Libyan Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa defected to Britain as international attention focused on whether to arm the rebels fighting against Colonel Gaddafi.
By Nick Collins, Laura Roberts and Andy Bloxham 6:18AM BST 31 Mar 2011 Latest
That's it for tonight, visit the Telegraph's website for more updates on the latest fascinating developments from around 6am on Thursday 31 March.
23:44 Tunisia's prime minister has frozen Col Gaddafi's assets in his country.
23:08 Both the Foreign Office and the Metropolitan Police are refusing to comment on whether Mr Koussa is under armed guard, despite the Daily Telegraph pointing out that the Libyan diplomats expelled earlier today were sent home on the grounds that they were dangerous and they might not be happy with their old chum.
23.00 A senior US official has told AFP that Mr Koussa's resignation was "very significant".
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This is a very significant defection and an indication that people around Gaddafi think the writing's on the wall.
22.30 Damien McElroy, the Telegraph's man in Tripoli, has more on the Koussa resignation. A British official said Mr Koussa's decision to resign represented a significant blow to the Gaddafi regime but warned that there were delicate issues to be worked through in talks with the foreign minister. Late last night it was said to be impossible to predict the outcome of the negotiations.
As head of Libya external intelligence, Mr Koussa was an MI6 asset for almost two decades. He was charged with conducting negotiations to bring Libya in from the cold and giving up its weapons of mass destruction in 2003.
He was notably uncomfortable in making public statements on behalf of the regime in recent weeks. One Libyan official said that Mr Koussa deliberately timed his statements to present a "rational" argument in the immediate aftermath of Col Muammar Gaddafi's rambling statements on national television.
Officials in Tripoli refused to comment on the defection. "I will have something to say later. Right now I am too busy in meetings," said Moussa Ibrahim, the government spokesman.
22.15 The Foreign Office has confirmed that Moussa Koussa has arrived in Britain, resigned his post and is travelling to London for negotiations. A spokesman said: “We can confirm that Moussa Koussa arrived at Farnborough Airport on 30 March from Tunisia. He travelled here under his own free will. He has told us that he is resigning his post. We are discussing this with him and we will release further detail in due course.
"Moussa Koussa is one of the most senior figures in Gaddafi’s government and his role was to represent the regime internationally – something that he is no longer willing to do.
"We encourage those around Gaddafi to abandon him and embrace a better future for Libya that allows political transition and real reform that meets the aspirations of the Libyan people”.
21:53 Foreign Office expected to release statement imminently on whether Libyan foreign minister has actually defected. FCO spokesman says Moussa Koussa was "no longer willing" to serve the regime.
Libya as it happened: March 30
Moussa Koussa, the (former) Libyan foreign minister.
21:42 Moussa Koussa has defected, according to "friends" quoted by Reuters, because he wanted to seek refuge.
21:15 The CIA has been authorised to covertly support the rebels by Barack Obama, according to four sources, Reuters has reported.
21:11 The Libyan government insists its foreign minister is on a diplomatic mission and has not defected.
20:09 The influential chairman of the US House of Representatives' intelligence committee has just said he opposes supplying arms to the rebels. Republican Mike Rogers said:
As we publicly debate next steps on Libya, I do not support arming the Libyan rebels at this time. We need to understand more about the opposition before I would support passing out guns and advanced weapons to them.
19:52 News agency reports in Tunisia claim Libya's foreign minister, Moussa Koussa, has flown from a Tunisian resort straight to London.
An RAF Tornado patrolling Libyan skies, armed with bunker-busting Storm Shadow missiles on its fuselage.
18:28 Thousands of migrants from North Africa who have landed on the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa are to moved to "reception centres" on the mainland, Silvio Berlusconi says.
17.14 Hundreds of people took to the streets in the port city of Latakia in Syria today chanting "freedom" after President Bashar al-Assad made a speech playing down unprecedented protests against his rule. Several residents said they heard shots fired in the al-Sleibeh old district of the city, where one of at least two demonstrations took place, as security forces confronted the demonstrators.
Assad's speech dashed the hopes of his people after it failed to unveil the major reforms expected and left the country in a state of uncertainty, analysts said.
17.06 Foreign secretary William Hague has said apparent differences over whether arms could be supplied were "academic". Mr Cameron and UK ministers were setting out the position "based on the legal advice to our own Government", he told a conference at thinktank Chatham House. He said:
There may be different legal interpretations of that (the UN resolution) around the world. I don't think that would be wholly surprising.
