LIBYA: Qaddafi Says He's Giving Guns To Everyone US, UK, And French Attacks Have " Severely Disabled" Libya's Air Defenses

This operation has been named Odyssey Dawn. NBC correspondent Richard Engel has pointed out that today's operation begins 8-years to the day after the start of the war in Iraq.

 

18:55 ET: A U.S. official has told Reuters that Libya's air defense systems are " severely disabled."

18:46 ET: Air strikes have hit a Qaddafi controlled air base, according to Reuters (via The Guardian).

18:45 ET: We now have a bit more on the participation of the UAE and Qatar in the operations. The UAE will have 24 aircraft in the operation, and Qatar will have as many as 6, according to the BBC. Turkey has also said it will do what it has to do to implement the no-fly zone.

The participation of Arab states in the operations is certain to support the view that this is a broad coalition.

18:30 ET: The first details of the diplomatic wrangling behind the operation are emerging. The New York Times reports that other coalition members have been upset by the French stepping forward and acting first.

From The New York Times:

The initial French air sorties, which were not coordinated with other countries, angered some of the countries gathered at the summit meeting, according to a senior NATO-country diplomat. Information about the movement of Qaddafi troops toward Benghazi had been clear on Friday, but France blocked any NATO agreement on air strikes until the Paris meeting, the diplomat said, suggesting that overflights could have begun Friday night before Mr. Qaddafi’s troops reached the city.

18:15 ET: The French are denying reports that one of their fighter jets has been shot down (via Al Jazeera).

17:45 ET: Qaddafi says, via phone to Libyan TV, that weapons depots will be opened to the general Libyan population to defend the country against the " crusade." According to Al Jazeera, Qaddafi may already be arming his population to attack rebels.

Qaddafi has also threatened to attack both military and civilian targets in the Mediterranean, according to Sky.

17:40 ET: Rebels are fighting with government forces in Benghazi, according to Al Jazeera. Rebel forces are in communication with governments involved in the air strikes.

There is some concern that the rebel forces in Libya are not pro-democracy, but rather, are more closely associated with Al Qaeda groups, according to a new report from The Huffington Post.

17:30 ET: Qaddafi is likely to speak to the Libyan people shortly, according to Al Jazeera.

17:27 ET: A French plane has been shot down in Libya, according to Libyan TV (via AFP and Al Jazeera). No confirmation of this yet.

17:10 ET: Libya's government spokesman described today's attacks as " barbaric." He claims the rebels are part of Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb and that his country was following the cease-fire agreement.

16:30 ET: Both the U.S. and UK have fired Tomahawk missiles on Libya. There are no U.S. planes flying over Libya as of yet. Over 110 Tomahawk missiles have been fired on Libya thus far, according to a Pentagon spokesman.

A Pentagon spokesmen says the U.S. is assisting in creating the conditions for a no-fly zone, meaning one is not yet in place. The goal here appears to be the destruction of Qaddafi's air defense facilities.

The Pentagon news conference is now complete.

12:45 ET: The first shot was fired, as a French jet jet targeted and destroyed a Libyan vehicle, the defence ministry tells Reuters.

Hillary Clinton repeated coalition demands at a speech in Paris: The violence must stop. Troops must stop advancing toward Benghazi and pull out of all contested cities.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Image: ap

World leaders are meeting in Paris today, according to Reuters, and word is that strikes could begin immediately afterwords.

French, British, and Canadian jets are said to be in the first wave of strikes.

For more background on yesterday's action, see here

The Coast Guard Is Investigating A Possible Brand New, Big Oil Spill In The Gulf

West pounds Libya, Kadhafi vows retaliation

The US, Britain and France pounded Libya with air strikes and Tomahawk missiles on Saturday, sparking a furious response from Moamer Kadhafi who said the Mediterranean had now become a " battlefield."

United States and British forces fired at least 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Libya's air defence sites, a top US military officer said, two days after a UN Security Council resolution with Arab backing authorised military action.

Libyan state media said that Western warplanes bombed civilian targets in Tripoli, causing casualties while an army spokesman said strikes also hit fuel tanks feeding the rebel-held city of Misrata, east of Tripoli.

Libyan state television said a French warplane was shot down in the Njela district of Tripoli, but the French military swiftly denied the report.

Kadhafi, in a brief audio message broadcast on state television, fiercely denounced the attacks as a " barbaric, unjustified Crusaders' aggression."

He vowed retaliatory strikes on military and civilian targets in the Mediterranean, which he said had been turned into a " real battlefield."

" Now the arms depots have been opened and all the Libyan people are being armed," to fight against Western forces, the veteran leader warned.

US President Barack Obama, on a visit to Brazil, said he had given the green light for the operation, which is codenamed " Odyssey Dawn."

" Today, I authorised the armed forces of the United States to begin a limited military action in Libya," Obama said in Brasilia.

The first missile struck at 1900 GMT following air strikes carried out earlier by French warplanes, Admiral William Gortney, director of the US joint staff, said in Washington.

" It's a first phase of a multi-phase operation" to enforce the UN resolution and prevent the Libyan regime from using force " against its own people," he said.

One British submarine joined with other US ships and submarines in the missile attacks, he said.

