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Swedish jets make first combat mission in 50 yrs Thu Apr 7, 2011 8:03pm GMT STOCKHOLM, April 7 (Reuters) - Swedish warplanes operating from Sicily took part in NATO's operations against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi on Thursday, the first combat sortie by the Nordic country's air force since the early 1960s. A Swedish military spokesman said the aircraft had carried out a mission lasting about 40 minutes, according to plan, and had returned safely to their base in southern Italy. He would not provide any further information due to NATO regulations. The last time Sweden flew combat missions was in...

Tripoli, Libya In the seventeen months since Muammar Qaddafi was killed, Libya has made building an army a top national priority. But progress toward achieving this goal has been slow at best, with an official admitting that he does not even know how many soldiers are currently in the army. Public statements by senior Libyan leaders suggest that there is little disagreement over the notion that the country desperately needs a functioning military to ensure a peaceful transition – and a clean break from the Qaddafi legacy of a weak army dwarfed by powerful brigades loyal to the autocrat’s sons....

The Obama administration today stepped back from the prospect of imminent U.S. military action to support rebel forces in Libya, voicing reluctance to enforce a no-fly zone without United Nations approval. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, CIA Director Leon Panetta and other national security "principals" were meeting in the White House situation room to discuss administration options for Libya. But Obama had no plans to attend, and press secretary Jay Carney repeatedly made clear that this is "not a decision meeting." "I don't want to raise expectations that this is a meeting that will lead to imminent, concrete action,"...

Security in Benghazi, the eastern Libyan city where four Americans were killed Sept. 11 in a terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate, has decayed to the point where Westerners are fleeing, assassinations and kidnappings are rife and residents worry that U.S. drone strikes on jihadist targets are imminent. ... In January, Britain, the Netherlands, Germany and Canada urged their citizens to leave Benghazi. The British Foreign Office said it was aware of “a specific and imminent threat to Westerners in Benghazi.” Several nongovernmental organizations already have left. ... Over the past year, militants in Benghazi have attacked the British envoy’s...

Full headline: Before he was overthrown and killed, Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi warned jihadists would conquer northern Africa During the dying days of his four decade rule, Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi cast an ominous prophecy. If his regime fell, jihadists would subjugate northern Africa, inflicting widespread violence and terror. “Al-Qaeda considers all the people to be infidels,” Mr. Gaddafi declared in a speech weeks before NATO began its military intervention in Libya. “They deem all people their enemies. They know nothing but killing.” The Islamists would pour in from Afghanistan, Algeria, and Egypt, he warned, saying, “These are beasts with...

Jets from the 20th Fighter Wing provided a key role in taking a down corrupt regime during Operation Unified Protector. Their actions in OUP led to the capture of Moammar Gadhafi, the Libyan dictator for 42 years, by the Libyan revolutionaries on Oct. 20, 2011. The 20th FW first sent support at the beginning of April to support NATO forces in protecting the Libyan civilians from the dictatorship. "Around the middle of March, when things were starting to heat up in Libya, we were starting to pay attention," said Col. Charlie Moore, 20th FW commander. "It became apparent that we...

The United States has sent some 12,000 soldiers to Libya, in the first phase of deployments to the oil-rich North African nation. According to Asharq Alawsat, the troops landed in the eastern oil port city of Brega. Although the deployment is said to be aimed at generating stability and security in the region, the troops are expected to take control of the country's key oil fields and strategic ports. Brega, the site of an important oil refinery, serves as a major export hub for Libyan oil. The town is also one of the five oil terminals in the eastern half...

BRUSSELS (AP) — Some NATO members are worried that their organization may be investigated by the International Criminal Court after its prosecutor said allegations of crimes committed by NATO in Libya would be examined "impartially and independently," according to diplomats accredited to NATO headquarters. The diplomats said action to pre-empt a war crimes investigation would likely include an immediate internal legal review of all incidents in which NATO bombing or other actions caused civilian casualties. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. Currently, nearly 120 states are parties to the ICC. All European NATO...

