Qatar Sending Fighter Jets to Help Enforce Libya No-Fly Zone

PARIS – Qatar is to send four Mirage 2000 fighter jets to contribute to operations enforcing a no-fly zone over Libya and to protect civilians, the French ministry of defense spokesman said March 20.
The Qatari military participation came amid reports of criticism by the Arab League of the British and U.S. cruise missile attacks against Libyan air defense targets March 19.

"I would like to draw your attention to an absolutely crucial point in the overall measures, in line with an announcement by the Qatari authorities: the deployment decided by Qatar of four aircraft in the zone in order to participate in the operations," Laurent Teisseire told a press conference.
"This illustrates the Arab participation in this international operation of protection of civilian population," Teisseire said.
The announcement of the Qatari deployment came on a second day of French operations over Libyan airspace, aimed at denying Tripoli the use of air superiority and armor against the resistance based in Benghazi.
Qatar operates French-built Mirage 2000 aircraft, Teisseire said. As France is a longstanding strategic defense partner of Qatar, Paris has decided to deploy on the same territory as Qatar a certain number of aircraft in order to operate jointly with the Qatari Air Force, he said.
Privately, a French defense executive guessed the Qatari Mirages would fly to France and operate out of the French air force base 126 at Solenzara, on the island of Corsica.
The French Air Force is expected to operate increasingly from Solenzara.
Asked why the American and British forces did not hit the Libyan air defenses before the French jets flew into the operational area, Teisseire said: "If the joint staffs acted in this way together, it was because they together thought it was the right way to go.
"The actions were coordinated. The French aircraft were in the zone and completed a first mission in the face of an acknowledged threat to the civilian population," he said.
"The strikes came a few hours after by our American and British partners. The results were achieved, that's what is important," he said.
The spokesman for the Joint Staff, Army Col. Thierry Burkhard said French warplanes destroyed four Libyan armored vehicles on March 19.
Some 15 French Air Force aircraft flew missions March 20 to maintain the no-fly zone and provide ground strike capabilities, Burkhard said. One of the patrols included a reconnaissance mission by two Rafales, one equipped with the Reco NG intelligence gathering pod, intended to assess the damage of the Tomahawk cruise missile strikes by the British and U.S. forces, he said.
There were no reports of the French aircraft firing on Libyan targets, which Teisseire said showed the protective measures were working.
Work, meanwhile, is going on to build an integrated command structure among the allies, who have up to now coordinated their actions but have operated on a national basis, Teisseire said.
As announced, the Charles de Gaulle carrier left Toulon March 20, and would take on board its Fleet Air Arm consisting of eight Rafales and six Super Etendard fighters, two Dauphin helicopters and two Hawkeye surveillance aircraft. For combat search and rescue, two Caracal and one Puma helicopter would also be shipped onboard.
Burkhard said the carrier and its task force had deployed as rapidly as possible, in view of the ship's return on Feb. 22 from a deployment in the Indian Ocean, providing support for the Afghan campaign.
On the cruise missile strikes, Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa said, "What is happening in Libya differs from the aim of imposing a no-fly zone, and what we want is the protection of civilians and not the bombardment of more civilians," the BBC reported.
Teisseire said that in accordance with the Security Council resolution 1973, the allies had to notify all military actions to the U.N. Secretary General and the Arab League.

Western, Arab Warplanes Converge on Italy for Libya Mission

ROME - Western and Arab warplanes were converging on Italy's air bases March 20 to join the international campaign to cripple the ability of Moammar Gadhafi's forces to attack Libyan civilians.
France, which spearheaded the U.N.-mandated Operation "Odyssey Dawn" with air strikes on Libya on March 19, also sent its aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to join the campaign on March 20.

