Rebel leaders in eastern Libya call for immediate international military interventionMarch 2, 2011 - 21:14 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Rebel leaders in eastern Libya have called for international military intervention to help topple Muammar Gaddafi, fearing people power alone may not be enough to dislodge their nation's autocratic leader from his last remaining strongholds. The rebels said they didn't want ground forces, but they are coming round to the view that help in the form of a flight exclusion zone, as well as air strikes and supplies of weapons, will be necessary to ensure Colonel Gaddafi's fall. In the eastern city of Benghazi, the centre of the resistance, some members of the committee formed to run the city said they expected to issue a formal request to the international community for military assistance. A militia of jittery factory workers and shopkeepers used anti-aircraft guns to blaze at empty skies as they vowed to hold eastern Libya's front line a day after it was bombed by Colonel Gaddafi's air force. ''A no-fly zone would limit his ability to move mercenaries from south to north and to recruit mercenaries from sub-Saharan Africa,'' said a member of Misurata's media committee. Regime opponents control the centre of Misurata, according to the spokesman. They also claim control over most of the military air base to the south, theage.com.au reported. Meanwhile, two US warships have entered the Suez Canal en route to Libya. ''The USS Kearsarge and the USS Ponce are making their way to the Mediterranean sea,'' a canal authority official said. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |