Pro-Gaddafi forces have bombed the eastern town of Ajdabiyah and briefly seized control of a nearby oil facility, reports say. >>> | Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Explosions heard in Tripoli as UN secretary general warns thousands could die in Libya
Britain has backtracked from its belligerent military stance over Libya after the Obama administration publicly distanced itself from David Cameron's suggestion that Nato should establish a no-fly zone over the country and that rebel forces should be armed.
As senior British military sources expressed concern that Downing Street appeared to be overlooking the dangers of being sucked into a long and potentially dangerous operation, the prime minister said Britain would go no further than contacting the rebel forces at this stage.
The marked change of tone by the prime minister, who told MPs on Monday that Britain did not "in any way rule out the use of military assets", came as the British-educated son of Muammar Gaddafi mocked Cameron for trying to act as a hero. Saif al-Islam told Sky News: "Everybody wants to be a hero, to be important in history." >>> Ewen MacAskill in Washington, Peter Beaumont in Tripoli and Nicholas Watt | Wednesday, March 02, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Duke of York has defended himself against a series of allegations that have raised fresh questions about his suitability as a trade envoy.Calls have grown for the Duke to step down or be removed from his post as Britain’s special representative for trade and industry following criticism of his relationships with several business contacts.
At the weekend, a photograph was published showing the Duke with his arm around the waist of Virginia Roberts, who claims she was sexually exploited as a teenager by Jeffrey Epstein, a New York financier and one of the Duke’s wealthy friends.
The Duke has been pictured in Central Park with Epstein, who was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2008 for soliciting an under-age girl for prostitution.
Miss Roberts, 27, claims she was hired as a masseuse by Epstein at 17 and was once asked to sit on the Duke’s knee. She was photographed with the Duke in 2001 and claims she met him three times, though there is no suggestion that there was a sexual relationship between the pair.
The Duke has also faced claims that he has a “very close” friendship with Saif Gaddafi, the son of the Libyan leader.
On Monday, Chris Bryant, the shadow justice minister, urged David Cameron to consider the Duke’s position in light of his relationship with Saif, whose diplomatic immunity has been revoked by Britain.
He also questioned the Duke’s friendship with Tarek Kaituni, a convicted Libyan gun smuggler.
It has been alleged, and subsequently denied, that the Duke has visited Saif Gaddafi in Libya in a personal capacity on several occasions, sometimes as a guest of Kaituni. >>> Victoria Ward | Wednesday, March 02, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Pakistan's only Christian minister Shahbaz Bhatti was shot dead today after pushing for the reform of harsh blasphemy laws that impose the death penalty for insulting Islam.The assassination comes just a fortnight after Mr Bhatti, Minister for Minorities, said he was prepared to die for his beliefs following a series of death threats.
He claimed his faith gave him strength during a recent visit to Canada.
The member of Muslim-majority Pakistan's Christian community, was on his way to work in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, when unknown gunmen riddled his car with bullets, police officer Mohmmad Iqbal said.
He was taken to Shifa Hospital with his driver who was also badly wounded.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but private Pakistani TV channels showed pamphlets at the scene of the killing that were attributed to the Pakistani Taliban warning of the same fate for anyone opposing the blasphemy laws. >>> | Tuesday, March 02, 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: BENGHAZI, Libya — In a sign of mounting frustration among rebel leaders over Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s diminished but unyielding grip on power, rebel leaders here are debating whether to ask for Western airstrikes under the United Nations banner, according to four people with knowledge of the deliberations.By invoking the United Nations, a council of opposition leaders made up of lawyers, academics, judges and other prominent figures is seeking to draw a distinction between such airstrikes and foreign intervention, which the rebels said they emphatically opposed.
“He destroyed the army; we have two or three planes,” said a spokesman for the council, Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga. He refused to say if there would be any imminent announcement about such strikes, but he wanted to make it clear: “If it is with the United Nations, it is not a foreign intervention.”
That distinction is lost on many people, and any call for foreign military help carries great risks. >>> Kareem Fahim and David Kirkpatrick | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
NEW YORK TIMES PHOTO GALLERY: Rebels Continue to Move Against Qaddafi >>>
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Forces allied to Muammar Gaddafi have seized the eastern town of Brega, in the first sign of a fightback by the Libyan leader in the rebel-controlled east.
Anti-Gaddafi forces have been firmly in charge of eastern Libya up to Brega, since shortly after protests erupted in the country last month.
Mohamed Yousef, an officer in the town of Ajdabiyah, about 75 miles from Brega, said: "It's true. There was aerial bombardment of Brega and Gaddafi's forces have taken it."
There were also reports that fighter jets had been deployed to bomb the cities of Ajdabiya and Az Zawiyah. Witnesses said they saw two warplanes bomb the eastern part of Ajdabiya, while they also claimed pro-Gaddafi forces were advancing on the town, some 470 miles east of Tripoli. >>> | Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, has expressed "surprise" that the public is not more angry with the bankers who caused the recession.In some of his strongest language yet, Mervyn King today claimed the fall in households' living standards was the fault of the financial services sector and he expressed sympathy that innocent families paying the price.
"The people whose jobs were destroyed were in no way responsible for the excesses of the financial sector and the crisis that followed," he told MPs on the Treasury Select Committee.
In most aspects, he said, the economy had been on a sound footing before the crisis. Previous downturns were often caused by inefficiencies or weak management and were useful opportunities to improve systems. "None of that applied in this crisis," he said. "We had quite a successfully operating economy."
The people who are now suffering "did not get bonuses of the scale people in the financial sector got". The financial crisis may have occurred two years ago but, as austerity measures kick in, "the cost is now being felt", he said.