BREAKING NEWS: Gaddafi 'captured' as rebel forces take control of Sirte Leader wounded in both legs prior to capture By DAILY MAIL REPORTER Last updated at 12:27 PM on 20th October 2011 Comments (0) Add to My Stories Share Muammar Gaddafi has been captured by revolutionary forces in Libya, it has been reported today. Gaddafi and his family have been on the run since Nato and rebel forces started closing the net on Tripoli in mid-August. The reports of Gaddafi's capture came on the same day that revolutionary forces said that they had taken control of Sirte - the leader's...

NATO agreed on Wednesday to a three-month extension of its air-and-sea campaign in Libya as the country's new rulers try to dislodge well-armed Gaddafi loyalists holding out in several towns. The agreement to extend the United Nations-mandated mission, which NATO took over on March 31, came at a meeting of ambassadors of the 28 NATO states in Brussels, a NATO diplomat said. The current operations mandate was due to expire on Sept. 27, and it was the second 90-day extension to the mission to protect civilians that has involved a campaign of air strikes and a naval mission to enforce...

WASHINGTON – What a buzzkill. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley faced a huge ballroom on Monday morning ready to kick off the biggest Air Force conference of the year. But instead of giving them the old Rick Perry red meat and whipping the crowd into a frenzied, spontaneous singing of “Into the wild blue yonder,” Donley delivered a dose of Jimmy Carter malaise. The Air Force is at war, but there also is a war on debts and deficits in Washington, he warned a cavernous ballroom of generals gathered the Air Force Association Air and Space Conference. “Efficiency” programs won’t...

Rebel forces head towards the frontline near the coastal city of Sirte, where troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi remain in control. Libyan rebels claimed on Thursday night to have captured Sirte, the birthplace of Muammar Gaddafi and the last of his coastal strongholds. The city was said to have fallen after an attack involving 900 "technicals" – armed pickup trucks – that attacked loyalist positions from three directions. "Thwar Misrata [the Misrata revolution] now control the entrances to Sirte city," said a statement from the Misrata military council. There was no independent verification that Sirte had fallen. The council, which...

NATO has carried out airstrikes on the Moammar Gadhafi stronghold city of Bani Walid, as fighters seeking to rout him retreated after heavy battles there overnight, reports from Libya said Saturday. A Reuters reporter on the ground said there were at least five explosions Saturday as NATO flew aircraft overhead. Earlier, anti-Gadhafi fighters pulled back from Bani Walid, saying they expected NATO attacks on the town. In a new audio message from hiding, Gadhafi calls on his followers to rise up and fight, saying "this is the zero hour."

AGADEZ, Niger — A large military convoy from Libya arrived in the northern Niger city of Agadez late Monday, a military source told AFP. "I saw an exceptionally large and rare convoy of several dozen vehicles enter Agadez from Arlit... and go towards Niamey," the source said, amid speculation that toppled leader Moamer Kadhafi may be in it. "There are persistent rumours that Kadhafi or one of his sons are travelling in the convoy," the source said. A journalist from a private radio station in Agadez said he saw "a convoy of several dozen vehicles crossing the city and heading...

If it's true the Navy has been shooting down scud missiles over Libya from sea, and for whatever reason Navy information never reported this, it's time to cut the Navy Information budget by 75%.

Despite signs of dangerous fractures among the Libyan rebels who ousted Moammar Gadhafi, the United States and its European allies have ruled out a significant nation-building role or major infusions of aid to the postwar government in Tripoli. The moves toward disengagement reflect the allies’ desire to scale back after a 5 1/2-month air war that strained their militaries and treasuries, and exposed their leaders to criticism at home. The United States, France and Britain were the leading participants in the NATO campaign. President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are especially eager to put the war behind them...

