NATO says its planes struck Libyan rebels

The World

Discussion

The Salem News has a real-name policy for commenting. Users may sign in using the Facebook Connect tool above the comments field. Once your first comment is posted by a moderator, all future comments will post automatically. If you prefer not to use Facebook, send an e-mail with your comments user name (which must be the same as your real name), city or town, street address and daytime phone number to comments@salemnews.com. A staff member will contact you directly to confirm your identity. It may take a day or two before you can post comments. Only your user name will be public. All users are required to follow our rules for commenting, which can be found here.

comments powered by Disqus

April 8, 2011

Anonymous Associated Press Fri Apr 08, 2011, 06:18 AM EDT

BRUSSELS — NATO said Friday its airstrikes had hit rebels using tanks in their fight with the government forces in eastern Libya, but said it would not apologize for the deaths.

Rear Admiral Russell Harding, the deputy commander of the NATO operation, said the military alliance had no previous information the rebels were operating tanks. In the past, only forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi had used heavy armored vehicles, he said.

Harding says the situation between the eastern coastal towns of Brega and Ajdabiya remains fluid, with the opposing forces engaged in a series of advances and retreats, making it difficult for pilots to distinguish between them.

NATO jets attacked a rebel convoy between these two towns Thursday, killing at least five fighters and destroying or damaging a number of armored vehicles.

The strikes, including an attack earlier this week, provoked angry denunciations of NATO by the rebels. At the same time, NATO officials have expressed frustration with the insurgents, who now view the alliance, whose mandate is limited to protecting civilians, as their proxy air force.

Harding said Friday that NATO jets had conducted 318 sorties and struck 23 targets across Libya in the past 48 hours.

"It would appear that two of our strikes yesterday may have resulted in (rebel) deaths," he told reporters in Naples where the alliance's operational center is located.

"I am not apologizing," Harding said. "The situation on the ground was and remains extremely fluid, and until yesterday we did not have information that (rebel) forces are using tanks."

Over the past week, Gadhafi's forces had switched tactics by leaving their heavy armor behind and using only light trucks armed with heavy machine guns and fast-firing anti-aircraft cannons on the front lines between Brega and Ajdabiya. These have proven very effective in disrupting repeated rebel attempts to push west toward Tripoli, but Gadhafi's forces have not been able to drive the rebels back toward Benghazi or establish a solid front line in that sector.

"These trucks cannot hold ground," Harding said. "When you see their tanks coming up, those are the vehicles that can cause the greatest harm to civilians."

On Thursday, the situation in that sector "was very confusing, vehicles going back and forth," he said.

Text Only | Photo Reprints

The World

Search Results

Discussion

NATO says its planes struck Libyan rebels

Site Map

Reader Access