But of course at the moment it is rather an academic point, because at the moment, the Prime Minister made this clear and I've made it clear, we are not engaged in delivering arms to the opposition or rebel groups in Libya and nor is anyone else we are aware of.
17.03 The Netherlands has said that it has frozen more than three billion euros ($4 billion) of assets as part of EU sanctions against Gaddafi's regime.
UK expels five Libyan diplomats
17.00 Libya's foreign ministry has said a French suggestion that Western powers could arm Libyan rebels violated United Nations resolutions and was tantamount to aiding "terorrists". A foreign ministry statement carried by Libya's official Jana news agency said:
Providing military assistance to armed gangs is contrary to Security Council resolutions, and is in support of terrorism as it has been proven that the armed gangs in Benghazi belong to al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.
16.45 Obama is speaking in Washington: he says "this is a tumultuous time for the world". As a result he is announcing a "new goal" of cutting American's oil dependence by a third in a decade. This will be achieved by boosting domestic energy production and reducing consumption. The country currently imports 11m barrels a day. Fighting in Libya, accompanied by unrest elsewhere in the Arab world, has helped push U.S. gasoline prices toward $4 a gallon. He said:
There are no quick fixes. And we will keep on being a victim to shifts in the oil market until we get serious about a long-term policy for secure, affordable energy.
16.44 An air strike was carried out on Gaddafi's forces near Ajdabiyah, where rebels are sheltering after having been routed from their front lines, an AFP reporter witnessed. The strike, about 10 kilometres (6.5 miles) west of Ajdabiyah, sent a huge plume of smoke rising into the sky and brought cries of jubilation from the rebel fighters, who had earlier called for air support by coalition jets. The air raid was the first in two days in eastern Libya, where rebel forces were pushed back some 200 kilometres on Wednesday by Gaddafi's forces who blazed through town after town with tanks and heavy artillery.
Two French Air Force Mirage jets, one of them being refueled, police the no-fly zone over Libya (Picture: EPA).
16.15: Anders Fogh Rasmussen has warned of the danger that Libya might disintegrate as a state and become a haven for terrorists. The NATO Secretary General told a student conference in Rotterdam:
The worst-case scenario would be to see a failed state that would fuel extremism and terrorism.
The ideal outcome would be to see a peaceful outcome and a peaceful transition to a sustainable democracy.
It is up to the Libyans to shape the future of their country. I really hope that we will see a cease-fire soon.
16.00: The Libyan government has expelled a Reuters correspondent.
It gave no reason for ordering out Michael Georgy, who had been in Tripoli since February.
He was among a small group of foreign journalists allowed in to report under government restrictions.
Georgy, an American currently based in Pakistan, was notified late on Tuesday that he must leave Libya. He arrived in neighbouring Tunisia on Wednesday.
Reuters Editor-in-Chief Stephen Adler said:
We regret the decision of the Libyan authorities to expel our correspondent and we regret the fact that no reason has been given for his expulsion.
We are committed to continuing our accurate and impartial coverage of events in Libya.
Iman al-Obeidi made allegations after storming into a Tripoli hotel full of foreign journalists (Picture: EPA)
15.45: The case of a Libyan lawyer who burst into a Tripoli hotel claiming to have been gang raped by Muammar Gaddafi's troops was "shocking to the whole world", according to William Hague.
The Foreign Secretary said sexual violence in Libya was reportedly "much more widespread" and demonstrated the Gaddafi regime's "absolute disregard for any understanding of human rights".
Iman al-Obeidi rushed distraught into the Rixos hotel on Saturday to tell foreign journalists she had been raped by 15 soldiers manning a Tripoli checkpoint.
As she began to tell her story, she was dragged away by government minders and has since been missing. Her parents claim she is being held hostage at Gaddafi's compound.
A government official yesterday said the men she accused of rape had brought criminal charges against her because it was a "very grave offence to accuse someone of a sexual crime".
Following a statement on the international conference held in London, Mr Hague was asked about the plight of women in Libya by Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson (E Dunbartonshire).
She asked:
"In the light of reports that rape is being used by Gaddafi's forces as a weapon of war and the appalling arrest of a rape victim who dared to speak out, can you give us more information on the political programme announced by the INC (Interim National Council) on how the voices of Libyan women will be heard as active participants?"
Mr Hague replied:
You draw attention to one very well-publicised case in recent days which has been shocking to the whole world about the treatment of women by the Gaddafi regime.
