David Cameron has urged Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's political allies and military chiefs to abandon the Libyan regime and help bring down the dictator.
Mr Cameron said senior Libyans should ignore Col Gaddafi's orders and leave their posts Photo: AP
By Rosa Prince, Brussels and James Kirkup 6:26PM GMT 25 Mar 2011
The Prime Minister made his call as senior British Government sources revealed that members of Libya's ruling regime and military leadership were starting to "waver" in the face of sustained airstrikes.
Britain and other coalition nations have been privately encouraging senior regime figures to turn on Col Gaddafi and topple him.
Speaking at a European Union summit in Brussels, Mr Cameron went public with that call, saying senior Libyans should ignore Col Gaddafi's orders and leave their posts. "The people around him and the people who are obeying his orders should recognise that the time is up," Mr Cameron said. "Don't obey his orders, walk away from your tanks, leave the command and control that you are doing, give up on this regime because it should be over for him and his henchmen."
He added: "Every day you work for him you are at risk of the International Criminal Court, and you are at risk of being found guilty of war crimes."
In London, senior government sources revealed that some Libyan officials and commanders had started trying to make contact with Western governments to discuss an end to the military confrontation.
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