Libyan rebel commander admits his fighters have al-Qaeda links Mr al-Hasidi...added that the "members of al-Qaeda are also good Muslims and are fighting against the invader". His revelations came even as Idriss Deby Itno, Chad's president, said al-Qaeda had managed to pillage military arsenals in the Libyan rebel zone and acquired arms, "including surface-to-air missiles, which were then smuggled into their sanctuaries". Mr al-Hasidi admitted he had earlier fought against "the foreign invasion" in Afghanistan, before being "captured in 2002 in Peshwar, in Pakistan". He was later handed over to the US, 5 years later released from GITMO and then...

JANZOUR, Libya Aug 31 (Reuters) - Muammar Gaddafi's foreign minister, Abdelati Obeidi, was arrested on Tuesday at his farm in Janzour, a suburb west of Tripoli, a Reuters correspondent said.

Rebel commanders say Khamis Gaddafi, one of Colonel Gaddafi's most feared sons, has been killed in an air strike 60km south of Tripoli. He is said to have been in an armoured Toyota Land Cruiser when it was reportedly blasted off the road by a missile apparently from a Nato Apache helicopter. Sky's chief correspondent Stuart Ramsay, who is at the scene, said a man claiming to be Khamis' bodyguard confirmed that he had died in the vehicle. The explosion incinerated the 4x4 and was so intense it set nearby trees on fire, Ramsay reports. Claims about the death of...

Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has fled Libya to Zimbabwe on a jet provided by Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, it was claimed today, as rebels began the march on his home town. President Mugabe's political opponents claim their spies saw Gaddafi arrive in the country on a Zimbabwe Air Force jet in the early hours of Wednesday morning. They say the Libyan dictator was taken to a mansion in Harare's Gunninghill suburb, where agents from his all-female bodyguard were apparently seen patrolling the grounds.

The fighting in Libya is taking a new twist as rebels engage in despicable atrocities with reports of summary executions as they hunt for ‘mercenaries’ who they alleged aided and supported Gaddafi’s forces. The ‘mercenaries’, mostly from sub-saharan Africa, were said to be violently massacred in revenge for their role in the ongoing conflict. It seems the TRC has been unable to prevent such acts of heinous crimes despite appeals from the UN and the international community to the rebels not to carry out reve nge killings. At this point, the TRC seems more anxious to take power in Libya...

The White House is spinning the US role in Nato's support for Libyan rebels a foreign policy triumph. That hardly stacks up In case you weren't paying attention, the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi has been claimed by the White House as a vindication of President Barack Obama's decision to "lead from behind". Almost as soon as the rebels reached Tripoli, the administration's deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, Ben Rhodes, began spinning the media that Obama's light footprint approach to regime change was infinitely superior to the Bush approach. Administration officials fell over themselves to point out that the...

We join the Libyan people in gratefulness as we hear of Col. Gaddafi’s defeat. The fall of a tyrant and sponsor of terrorism is a great day for freedom-loving people around the world. But the path to democracy in Libya is not complete, and we must make wise choices to ensure that our national interests are protected.

Developments this week with Libya and Syria show that President Barack Obama is in way over his head on U.S. foreign policy – once again. In Libya, rebel fighters are closing in on Col. Moammar Qaddafi’s stronghold of Tripoli - though remain locked in a six-month civil war and face a potential bloodbath in taking the city. This is despite Mr. Obama’s headlong rush to lead “kinetic military action” in March to back them up, an effort expected by some optimists in Washington to last weeks. NATO, with U.S. forces at the core, is still at it. With Syria, Mr....

Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year grip on power in Libya looked more precarious than ever on Friday night, as rebel forces advanced on the capital from three directions after breaking out of the once-besieged town of Misrata. With rebels taking control of the coastal town of Zlitan in the east, those in the west claimed to have made progress clearing out the last pro-Gaddafi troops from Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli. They now have the main coastal road under pressure on both sides of the capital and also under threat from the Nafusa mountains. Gaddafi's army outside Tripoli is trapped in...