There are reports that that treatment is much more widespread. It is another indication of the absolute disregard for any understanding of human rights by that Gaddafi regime.
It is a good sign that that commitment to the involvement of women and to women's rights is there in the vision of a democratic Libya that has been set out by the INC.
This is in a culture that doesn't have that strong tradition of women in a leadership role but let us hope that that will be a characteristic of a future, freer Libya.
15.30: There are signs that some associates of Col gaddafi are abandoning him, the French government have said.
Alain Juppe, the French Foreign Minister, told Parliament:
On the political front one can see the first defections around Qaddafi in Tripoli.
He no longer has his place in Libya’s future, but it’s up to the Libyan people to decide and that’s what we are tying to help them do.
15.25: World stocks have hit near three-week highs as Wall Street was up European stocks advanced for a sixth day, the longest winning streak since December.
National benchmark indexes rose in all of the 18 western European markets, except Spain and Greece. The FTSE 100 gained 0.4 per cent and France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.9 per cent. Germany’s DAX climbed 1.6 per cent.
Melted metal that has hardened from a tank belonging to Gaddafi's army along the road from Ras Lanf to Brega (Picture: REX FEATURES)
15.15: Divisions within the African Union prevented the pan-African body from attending an international conference on Libya in London, William Hague said.
Jean Ping, the AU head, did not attend Tuesday's meeting of 36 countries, the United Nations, the Arab League and NATO despite being earlier announced as a participant by the British hosts.
The Foreign Secretary told parliament:
It is true of course that the African Union did not attend.
There were divisions within the African Union as to whether they should do so. We are in constant touch with the African Union.
15.00: Forces loyal to Col killed 18 civilians in the city of Misrata earlier this week and troops are still shelling and fighting skirmishes with rebels, it was claimed.
14.45: Libya's government whas threatened to sue any international company that concluded energy deals with rebels who control some of the country's oil infrastructure,
The state news agency reported that a government communique said:
The National Oil Corporation ... is the entity authorised by law to deal with external parties. Because of the strategic importance of these goods - oil and gas - at the global level, no country can leave their management to armed gangs.
The Libyan state will sue any party that seals deals regarding Libyan oil with parties other than the National Oil Corporation.
14.30: Rebels have beaten a rapid retreat east after forces loyal to Col Gaddafi bombarded them with rockets and artillery, ceding oil towns as the Libyan leader's troops advanced.
Rebels said Gaddafi's forces, which have overrun Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, were headed to another oil town of Brega.
Witnesses said many rebels were fleeing in pick ups and other vehicles pulling out of Brega all the way to Ajdabiyah, dashing back over territory as quickly as they had taken it.
A rebel fighter Mohamed al-Abreigi told Reuters:
We are going to Ajdabiyah. We will gather there and, God willing, we will head back to Brega today.
14.00: Douglas Alexander, the Shadow foreign secretary, has said he welcomed the progress made at the London conference but asked Mr Hague to clarify the Government's position when it came to arming rebel forces.
The shadow foreign secretary questioned how much support military action had among Arab League countries as Saudi Arabia did not send a representative to yesterday's conference, which was not attended by a member of the African Union.
Mr Alexander asked the Foreign Secretary in the Commons: "Of course we would all prefer Libya without Gaddafi but given our lack of knowledge about some elements of the rebel forces, would you agree we must proceed with very real caution on the question of armaments?"
In reply, Mr Hague said that while the current arms embargo prevented weapons being provided to the whole of Libya, Resolution 1973 allowed "for all necessary measures to protect civilians" to be taken.
He said the view of the British Government, which was not necessarily shared internationally, was that this meant rebels protecting civilians could be armed although ministers had "not yet taken a decision".
There needed to be a "genuine ceasefire" to fulfil the UN resolution, he added.
13.40: Col Gaddaf's daughter, Aisha Gaddafi, has been out on the streets of Libya trying to conjure up support for her embattled father.
Aisha Gaddafi, daughter of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi (Picture: REX FEATURES)
13.10: Col Gaddafi would be welcome to live in asylum in Uganda, a presidential spokesman has said.
Henry Okello Oryem, a junior Minister for Foreign Affairs, said:
Those are rumours. I have just been in a cabinet meeting with all the ministers and yes we discussed Libya but there was nothing on asylum that we discussed.
However, if Gaddafi does apply for asylum in Uganda, we'll consider his application like we do for all those who seek refuge in Uganda.
13.00: The Government has expelled five diplomats from the Libyan embassy in London because they "could pose a threat" to national security.
Updating the Commons on the London conference on Libya, Foreign Secretary William Hague told MPs:
To underline our grave concern at the (Gaddafi) regime's behaviour, I can announce to the House that we have today taken steps to expel five diplomats at the Libyan embassy in London, including the military attache.
The Government also judged that were these individuals to remain in Britain, they could pose a threat to our security."
12.40: The UK has repatriated more than 12,500 migrant workers from Libya, the International Development Secretary said as he claimed British efforts had helped prevent "a logistical crisis developing into a humanitarian emergency".
Andrew Mitchell said the Government had funded three medical teams from the International Committee of the Red Cross which has supplies to treat 3,000 people affected by the fighting.
So far 350,000 people had crossed the borders out of Libya, he told the Commons, adding that Britain had provided emergency relief items, such as tents and blankets, for 100,000.
Mr Mitchell said: "Early action by Britain and others has ensured that a logistical crisis has not so far, at least, developed into a humanitarian emergency."
Foreign Secretary William Hague makes a statement to the House of Commons (Picture: PA)
12.15: Britain has not ruled out providing arms to rebels in Libya, but has not yet taken the decision to do so, Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons.
His comment to MPs came as opposition forces appeared to be on the back foot in their struggle with the far better-equipped troops of dictator Col Muammar Gaddafi.
Representatives of the opposition Interim National Council, who met Mr Cameron in Downing Street on Tuesday, have appealed for foreign help with arms, including permission to use frozen Libyan assets and proceeds from oil sales to buy weapons.
Asked at Prime Minister's Questions in the Commons whether Britain was considering supplying arms to the rebels, Mr Cameron said that United Nations resolutions "would not necessarily rule out the provision of assistance to those protecting civilians in certain circumstances".
He added: "We do not rule it out but we have not taken the decision to do so.
Mr Cameron said any decision to supply arms would have to be considered with "due care" as there were some "very strong arguments" on both sides.
He was responding to a warning from Liberal Democrat Sir Menzies Campbell that the Government should exercise "extreme caution" on the issue.
"The legal position is by no means clear, as your previous answer made eloquently obvious," the QC told the Prime Minister.
"In addition to that, the political consequences of doing so, particularly among those nearly 40 countries that were represented at the successful conference in London yesterday, is very difficult to predict."
Mr Cameron said he was "absolutely right to be cautious and sceptical".
"This is a decision we must consider with due care. While the legal position I think is clearer, there are some very strong arguments ... we have to listen to," he said.
He added that in his talks with the INC's special envoy yesterday, he had been "reassured" that the group wanted its role to be transitional.
"They are democrats. they are not tribal, and they want to see a future for the whole of Libya where the people have a choice over how they are governed."
11:39 A new poll finds that nearly half of Americans are against their country's military involvement in Libya. Voters polled opposed America's involvement in Libya by 47 to 41 percent. However, 62 percent of voters were very or somewhat confident the mission to protect Libyan civilians would succeed.
Melted metal that has hardened from a tank belonging to Gaddafi's army along the road from Ras Lanf to Brega (REUTERS)
11.20 Russia's foreign minister has warned the military coalition off arming the Libyan rebels. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told AFP:
Recently, the French foreign minister said France was prepared to discuss with its coalition partners the supply of arms for the Libyan opposition. Immediately thereafter, the NATO Secretary General Fogh Rasmussen declared that the operation in Libya was being staged to protect the population and not to arm it - and here, we completely agree with the NATO Secretary General.
11.16 Reuters reports that blasts and the sound of aircraft have been heard near Ras Lanuf. Their correspondent Alexander Dziadosz says:
I heard the sound of jet engines overhead three times and then a series of booms. There are more booms right now but its unclear if it's from the jets or other types of bombardment.
09.48 The AFP press agency is reporting that forces loyal to Col Gaddafi have recaptured the oil town of Ras Lanuf, forcing rebels to flee east. The rebels only took the town a few days ago, when the regime's troops retreated.
09.15 Arming Libyan rebels would be an "extreme" measure likely to divide the international community, according to the Italian foreign ministry spokesman Maurizio Massari. He was speaking in a radio interview with Radioanch'io.
07.44 Sky News's Niall Paterson tweets:
Bit perplexed as to why USA leading the charge to arm insurgents. After all, they don't have a great track record in that department...
07.36 Nicaragua has claimed it will represent Libya at the United Nations after a Libyan delegate was denied a visa, in a move to "support our Libyan brothers in their diplomatic battle to enforce respect for its sovereignty''.
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has written to the UN informing them former foreign minister Miguel D'Escoto, an outspoken critic of America, will replace Libyan diplomat Ali Abdussalam Treki.
The South American state has been identified as a potential safe haven for Gaddafi should he seek exile from Libya.
07.25 In Syria, President Bashar al-Assad will make a speech today in which he could concede to the demands of protesters by lifting the "emergency law" that has been in place since 1963, when his Baath party took power in a coup.
It comes a day after he accepted the resignation of his cabinet and mobilised tens of thousands of Syrians in mass rallies across the country.
07.14 In an interview with NBC last night Barack Obama expressed confidence that pressure on Gaddafi to step down would eventually tell. Here are some of the best quotes:
Our expectation is that as we continue to apply steady pressure, not only militarily but also through these other means, that Gaddafi will ultimately step down.
I think what we're seeing is that the circle around Gaddafi understands that the noose is tightening, that their days are probably numbered, and they are going to have to think through what their next steps are.
On the prospect of arming rebels, he said:
We are examining all options to support the opposition...I'm not ruling it out. But I'm also not ruling it in.
On suggestions of al-Qaeda activity among rebels, he said:
That's why I think it's important for us not to jump in with both feet. But to carefully consider what are the goals of the opposition.
07.05 Here's a quick round-up of some of the best stories from this morning's newspapers.
The Telegraph's executive foreign editor Con Coughlin analyses the claims that al-Qaeda activity has been detected among Libyan rebels, while Adrian Blomfield has been following events in Syria where President Assad fired his entire cabinet yesterday.
The Guardian was the only national paper to lead with a Libya story, claiming America and Britain are ready to arm Libya's rebels if Col Gaddafi continues to cling on to power.
The Times claims anger is growing among Gaddafi's supporters over continued air strikes on Tripoli, while in contrast The Independent reports how a backlash by loyalist forces has provided a wake-up call for rebels.
06.45 Good morning and welcome to Wednesday's live blog, bringing you rolling updates from Libya and across the Middle East throughout the day.
Last night Barack Obama said he believed the "noose is tightening" around the Libyan leader and that he would "ultimately" step down, but echoed Hillary Clinton and other international delegates in refusing to rule out supplying arms to rebel forces.
Meanwhile a senior American Nato commander warned that there were "flickers" of Al-Qaeda activity among rebel groups, an admission described as "very disturbing" by senior British government figures.
We can expect reaction from across the world to a landmark summit in London yesterday, at which international powers moved closer to an exile plan for Col Gaddafi.
There is no sign of an end to the conflict on the ground or in the air, with attention likely to be focused on yesterday's flashopints of Misurata and Bin Jawad as well as the capital, Tripoli.
23.39 The Libyan capital appeared quiet on Tuesday night, despite an Al Arabiya television report that two explosions shook the Aziziyah Gate area.
"We didn't hear any blasts," a Reuters correspondent said from central Tripoli. "It's possible there was an explosion but there was not the usual noise that accompanies air raids."
23.32 President Obama has said in an NBC interview that the goal for the allies is to apply steady pressure to Gaddafi's regime so that he will "ultimately step down". He also stressed that the use of military force in Libya did not indicate that the US would intervene in other conflicts.
22.48 Al Arabiya television reported late this evening that two explosions had shaken the Aziziyah Gate area of Tripoli.
A series of powerful explosions also rocked Tripoli earlier today which Libyan state television said were dropped by "colonial, crusader aggressors".
22.18 President Evo Morales of Bolivia called for human rights abuses in Libya to be "judged" as he appeared to step back from his support for Gaddafi. Morales, who until now had reserved his harshest words for the coalition intervening in Libya, said:
I do not support repression in the face of criticism.
Morales said he still "condemns" the international intervention in the north African nation but also maintained that "those who violate human rights to defend their government must be judged (and) condemned."
22.09 According to BBC Monitoring, Libyan state TV is showing pictures of more pro-Gaddafi supporters people joining a sit-in at his base in Tripoli, shouting slogans and waving pictures of the Libyan leader.
Our team in Libya:
Rob Crilly
Damien McElroy
Richard Spencer
Colin Freeman
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