyan army either buckle or turn on the Libyan leader. That would produce the outcome the West hopes for—the removal of Col. Gadhafi—but one that isn't the explicit goal of the military operation.

Libya's revolutionaries reach the oil town of Brega, while newly released footage shows coalition forces bombarding government forces, aiding the rebels' advance. Video courtesy of Reuters.

Rebels Regain Control

AFP/Getty Images

Libyan tribesmen gathered Sunday on the remains of a pro-government ammunition convoy bombed by coalition forces near Ajdabiya.

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The U.S. involvement in the allied offensive over Libya is attracting criticism from conservatives and liberals alike, with many wondering what the U.S. is trying to achieve in the north African nation. WSJ's Neil Hickey reports from Washington.

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In Tripoli, massive explosions rocked the city starting about 9:15 p.m. local time as fighter jets were heard over the city, suggesting that air strikes had resumed on targets in the capital after a lull since Friday. Libyan state television said both Tripoli and the city of Sirte, about 285 miles to the east, were being hit by a "Crusader imperialist bombardment."

Meanwhile, rebels coming from the eastern gateway city Ajdabiya, which they recaptured on Saturday, took control of the strategic oil towns of Brega and Ras Lanuf on Sunday, according to the Associated Press.

A correspondent with Al-Jazeera International, who was accompanying the rebels, said they have pushed further west and have retaken Ben Jawad, which they lost to Col. Gadhafi's forces in a bloody battle in early March, and were now camped in Al-Nawfaliyah.

Their next target, Sirte, Col. Gadhafi's birthplace, may prove to be a formidable challenge for the ragtag rebel forces.

A person close to the Libyan military command said reinforcements were already sent from the southern towns of Sebha, Waddan and Al-Jufra to Sirte.

European Pressphoto Agency

Libyan rebels flash the victory sign and celebrate in front of a hotel in the town of Ras Lanuf on Sunda.

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Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim downplayed the rebels' gains. "I assure you that we are still strong on the ground and we are still holding locations," he said.

In Washington, Defense Secretary Robert Gates underplayed Libya's role in U.S. affairs, even as he and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sought to defend U.S. military action there.

"I don't think it's a vital interest of the United States, but we clearly have an interest there," Mr. Gates said in an appearance on the NBC News program, "Meet the Press" as part of a round of appearances on Sunday morning talk shows. He said he couldn't be sure NATO would have finished its mission by the year-end, saying: "I don't think anybody knows that."

Mr. Gates' comments on Sunday could provoke more questioning from Capitol Hill about U.S. objectives in Libya. "I was startled to hear Secretary Gates say that Libya was not in our vital interest," said Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, the ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "I personally don't think we should be engaged in a Libyan civil war."

Reducing the U.S. military footprint is a key goal of the Obama administration, which insisted its role would be circumscribed and employed in concert with international allies. The White House has been wary about embarking on a third war and wanted to avoid being seen as fighting in another Muslim country. The relatively quiet U.S. leadership has led many on Capitol Hill, including some Democrats, to question the seemingly ambitious goals—removing Col. Gadhafi—with the limited use of U.S. forces.

Mr. Gates said on NBC Sunday that the president wouldn't take out Col. Gadhafi using military means, but stressed that the U.S. and allied countries are employing other measures, including economic sanctions, to pressure the regime. The hope is that these measures, combined with NATO air power, will be enough to turn the tide militarily. The lack of professionalism in the Libyan military, and especially its banishment from the corridors of power after an abortive 1993 coup attempt, raise the possibility of further defections by senior commanders, which could speed the regime's demise.

Associated Press

A Libyan rebel gestures with a machete after capturing men believed to be loyal to Gadhafi's forces.

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U.S. officials acknowledge the limits of airpower in fighting such a battle. Slobodan Milosevic withstood 78 days of NATO bombardment largely intact. Saddam Hussein endured a no-fly zone and a no-drive zone in large parts of Iraq for more than a decade after the 1991 war, and stayed firmly in power.

British defense secretary Liam Fox told the BBC that targeting Col. Gadhafi wasn't part of the mission. "Losing Gadhafi is an aspiration. It's not part of the UN resolution," he said.

In Mr. Obama's address Monday night, he is expected to discuss why the situation required U.S. intervention, as well as what level of involvement American forces will maintain in the future. Mr. Obama will also try to convince the public that there is an end game in Libya, an administration official said Sunday.

Speaking after the NATO decision to take command on Sunday, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO Secretary-General, said the alliance's actions would be guided by the United Nations Security Council resolution passed on March 17 to defend civilians.

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

A Libyan rebel stands on a Western-led air strikes site in the strategic oil town of Ajdabiya after defensive positions previously held by pro-Gadhafi forces.

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But a senior U.S. official said civilians would be protected whether they were being threatened by government forces or by the opposition, potentially putting NATO in the position of defending government forces from rebel attack.

Libyan officials in Tripoli said little about Sunday's developments, focusing instead on a regime-organized event they have dubbed "the national reunion march" to the rebel-stronghold of Benghazi in the east. Participants were congregating in Sirte. Hundreds of men, women and children and some tribal elders, almost all of them regime loyalists, were sent to Sirte by coach buses and boat from Tripoli and other western cities.

Libyan officials have portrayed the march as a neutral effort by tribal elders in the west to start peace talks with their counterparts in the east and have expressed fears that these "civilians" might be attacked by rebels and coalition forces.

The fate of Sirte, analysts say, will help clarify what happens next in Libya. If rebels can push through the town, they will have a relatively clear road to Tripoli. A defeat in Sirte, on the other hand, could lead to stalemate.

In the besieged city of Misrata, about 125 miles east of Tripoli, rebels said allied forces bombarded early on Sunday several locations for Col. Gadhafi's troops around the city but couldn't provide details.

A rebel, who only gave his first name, Ahmed, said Col. Gadhafi's forces continued their push to make inroads into the city center, triggering sporadic clashes with rebels especially on the western side. "We are hoping for the best," he said.

Foreign journalists have been prevented from going to Misrata, Libya's third-largest city and a key commercial hub. The government says it controls much of the city and that it is fighting a band of extremists who have wedged themselves among civilians. Coalition forces have repeatedly hit the air-force academy and airport south of the city where a large contingent of government troops was based.

In Tripoli, the mood was mixed on Sunday with many residents bracing for the worst. Although the government has assured residents that the country's largest refinery at Zawiya was operating normally, there were long lines at most gasoline stations. Residents reported waiting for at least two hours to fill up.

Mr. Ibrahim, the government spokesman, said fuel truck deliveries from the refinery have been curtailed because of the coalition strikes.

One resident said food prices have also doubled as people rushed to stock up on essentials like oil, rice and pasta. He said one kilogram (2.2 lbs) of rice cost now 2 dinars compared to 0.75 dinars before the start of the current crisis. The Libyan dinar hovered at about 2.15 to the dollar compared with 1.25 a few weeks ago.

—Jon Hilsenrath and Keith Johnson contributed to this article.

Write to Sam Dagher at sam.dagher@wsj.com

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