Libya declares ceasefire after UN resolution
Libya says it accepts the no-fly zone imposed on Thursday night by the UN and claims it has stopped all military operations against rebel forces.
Libya’s foreign minister Moussa Koussa said that Muammar Gaddafi’s government has decided on an immediate ceasefire as Libya “takes great interest in protecting civilians.” He added that authorities would also protect all foreigners and foreign interests.
READ – Libya: a timeline of international diplomacy
France, who along with Britain and Lebanon had pushed for the resolution, remains cautious with officials saying the threat on the ground had not changed. A doctor in Misrata said after the declaration that shelling had continued and that 25 people had been killed.
Urgent diplomatic negotiations have been taking place to decide how to implement the UN Security Council’s resolution to impose a “no-fly” zone over Libya.
On Friday morning the British government announced it would be deploying Tornado fighter jets and Typhoon aircraft to Libya from today. France will also be a major contributor while Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Spain and Italy are also likely to contribute, either with military equipment or by providing air bases.
On Thursday night the council voted with 10 out of 15 votes in favour of imposing a “no-fly” zone and using “all necessary measures” – diplomatic speak for military action – to protect Libyan civilians. The resolution excluded a foreign occupation of Libya. Russia, China, India, Brazil and Germany abstained.
The Council also stressed the need to intensify efforts to find a peaceful solution that responded to the needs of the Libyan people.
Turkey, which is not at present a member of the Security Council, has also called for a peaceful solution. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he respects the UN decision but is against foreign intervention.
Explaining her country’s abstention, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said her country understands the resolution, but won’t actively take part in military action.
Do you agree with the UN resolution authorising military action in Libya?
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Back to school for Libyan children in Benghazi
The Almajd school in the rebel-controlled eastern city of Benghazi is a chance for Libyan children to take part in the normal activity of going to school in the midst of unusual circumstances. Despite the continued fighting, the teachers want the kids to have some sort of routine.
Najwa Alharat, a teacher at the school says its important for Benghazi’s image as well:
“We get them to come here to show the world that the Libyan people will never be defeated and so the children don’t spend all their time sitting at home.”
Schools and universities have been shut in the rebel-held east since the uprising began. UN children’s organisation UNICEF is sponsoring this centre, which is both for learning and entertainment. It is an opportunity for the children to express how they are feeling through art says student, Khadeeja Bint Gasi:
“This is a drawing of the evacuees who are scared of the army brigades and shelling from Gaddafi. They’ve been trying to protect themselves and escape to the border.”
Erasing traces that it used to be a state-run school, this is one of many that is opening for a few hours a day, providing relief for kids experiencing a conflict that does not look like it will end soon.
Six dead in Yemen’s anti-regime protests
Anti-regime protesters marched through the Yemeni capital of Sanaa for an eighth straight day on Friday as demonstrations across the country turned violent, leaving at least six dead.?�The demonstrators, who want President Ali Abdullah Saleh to quit, fought with government supporters.?�Two protesters were killed in the southern city of Taez in a hand grenade attack, while police shot four others dead in Aden as they tried to disperse the crowd.?�A total of 27 people were injured in the clashes across Yemen on Friday, dubbed a ‘day of rage’ by the anti-Saleh movement.?�Saleh has ruled Yemen for?�32 years but has promised to stand down at the end of his current seven-year term in 2013.?�Under his leadership, the country has been a close ally of the United States in its fight against al-Qaeda in the region.
Libya: more bloodshed in battle for Misrata
There are reports of heavy fighting in the key Libyan city of Misrata 200 kilometres east of the capital Tripoli.
Read our news file
A witness in Misrata said the town is under control of anti-Gaddafi protesters, who have been fighting off counter-attacks from pro-government forces.
The source told the Reuters news agency that battles for Misrata’s military airbase started last night and are continuing, though the protesters are said to hold a large part of the base where there is ammunition.