Libyan rebels are threatening to isolate the capital, Tripoli, as they capture key towns to the south and west of the city and work to cut off supply routes in their bid to push leader Moammar Gadhafi from power. The rebels say they control most of Zawiya, a strategic town 50 kilometers west of Gadhafi's power base in Tripoli. Rebel fighters entered Zawiya Saturday in their closest approach to the capital since government forces crushed Zawiya's rebel movement in the early weeks of the uprising. Pro-Gadhafi forces exchanged fire with rebel fighters in Zawiya Monday, trying to push them back...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Libyan government forces tapped into their stores of Scud missiles this weekend, firing one for the first time in this year's conflict with rebels, but hurting no one, U.S. defense officials said Monday.

Khamis, the feared military commander and son of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, was shown on state television on Wednesday, days after rebels reported his death. Tripoli denied the claim at the time, but a rebel spokesman on Wednesday insisted that Khamis was dead. The broadcaster showed footage of what it said was a visit on Tuesday by the uniformed 28-year-old, Kadhafi's youngest son, to a hospital to meet "victims of NATO raids." The date of the recording could not be confirmed. If genuine, it would be the first time Khamis had been seen in public since Friday, when rebels said...

Rebels in the western Libyan town of Zliten were said to be low on ammunition and on the defensive on Sunday, as the regime said its forces had retaken the strategic southwest town of Bir Ghanam. Abdul Wahab Melitan, a rebel spokesman in the port city of Misrata near Zliten, said forces loyal to strongman Moamer Kadhafi had launched an assault on rebel positions in Zliten's Souk Telat area, killing three and wounding 15. "The rebels lack ammunition to advance and we do not want to risk losing any ground," Melitan said. Meanwhile, a rebel source at Al-Qusbat, around 90...

... As the ice and snow fell on March 27, two B-1s took off during a snow and ice storm. The two bombers flew east across the United States and over international waters. Flying with the wind, the jets required four mid-air refuelings to reach Libya. Hart said the crews flew over water after leaving the U.S. "Whenever we fly a military aircraft over another country's airspace you need a diplomatic clearance," Hart said. "The clearances take time we didn't have, and there's less visibility if you're not flying over someone's country." After dropping the first wave of bombs, the...

Supporters of Muammar Gaddafi participate in a demonstration in Tripoli, Libya, 28 July 2011. War on Libya has not gone well. Kim Sengupta's report on Wednesday detailed this starkly: "Fresh diplomatic efforts are under way to try to end Libya's bloody civil war, with the UN special envoy flying to Tripoli to hold talks after Britain followed France in accepting that Muammar Gaddafi cannot be bombed into exile. The change of stance by the two most active countries in the international coalition is an acceptance of realities on the ground. Despite more than four months of sustained air strikes by...

Sure, the economy is hurting so a job's a job... but will any public relations firms agree to take on Moammer Gadhafi and the Libyan government as a client? The NY Post reports, "The Libyan strongman...is looking to hire a New York public-relations rep to scrub his homicidal image, asking for help to counter the fallout of a civil war that threatens to topple his brutal regime." Some of the duties would include "head[ing] daily press briefings and spread[ing] the good word on the tyrant's 'moral' and 'legal' claims to power -- all while rebel forces battle to end Khadafy's...

Defence Secretary Liam Fox has said Britain will continue with the Libyan bombing campaign for as long as is necessary. Mr Fox said Britain had a commitment to continue with airstrikes on Libya to fulfil a UN resolution aimed at protecting civilians. "There's only one message we should be sending to the regime and that is that we have both the military capability and the resolve to continue pursuing and fulfilling United Nations resolution 1973 as long as is required," he said on BBC radio. Britain has been bombing Libyan military and government targets since March, when Nato intervened and...

BRUSSELS — NATO allies are in a hurry to bring the air war in Libya to a victorious end but are having to carry on with a shrinking alliance after Norway withdrew its jets and Italy pulled an aircraft carrier. Norway’s departure this weekend leaves the 28-nation military club with combat planes from seven nations instead of eight to finish a job begun four months ago that some hoped would last just weeks. ... Britain has effectively stepped in to fill the gap left by Norway by contributing an extra four Tornado planes and will carry on the mission along...