The French Navy's flagship set off from the southern French naval port of Toulon at about 1:10 p.m. and was expected to reach the Libyan coast within 48 hours.
Meanwhile aircraft from the United Arab Emirates were due to arrive March 20 at the Decimomannu air force base on the Italian island of Sardinia, which is already hosting four Spanish F-18 fighter jets that arrived on March 19.
The UAE, along with Jordan, Morocco and Qatar, was among Arab nations that took part in a summit in Paris on March 19 on the Libyan crisis.
The Italian air bases are a key staging point for strikes by Western-led coalition forces to destroy Libya's air defenses and impose a no-fly zone to prevent Gadhafi's forces from crushing a popular uprising.
Italian Defence Minister Ignazio La Russa said Rome also assigned eight combat aircraft, including four Tornado jets, for the operation and they can be used "at any time".
And British Defence Secretary Liam Fox said Typhoon and Tornado jets would fly this weekend to the Gioia del Colle air base in southern Italy, where they will be ready to deploy as part of the mission dubbed "Operation Ellamy".
Six Danish F-16 fighters were also ready to take off from Italy's Sigonella air base March 20 to join Odyssey Dawn which saw U.S., British and French forces hammer Libyan forces from the air and sea.
In the West's biggest intervention in the Arab world since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, mounted exactly eight years earlier, U.S. warships and a British submarine fired more than 120 Tomahawk cruise missiles into Libya on March 19.
This prompted Gadhafi to warn March 20 of a long war in the Mediterranean "battlefield" as Tripoli reported dozens of deaths.
Belgium said March 20 six of its F-16 fighter-bombers would be operational Monday for the Libya mission.
"We will be able to take part in operations under the command of the coalition from tomorrow," said Defense Minister Pieter de Crem, who added that 250 people would be assigned to support the six aircraft and their pilots.
In addition to its four F-18 fighter jets, Spain sent a refueling aircraft to Italy and said it would also deploy an F-100 frigate, an S-74 submarine and a CN-235 maritime surveillance plane to help enforce an arms embargo on Libya, once parliamentary approval has been received.
Spain had already announced on March 18 it would allow NATO to use two military bases, at Rota and at Moron de la Frontera in the south of the country, for the operation over Libya.
The U.N. Security Council last week passed a resolution approving "all necessary measures" to impose a no-fly zone in Libya, protect civilian areas and pressure Gadhafi into accepting a ceasefire.
The Security Council last month also ordered an arms embargo against Libya and other sanctions against Gadhafi's family.

France Sends Aircraft Carrier to Join Libya Campaign

PARIS - France sent its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to Libya on March 20 to bolster the West's air campaign against Moammar Gadhafi's forces.
The French Navy's flagship set off from the southern naval port of Toulon at 1210 GMT, with 20 warplanes, most them Rafale and older Super Etendard combat jets, as well as helicopters and two E-2 Hawkeye surveillance aircraft.

Tugs pulled it from the wharf as dozens of onlookers watched it depart.
"The aircraft carrier is 24 hours by sea from the Libyan coast but will take 36 to 48 hours to get there, to take the time to load on the fighter jets that will participate in the operations and to hold some landing exercises," a military source said.
The aircraft carrier was to be escorted by three frigates - the anti-submarine Duplex, the anti-air Forbin and the multi-mission stealth Aconit - and the oil tanker La Meuse, military officials said.
The French naval group was to be protected by a nuclear attack submarine, they added.
French warplanes also continued sorties over Libya early March 20 as part the West's biggest intervention in the Arab world since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
Saturday, French jets spearheaded the West's assault with four air strikes in Libya, destroying several armored vehicles of forces loyal to the embattled Libyan strongman.
Those strikes came before U.S. warships and a British submarine fired at least 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles into Libya against Gadhafi's anti-aircraft missiles and radar batteries.
The intervention was mandated by U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 which authorized the use of force to protect Libyan civilians from attacks by Gadhafi loyalists.
Gadhafi, in a brief audio message on Saturday night also 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.

China Regrets Multinational Air Strikes in Libya

BEIJING - China expressed regret on March 20 over the multinational air strikes in Libya, saying in a foreign ministry statement that it opposed the use of force in international relations.
"China has noted the latest developments in Libya and expresses regret over the military attacks on Libya," the statement said.

