Embattled Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has vowed to fight to the "last man and last woman" to defend his country. He told his supporters and foreign media yesterday in Tripoli that "we will fight until the last man and woman. We will defend Libya from the north to the south."
There were also strong indications yesterday that United States (U.S.) warships were heading towards Libya on the orders of Defence Secretary Robert Gates.
Egyptian officials confirmed that two American warships had entered the Suez Canal on their way to the Mediterranean, as Libyan forces launched a counter offensive against protesting nationals, who want Gaddafi to leave office.
The Libyan leader still accused al-Qaeda of masterminding a popular uprising against his 41-year rule in the North African nation.
The Egyptian officials said amphibious assault ships USS Kearsarge and USS Ponce, entered the canal yesterday morning from the Red Sea.
According to them, USS Kearsarge was carrying some 42 helicopters on board.
Gates said on Tuesday he had ordered two ships into the Mediterranean and he is sending 400 Marines to the vessels to replace some troops that left recently for Afghanistan.
He also said any military action in Libya must be carefully weighed because of broad consequences for the region.
But Arab foreign ministers have called on Gaddafi to take "brave" decisions to stop violence and respect the "legitimate rights" of the people.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari, who presided over the opening session of the meeting in Cairo, also said the Libya crisis was an internal Arab affair, stressing that the Arabs did not want any "foreign intervention."
Some North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) countries are drawing up contingency plans modelled on the no-fly zones over the Balkans in the 1990s in case the international community decides to impose an air embargo over Libya, diplomats said.
NATO has already said that any such move would require a clear mandate from the United Nations (UN) Security Council. This is unlikely because Russia, which has veto power in the Council, has already rejected the idea.
The Human Rights Watch has warned of a backlash against Gaddafi's use of sub-Saharan African mercenaries to quash the uprisings.
The group said African workers among more than 140,000 refugees, foreign labourers and other minorities fleeing the violence are "particularly under threat due to popular anger" over Gaddafi's mercenaries
American officials said as the Barack Obama administration weighs its military options for Libya, it is conscious that it may need to flex U.S. muscle to force Gaddafi out of power and also fearful of provoking even deadlier violence from a regime that has shown little restraint in attacking its own people.
Forces loyal to Gaddafi yesterday attacked an important town in Libya's east, sparking a rebel warning that foreign military help might be needed to "put the nail in his coffin" and end his long rule.
Government troops briefly captured Marsa El Brega, an oil export terminal, before being driven back by rebels who have controlled the town 800 km (500 miles) east of the capital Tripoli for about a week, rebel officers said.
But the U.S. military also has no interest in getting bogged down in a third war.
Gates said any military action in Libya must be carefully considered because it would have broad consequences for the region and the U.S. military, affecting even the effort in Afghanistan. And military leaders said it would be difficult to organise even the relatively modest threat of a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent Gaddafi from launching aerial assaults on his opponents.
"We also have to think about, frankly, the use of the U.S. military in another country in the Middle East," Gates said, a reference to the challenges involved with adding another war to the one in Iraq and the potential for backlash in the Arab world. 'We're sensitive about all of these things, but we will provide the president with a full range of options."
Gates' caution contrasted with the more strident tone adopted by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who warned that Libya "could become a peaceful democracy or it could face protracted civil war" amid continued violent clashes between government forces and those seeking Gaddafi's ouster.
Their comments reflected the central bind facing the administration as it seeks to keep the heat on Gaddafi, whom President Barack Obama has called on to step down. It has called for a tough international response to the violence that has killed hundreds, if not thousands, in Libya, but there is a realisation that sanctions may not be able to persuade enough Gaddafi loyalists to abandon his government.
Source: U.S. sends in warships as Gaddafi vows to fight on (http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=40370:us-sends-in-warships-as-gaddafi-vows-to-fight-on-&catid=1:national&Itemid=559)