Rebels are also reported to have shot-down a military aircraft and captured the crew as it was firing on a radio station in the city.
Fighting intensifies in Ivory Coast
Hundreds have been fleeing Ivory Coast’s capital adding to the 40,000 people already displaced after an increase in fighting.
Clashes between supporters of the two men contesting the disputed presidential election point to the country descending into civil war.
Rocket-propelled grenades and mortars are now being used along with indiscriminate shootings.
Mohamed Sylla, a local priest described the impact the violence was having. “It has been terrible,” he said, “gunfire during the night and also during the day. It has affected a lot of families.”
One mortuary no longer has room for the dead – 50 bodies were delivered here only yesterday.
President Laurent Gbagbo is still refusing to hand over power, despite the apparent victory of his rival Alessane Ouattara in elections last year.
Germany’s ‘cut and paste’ minister drops PhD
Germany’s beleaguered Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg temporarily dropped his PhD title on Friday amid claims of plagiarism.
German media outlets have come forward with parts of the thesis which they say are of questionable origin, but zu Guttenberg denies deliberately copying parts of his law dissertation.
He cancelled a key election rally in Saxony-Anhalt on Thursday but this morning he defended his actions.
“Without question, it (the thesis) contains mistakes. And I am the most unhappy person for every single one of these mistakes,” zu Guttenberg told reporters in Berlin.
“At no time, however, has there been a deliberate deception. Neither has there been a case where I deliberately did not mark the copyright.”
In a recent poll, zu Guttenberg ranked as the country’s most popular politician.
The aristocrat with a pop-star image has emerged unscathed from a number of setbacks over his handling of military affairs, including the death of a cadet aboard a naval training ship.
This scandal, however, may cost him his job with the opposition leading calls for him to step down.
Burnt vehicles in a state security building in Tobruk
A man gestures in front of burnt vehicles in a state security building in Tobruk, east of Libya. In cities like Benghazi and Tobruk, troops and police have either withdrawn or have joined with diffuse and disparate opposition groups to start providing some order and services. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem
Ashton continues to push for peace in Mid-East
Attempting to galvanise all sides into restarting peace talks, it was the turn of the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to receive a visit from the EU’s top diplomat Catherine Ashton.
Earlier, Ashton had made the optimistic claim in Israel that she believed a deal and a Palestinian state were achievable by September despite the continuing unrest in the wider region.
In fact Ashton stressed times of turmoil were a perfect moment to push on for peace.
But the Obama initiative to back face-to-face talks stalled last year over Jewish settlement building in the West Bank and have still not resumed.
Israel refuses to halt construction projects on land sought for a Palestinian state.
The authorities have approved the building of 120 new apartments in East Jerusalem. The Palestinians say they will not negotiate until there is a complete building freeze.
Iranian MPs want opposition figures to be hanged
Iranian MPs have called for two leading opposition figures to be executed following mass protests yesterday.
Conservative members of Iran’s parliament said Mirhoussein Mousavi and Karroubi should be executed, accusing them of “creating public disorder.”
Iran’s opposition took to the streets yesterday to call for democratic reforms in the Islamic Republic.
The protesters clashed with security forces, leaving two people dead and several dozen injured.
One of the dead has been named as 26-year-old arts student, Sanee Jaleh.
The second victim has been named as Mohammad Mokhtari.
Karzai names first phase of security transition
Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai, has named seven areas which will be handed to Afghan forces from NATO troops.
The announcement was the first step in a process that will see all foreign soldiers leave Afghanistan by 2014.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony for Afghan military officers in Kabul, Karzai said: “The government and people should start this year by realizing that the reality is that defending our the soil is our own responsibility.”
For the most part, the provinces being passed to Afghan control are relatively peaceful, however, Karzai did name Lashkar Gah in the group of seven, the capital of the volatile Helmand province. The handover is being seen as a crucial test for Afghanistan’s forces as the West tries to extract itself from the country.