Russia also issued a similarly worded statement in which it called for a ceasefire as soon as possible.
China's statement made no mention of a ceasefire and stressed that China respected the North African country's "sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity".
"We hope Libya can restore stability as soon as possible and avoid further civilian casualties due to an escalation of armed conflict," it added.
Multinational forces led by France and Britain began bombarding Libya with missiles from air and sea on March 19 to enforce a United Nations-mandated no-fly zone and protection of rebels from Moammar Gadhafi's forces.
China and Russia were the most prominent voices in opposition to military action in Libya within the 15-member United Nations Security Council.
However, neither blocked the U.N. resolution authorizing the operation, abstaining in the Security Council vote on the issue rather than using their veto power.
France and Britain had led the demands for a no-fly zone, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy wrote to the heads of state or government of all the other council members seeking urgent backing for the measure.
China said earlier it abstained after having taken into account "the concerns and positions of Arab countries and the African Union, as well as the current special circumstances in Libya", without elaborating further.
China, which faces frequent foreign criticism over its own human rights record and treatment of restive minority groups, consistently opposes moves deemed as interfering in the affairs of other countries.
"China has always opposed the use of force in international relations," Sunday's statement said, adding that Beijing supported the spirit and principles of the U.N. Charter, without elaborating.
China's leaders have watched with concern as a mix of issues ranging from the economy to corruption - and a lack of democracy - sparked popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and elsewhere in the Arab world.
Premier Wen Jiabao last week rejected any comparison to the situation in the Middle East and North Africa with China.
Nonetheless, leading web censors have blocked results for "Egypt" and other terms that could be related to the uprisings, for instance on the popular web portal sina.com.
It has also poured security forces into the streets in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities across the country in response to anonymous calls for weekly Sunday "strolling" rallies in major Chinese cities.
The calls have largely fizzled under the smothering police response, and no obvious protest actions have been reported.

France Deploys About 20 Aircraft to Enforce Libya No-Fly Zone

PARIS - A French warplane has fired on a Libyan military vehicle as France deployed some 20 aircraft to protect civilians and to enforce a U.N.-backed no-fly zone over Benghazi, the French spokesman for the Joint Staff said March 19.

A French Dassault Rafale multirole combat aircraft performs during the Aero India 2011 inauguration day at the Yelhanka Air Force station in Bangalore on Feb. 9. (Dibyangshu Sarkar/ AFP via Getty Images)

"Fire was opened at 17:45 on a military vehicle which was positively identified," Army Col. Thierry Burkard told a press conference. The exact type of vehicle was undisclosed.

This was the official report of an engagement by French combat aircraft, as the planes began patrolling Libyan airspace under U.N. Resolution 1973, adopted by the Security Council March 17.
"French Air Force air operations began this afternoon," defense ministry spokesman Laurent Teisseire said.
The U.N. resolution calls for enforcing a no-fly zone against Libyan aircraft and allows coalition aircraft to attack Libyan military vehicles used against civilians, Teisseire said.
The French air deployment would allow time for other coalition countries to gather their assets and to put in place a command structure, Burkhard said.
The air operations got under way as Western and Arab leaders gathered here for a summit meeting to discuss the Libyan crisis. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States had "unique capabilities" to help enforce the no-fly zone.
"As of now, our aircraft are preventing planes from attacking the town (Benghazi)," President Nicolazs Sarkozy said after the meeting. "As of now, other French aircraft are ready to intervene against tanks, armored vehicles threatening unarmed civilians."
Some 20 aircraft including strike and multirole versions of the Mirage 2000, Rafale, C-135 tankers, Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) spy planes and Transall transports were involved in the operations, which were under way as the press conference was being held, Burkhard said.
"The operations are still going on," he said.
The French Navy's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier was due to leave Toulon naval base on March 20 and its fleet of Rafale and Super Etendard fighters and Hawkeye surveillance aircraft were expected to be operational within 48 hours, French officials said.
The task force will include the Dupleix and Aconit frigates and the Meuse fleet auxiliary tanker.
The French defense ministry emphasized its speedy response, 48 hours after adoption of the U.N. resolution and the ability to project force in a complex air operation and in such volume.
The first combat aircraft, four Rafales, took off at 11 a.m. from Saint-Dizier-Robinson Air Base to assure the interception mission over Benghazi, an area of 150 km by 100 km. They were refueled in the air and directed by the AWACS aircraft, which flew from Avord air base. Two other Rafales flew reconnaissance missions, one equipped with the Reco NG intelligence gathering pod. Six C135 inflight refueling tankers from Istres air base took part in the operations.
Two Mirage 2000D fighter-bombers took off from Nancy air base, and two Mirage 2000-5 multirole aircraft flew from Dijon to perform ground strike and escort missions.
A patrol of two Rafales from Saint Dizier was equipped with the Armement Air-Sol Modulaire (AASM) smart bomb to provide close air support and also armed for air defense.
French Navy frigates Forbin and Jean Bart are sailing off the Libyan coast, providing support.

