BREAKING NEWS

Libya ready for ceasefire, demands end to NATO strikes

By REUTERS

MAY 26, 2011 20:49

TRIPOLI - Libya said on Thursday it was ready for a ceasefire and negotiations with rebels who hold the east of the country but demanded it include an immediate halt to NATO airstrikes.

The proposal by Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi, who said it mirrored a plan floated by the African Union, one of Tripoli's few allies, for resolving the conflict, came on the heels peace overtures to Spain and other foreign countries.

It also follows some of the heaviest attacks to date in NATO's Libyan air campaign, which Muammar Gaddafi's government says has exceeded a mandate of civilian protection based on United Nations Security Council resolutions, and now aims at killing or toppling the Libyan leader.

"Libya is serious about a ceasefire, which must be a ceasefire from all sides, especially NATO," Mahmudi told reporters in Tripoli. He dismissed, however, any prospect of Gaddafi's departure -- a key rebel demand. "Muammar Gaddafi is the leader of the Libyan people; he decides what the Libyan people think," Baghdadi said. "He is in the hearts of the Libyan people. If he departs, then so do all the Libyan people."

Israel Air Force strike kills six in Rafah

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF

04/20/2024 05:58 AM

US Senate has agreement on FISA reauthorization, vote on Friday

By REUTERS

04/20/2024 04:59 AM

Iran says it will respond at 'maximum level' if Israel acts against it

By REUTERS

04/20/2024 02:43 AM

Five high school students wounded in Maryland shooting

By REUTERS

04/20/2024 01:36 AM