NATO allies are in a hurry to bring the air war in Libya to a victorious end but are having to carry on with a shrinking alliance after Norway withdrew its jets and Italy pulled an aircraft carrier. Norway’s departure this weekend leaves the 28-nation military club with combat planes from seven nations instead of eight to finish a job begun four months ago that some hoped would last just weeks. And with Moamer Kadhafi refusing to step down, allied tactics and diplomatic messages too are under adjustment: the United States, France and Britain indicated in recent days the dictator...

NATO says its warplanes have bombed Libyan state TV satellite transmitters because they were being used to incite violence and threaten civilians. A statement says the strike early Saturday "will reduce the regime's ability to oppress civilians, while (preserving) television broadcast infrastructure that will be needed after the conflict." NATO said Moammar Gadhafi's inflammatory broadcasts have been designed to mobilize his supporters. The attempt to silence the government's TV broadcasts comes at a sensitive time for Libya's rebels, who appear to be in disarray after the death of their chief military commander.

<p>Libya’s rebels were in disarray on Friday after the mysterious killing of their leading military commander triggered fears that opposition fighters battling to oust Col Muammar Gaddafi could instead turn their weapons on each other.</p> <p>Units loyal to Gen Abdel Fattah Younes, who was shot dead on Thursday, reportedly abandoned the rebel front line near the oil town of Brega and poured into the opposition capital of Benghazi to avenge their commander’s death.</p>

While the outcome of NATO’s intervention in Libya is still uncertain, the ongoing drift toward a negotiated solution is fraught with potentially debilitating problems for the Western alliance. Ousting Qaddafi remains a possibility, and could have been achieved much earlier with swift and decisive action, but the prospects for a clear NATO victory are now quite uncertain. The collapse of NATO’s resolve came in several stages, with the seeds planted right at the outset of the military action. First, President Obama signaled hesitancy and weakness by waiting until Qaddafi’s forces had nearly taken Benghazi , the rebels’ key stronghold, and...

Libya is ready to hold more talks with the United States and with rebels trying to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi, but the Libyan leader will not bow to demands he quit, a government spokesman said. Moussa Ibrahim said Libyan officials had a "productive dialogue" with U.S. counterparts last week in a rare meeting that followed American recognition of the rebel government that hopes to end Gaddafi's 41-year rule. "Other meetings in the future ... will help solve Libyan problems," the spokesman told reporters in Tripoli late on Friday. "We are willing to talk to the Americans more." He said Gaddafi would...

A deadly bombing that killed at least seven in Oslo on Friday can be viewed as a response to Norway's participation in NATO-led military campaign against Libya, Russian top political experts said. At least 92 people were killed in two separate attacks in Norway on Friday. Seven people reported to be killed in a bomb explosion at a government headquarters in Oslo and 85 were killed in a shooting at a youth summer camp on the Utoya Island, near the capital. Norway, which is a NATO member, could have been targeted because of its participation in the military campaign against...

Libyan ruler Muammar al-Qaddafi's troops have boobytrapped petroleum installations in the strategic oil port of Brega so they can be blown up if his regime loses the town, a top rebel official said Thursday. Mahmoud Jibril, the rebels' diplomatic chief, also said Qaddafi's forces have boobytrapped oil fields. He did not state which fields. While Brega is a key oil processing and shipment hub, the fields that feed it lie far to the south in the Libyan desert.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) assumed command and control over the western-led intervention in the Libyan civil war four months ago with three stated military missions: enforce an arms embargo, enforce a no-fly-zone, and protect civilians and civilian populated areas. As I have noted often on this blog, NATO has selectively enforced the arms embargo by looking the other way when the rebels were caught red handed violating it. Furthermore, after NATO ally France was exposed by Le Figaro for violating the arms embargo by air-dropping rocket launchers, machine guns, and anti-tank grendaes to Libyan rebels, NATO Secretary General...