The first strikes took place near Libya's coast, notably around Tripoli and Misrata, " because that's where the integrated missile defence systems are."

US and allied countries are not yet enforcing a no-fly zone with aircraft patrolling the skies, he said, but " we're setting the conditions to be able to reach that state."

The targets included surface-to-air missile sites but it was too early to say how effective the Tomahawk strikes were, he said.

" Because it is night over there, it will be some time before we have a complete picture of the success of these strikes," the admiral said.

The US operation followed initial missions by French warplanes, which carried out four air strikes Saturday, destroying several armoured vehicles from Kadhafi's forces.

State television said hundreds of people had gathered at Bab al-Aziziyah, Kadhafi's Tripoli headquarters, and at the capital's international airport, ahead of the widely anticipated air strikes.

" Crowds are forming around the targets identified by France," the television reported, showing pictures of flag-waving people gathering to serve as human shields.

Last week, a highly placed French source referred to Bab al-Aziziyah, a military air base in Sirte, east of the capital, and another in Sebha in the south as likely targets of a strike.

A French official told AFP that air strikes by Britain, France and the US Libyan territory are being coordinated at a US headquarters in Germany.

Russia's foreign ministry expressed regret over the attacks under a Security Council Resolution 1973 which was " adopted in haste," while the African Union, which opposed military action, aims to send a delegation to Tripoli on Sunday.

But British Prime Minister David Cameron said he held Kadhafi responsible for the situation in his country and that " the time for action" by the international community had come.

" Colonel Kadhafi has made this happen. He has lied to the international community, he has promised a ceasefire, he has broken that ceasefire. He continues to brutalise his own people," Cameron told British television.

France said the air strikes would continue through the night.

In the rebel camp, celebratory gunfire and honking of car horns broke out in Al-Marj, 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Benghazi, to welcome the start of military operations against Kadhafi, correspondents said.

Thousands earlier Saturday fled Benghazi as Kadhafi loyalists pounded the eastern city, the rebels' stronghold, with shells and tank fire after two early morning air strikes.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon said he was troubled by a telephone call from Libyan Prime Minister Baghdadi Mahmudi on Friday night.

" He told me that the Libyan government was fully abiding by the Security Council resolution and there will be an immediate ceasefire," said the secretary general.

" But at the same time and overnight they were attacking Benghazi. It is very troubling whatever they say must be verified."

Since Friday, the Libyan government has insisted it was observing a self-declared ceasefire, shortly after the Security Council voted to authorise the use of force against Kadhafi's troops to spare civilians.

The regime said its armed forces were under attack west of Benghazi, including by rebel aircraft, and had responded in self-defence.

But the rebels, who have been trying to overthrow the Libyan leader for more than a month, said government troops had continued to bombard cities, violating the ceasefire continuously.

In another Middle East hotspot, medics in Yemen on Saturday raised to 52 the death toll from a sniper attack on protesters in Sanaa the previous day, as thousands rallied despite a state of emergency.

The slaughter in Sanaa on Friday was the bloodiest day in weeks of unrest that have shaken the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a key US ally in its war against Al-Qaeda.

And security forces in Syria fired tear gas on Saturday at mourners burying two men killed in a protest in the southern city of Daraa the previous day, wounding several, rights activists said.

The official SANA news agency said a committee was being formed to investigate the " regrettable" events in Daraa.

In Bahrain, beleaguered King Hamad pledged to bring in reforms as Shiite-led pro-democracy protesters against the Sunni monarchy said they would not give up despite being cleared by police from Pearl Square in central Manama. 

SAF officer flamed for remarks on Japan

The S'pore army officer has since issued an apology on his Facebook page (Yahoo! Photo).

An  army officer in Singapore, who posted controversial  remarks on the developments in  Japan, has apologised for being insensitive to the grief of victims after netizens slammed him for his comments.

Calling himself Shahril Beckham on social networking site Facebook, the former OCS instructor had posted as his status, " There is a reason why God chose Japan..."

A friend of his replied to his comment saying, " Extreme dislike. This comment is in bad taste. Are they not human?"

To which the officer responded with a slew of vulgarities, calling him an " idiot" . With support from others, he then went on to viciously attack the friend for " preaching" to him.

After receiving negative feedback for his insensitivity, the army officer eventually publicly apologised for his comments on his Facebook profile.

" To those who may be affected (with) my comments on " why god chose japan" , I sincerely apologise. I admit (that) my following comments thereafter has been rather insensitive and unethical causing grief to others (sic). I've acted on impulse and once again, I am truly sorry," he wrote.

As Japan struggles to recover from the tragedy, netizens have taken up arms against those making similar comments online.

// what a F#*K talkin big thingy, worst still, SAF officer. btw, how he knew the reason god choose japan? ?? too many Friday HALA prayer thingy and mediate with lustful mind? The most  1 -3straps  in front, want real warfare experience to improve ill thingy, PUI !!!! this  ARMY OFFICER!!! Only a OFFICER TALK like A  BIG F#*Ky LIAO. MInd his THINKY & ASK HIS GOD WHEN SINGAPORE crisis. beigin, I mean real warfare in front line for backup, will he thinky think about HIS GOD...