French Planes Stopping Air Strikes on Benghazi: Sarkozy

PARIS - French war planes are overflying Benghazi, preventing Moamer Kadhafi's air strikes on the Libyan rebel bastion, and are ready to attack his tanks, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on March 19.
"In agreement with our partners, our air force will oppose any attack by Colonel Kadhafi's planes on the people of Benghazi. Our planes are already preventing air strikes on the city," Sarkozy said.

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"Already other planes, French, are ready to intervene against tanks that might threaten unarmed civilians," he said after a summit drawing together international leaders to discuss what action to take on Libya.
"There's still time for Kadhafi to avoid the worst, by obeying without delay or reserve all the demands of the international community," Sarkozy said. "The door of diplomacy will reopen when the attacks end."
"Today we are intervening in Libya under a U.N. Security Council mandate," he said. "With our partners, notably our Arab partners, we will do so to protect the civilian population from the murderous folly of a regime that, by killing its own people, has lost all legitimacy."
"We are intervening to allow the Libyan people to themselves choose their destiny. They cannot be deprived of their rights through violence and terror," Sarkozy said.

Israel Navy Snags Another Smuggling Ship

tel aviv - The Israel Navy's seizure last week of Iranian C704 anti-ship missiles and other munitions marked the latest in the escalating, yet still indirect, tit-for-tat confrontations between Jerusalem and Tehran.
The nonviolent intercept of the Liberian-flagged Victoria container ship, and its estimated 50-ton concealed arms cache, occurred some 380 kilometers off Israel's southern coast. The incident again demonstrated the long arm of Israeli intelligence and Israel's readiness for maritime operations following the bloody, botched takeover of a Gaza-bound Turkish ship last May.

The successful seizure of Iranian weaponry - Israel's fourth in a decade - also was a sweet reward for security officials here, who stood by in frustration as the Iranian Navy tested the post-Mubarak Egyptian waters with its first Suez Canal passage in more than 30 years.
Israeli officials said the ship carrying Iranian-produced, Chinese-designed C704 missiles, 120mm mortars and other munitions was headed for the Egyptian port city of Alexandria. From there, the cache was to have been transported through the Sinai and into Gaza via underground tunnels along the Gaza-Egyptian border.
Israeli intelligence said the cargo was loaded at the Syrian port city of Latakia, sailed to Cyprus, then Beirut and then to a port in southern Turkey before Israel Navy commandos intercepted it en route to Alexandria.
"Iranian arms flowing into Gaza are not coming in drip by drip but wave by wave," Danny Ayalon, Israeli deputy foreign minister, told diplomats invited to Israel's Ashdod port to view the confiscated contraband.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Israel's battle against the axis of Iran, Syria and Lebanon-based Hezbollah - each working to support terror groups in the Gaza Strip - would continue "by air, sea and land in every place and from every direction, both near and far."
The C704s would have introduced a new capability into the Gaza theater of operations that would have required the Israeli military to modify its operating and protective procedures, given the missile's 35-kilometer range.