Recent briefings in Brussels and London on Operation Unified Protector reveal that attack helicopters provided by France and the UK are now making key contributions to NATO-led operations over Libya, which has been extended until the end of September. British AH-64 Apaches plus French Tigers and Gazelles have destroyed more than 300 targets since their introduction on June 4. Flying at night, they have provided “a valuable psychological and cognitive effect,” according to one British Army officer. The helicopters’ mix of weapons (Hellfire or HOT missiles, rockets and guns) might be more suited to attacking light vehicles and control points...

Rebels say they have retaken oil town, as Russia slams US for recognisng their leadership as legitimate government. Libyan rebels have claimed victory against troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, the country's leader, inside the eastern port town of Brega. The rebels said Gaddafi's troops were retreating west towards the town of Ras Lanuf. Brega, which is 750km east of Tripoli, the capital, has changed hands several times since the uprising against Gaddafi began in February. Shamsiddin Abdulmolah, a rebel spokesman, told the AFP news agency that the fighters had circled the town, a key oil export terminal with a refinery...

<p>NATO warplanes destroyed the radar antenna at Tripoli International Airport on Monday, the alliance said, claiming the system was being used for military purposes by Moammar Gadhafi's regime.</p> <p>A statement said the air traffic control radar at the civilian airport was tracking NATO jets and the providing information to Libyan air defenses.</p>

Britain has asked the US to step up its support for the Nato mission in Libya, amid continuing doubts over how the conflict against Colonel Muammer Gaddafi’s forces can be brought to an end. Officials have told the Financial Times that Liam Fox, UK defence secretary, asked Leon Panetta, his new US counterpart, for more help with intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and aerial refuelling. The two men spoke in a phone call last week. The request leaves the Obama administration facing a choice between disappointing its ally’s call for help and potentially angering the US Congress, which is increasingly sceptical about...

Fighting between Libyan rebels and government troops raged around the eastern Libyan oil town of Brega throughout the weekend as NATO warplanes launched a sustained pre-dawn raid on Tripoli's eastern suburbs. Distant explosions shook windows in central Tripoli for more than an hour during the raid, launched about 1 a.m. Sunday. NATO said later that the targets were warehouses full of Libyan tanks, troop carriers and ammunition in Tajoura, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from the city's center. The Western alliance has been bombarding Libya since late March a U.N. mandate to protect civilians from forces loyal to longtime strongman...

The UK Royal Air Force has provided a new update on its combat activities in Libya, and announced plans to boost its commitment of fast jets to the NATO campaign to 22 aircraft. Twelve Panavia Tornado GR4s and six Eurofighter Typhoons are currently supporting operation Unified Protector from Gioia del Colle air base in Italy, with the combination having flown more than 1,100 sorties and almost 2,400h by earlier this month. Speaking at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford in the UK on 15 July, Air Vice Marshal Greg Bagwell, air officer commanding the service’s 1 Group organisation,...

Recognition by U.S. and other Western nations could unlock billions of dollars in frozen Libyan funds Rebel leaders won recognition as the legitimate government of Libya from the United States and other world powers on Friday in a major boost to the rebels' faltering campaign to oust Muammer Gadhafi. Western nations said they also planned to increase the military pressure on Gadhafi's forces to press him to give up power after 41 years at the head of the North African state. Recognition of the rebels, announced by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a meeting in Turkey of the international...

The U.S. Air Force has deployed its bombers like never before in the Libya campaign. Wired picked up a story released by Air Force Magazine detailing a flight made this spring by two B1 bombers from South Dakota to Libya carrying ninety-eight, 500 pound bombs. During 24 hours of combat time over four days, the bombers destroyed nearly 100 targets. The B1s were chosen on top of NATO's combined air fleet because each one carries around 24,000 pounds of Joint Direct Attack Munitions and Laser guided JDAMs. To achieve equal destruction would have required dozens of NATO jets.