Nato insists air strikes meant to protect civilians, not aid rebels

Wing Cmdr Mike Bracken, an alliance spokesman in Naples, Italy, said Nato is “not involved in the ground battles,” although he acknowledged the alliance is tracking the fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi.

Libya's Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim accused Nato earlier of intensifying its bombing campaign and backing foreign mercenaries to lay the groundwork for an advance by rebels trying to topple Gaddafi's regime.

Kaim told reporters that increased bombings in recent days represent the “final phase” of Nato's air campaign. But he said the push will fail and that civilians will pay the price.

He said Nato targeted police checkpoints in the Nafusa mountains south-west of Tripoli ahead of a rebel advance toward the village of Qawalish, which rebel fighters said they seized on Wednesday.

A fuel depot in the key eastern oil town of Brega was also destroyed, Kaim said. Nato said it hit equipment used to refuel government military vehicles.

The intensified barrage of air strikes, particularly in the west of the country, is focused on targeting civilian infrastructure and police checkpoints, he said.

He also alleged that Nato was increasing efforts to provide weapons to rebel fighters.

“The aim of these attacks is to help the rebels to advance. But I assure you, it will be another failure for them,” he said.

Kaim also claimed Libyan forces have evidence that Colombian mercenaries funded by the West and its Arab allies have joined the rebel fighters trying to advance toward the capital Tripoli from the western rebel-held city of Misrata. Some of the Colombian fighters were killed in clashes near Misrata on Wednesday, he said.

Nato cast doubt on the charge that mercenaries were involved.

“We've not seen anything to indicate this allegation might be true,” said Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu. “But what we have seen are repeated consistent and credible reports that Gaddafi's forces have been using mercenaries, not just now or in recent months but for years and decades.”

Nato began air strikes against Libya in March. The coalition and its Arab allies have a UN mandate to protect civilians.

Some countries in the coalition have interpreted that mandate broadly, with France acknowledging it has provided weapons to rebels operating in the mountains and other countries providing non-lethal aid.

Libyan officials earlier this week showed journalists assault rifles and ammunition they claimed had been shipped to rebels by the wealthy Gulf Arab state of Qatar.

Nato said late last week it had begun ramping up its air strikes on military targets in the western part of Libya. It said it was targeting government forces in cities and along “major lines of communication”.

On Wednesday, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Nato’s secretary-general, said the alliance had damaged or destroyed more than 2,700 military targets since its campaign began.

“The momentum is against Gaddafi, his economic strength to sustain war is declining, his generals and ministers are deserting, the international community has turned against him,” he said in Brussels. “For Gaddafi, the game is over.”

The civil war has been largely deadlocked, with the rebels controlling the east and Gaddafi clinging on in western Libya.

A string of victories has left bands of rebels in control of most of a mountain range within about 100 miles (160 kms) of Tripoli.