It remains "a big political problem", he added: "I'm surprised the real anger hasn't been greater than it has." >>> Philip Aldrick, Economics Editor | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
TELEGRAPH – BLOGS – CRISTINA ODONE: It’s official: Britain is no longer a Christian nation. In banning Eunice and Owen Johns, a devout Christian couple, from fostering children, Lord Justice Munby and Mr Justice Beatson declared that we live in a secular state, and that the Johns’ religious convictions disqualified them from raising citizens of that state. We’ve outgrown Christianity, the judges professed. Instead, we have graduated to the status of a multicultural nation, blessed by a plurality of faiths.
Ironically, the justices who have pronounced that Britain is no longer Christian did so in a court where witnesses swear on the Bible and invoke God’s help in telling the truth. I do not imagine that these judges leave out the first word in “God Save the Queen” – nor would they shun an invitation to the Royal wedding, which is happening not at a registry office but the centrepiece of official Christendom, Westminster Abbey.
In taking part in these traditions, the judges – and the rest of us – are no different from past generations. For Christianity is not merely a part of life here, a provider of schools, hospitals and orphanages. It is the backbone of our laws, the impetus for the charity, justice and tolerance that have long been characteristic of this country. Its grand principles have inspired citizens to extraordinary actions, such as William Wilberforce’s campaign against slavery, and to ordinary kindnesses, such as reading to hospital patients or delivering meals on wheels. When David Cameron speaks of our moral duty to our Arab brothers, or shares his vision for the Big Society, he taps not into narrow party allegiance, but into our common Christian heritage. Continue reading and comment >>> Cristina Odone | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Oprah Winfrey's new television channel is floundering in the ratings as it struggles to pull in viewers.The OWN channel, which launched two months ago, is being watched by only 135,000 people at any one time.
The ratings are 10 per cent lower than for the cable channel it replaced which was called Discovery Health.
And only 45,000 of those watching are women aged 25 to 54, the audience the channel is being aimed at.
Miss Winfrey, 57, has urged patience and supporters say ratings will improve when the chat show host begins appearing more regularly herself towards the end of the year. >>> Nick Allen, Los Angeles | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
SKY NEWS: Colonel Gaddafi's son Saif has told Sky News that Prime Minister David Cameron "wants to be a hero" and is "thinking greedily about oil" in Libya.
Speaking to Sky's Lisa Holland, Colonel Gaddafi's most high-profile son derided Mr Cameron and claimed Britain needed "to stop thinking greedily about oil".
He referred to the Prime Minster's response to the Libyan crisis as "a joke" and said "we are not listening to him".
Refusing to accept that the Libyan government has lost control of the east of the country, Saif Gaddafi called the rebels occupying the city of Zawiyah "terrorists" and reiterated his stance that he would live and die in Libya.
Warning countries who could be considering military action, Mr Gaddafi said the use of force against Libya was "not acceptable" but claimed "we are not afraid".
He said the regime's priority was to restore peace and security in Libya. >>> Lisa Holland, in Tripoli and Sarah Gordon | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Christian Dior make moves to fire creative director John Galliano over anti-Semitic video footage.
Christian Dior has confirmed that it is to 'commence termination proceedings' with creative director John Galliano, after seeing a video clip showing the designer making anti-Semitic remarks to a group of girls outside a Paris café.
"We unequivocally condemn the statements made by John Galliano, which are in total contradiction to the longstanding core values of Christian Dior," Dior's Chief Executive Sidney Toledano said in a statement today. >>> Belinda White | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
TELEGRAPH – BLOGS – JULIAN KOSSOFF: Celebrities and anti-Semitism: has our liberal creative elite rediscovered an ancient prejudice? >>> Julian Kossoff | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Related >>>
DIE PRESSE: In islamistischen Internetforen wird zurzeit über Attentate mittels Skorpionen, Spinnen, Wespen oder Schlangen debattiert. Die Tiere könnten unbemerkt an Metall- und Sprengstoffdetektoren vorbei geschleust werden
Der Aufruf des Terrornetzwerks al-Qaida zu neuen Angriffen gegen den Westen hat auf islamistischen Internetseiten eine Debatte über Anschlagsmethoden mit giftigen Tieren in Gang gesetzt. "Was man braucht, ist eine große Zahl von Skorpionen", schrieb ein Mann namens Abu Yakin el Askeri in einem Forum, wie das auf die Überwachung islamistischer Internetseiten spezialisierte US-Unternehmen SITE am Montag mitteilte. >>> Ag. | Dienstag, 01. März 2011
DIE PRESSE: Ob Zugang zum Arbeitsmarkt, politische Teilhabe oder Schutz vor Diskriminierung: Fremde werden laut einer am Montag präsentierten Untersuchtung im Rest Europas meist freundlicher aufgenommen als hierzulande.
Brüssel. Die Republik Österreich ist im europäischen Vergleich nicht besonderes darum bemüht, Einwanderern bei der Eingliederung in die heimische Gesellschaft zu helfen: Zu diesem Ergebnis kommt eine Untersuchung des British Council und des Forschungsinstituts Migration Policy Group, die am Montag in Brüssel vorgestellt wurde.
„Österreicher zu werden ist eines der riskantesten Glücksspiele, weil der Pfad zur Staatsbürgerschaft lang, mühselig, willkürlich und teuer ist“, heißt es im „Migration Policy Index“. Seit dem Jahr 2009 verlange die Republik die EU-weit höchsten Gebühren für ein Verfahren zur Erteilung der Staatsbürgerschaft. >>> Oliver Grimm | Montag, 28. Februar 2011
DIE PRESSE: Österreich setzt den EU-Sanktionsbeschluss um. Eine Liste der betroffenen Personen wird an die Banken übermittelt.
Die Oesterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB) hat am Dienstag eine Verordnung erlassen, mit der sämtliche Vermögenswerte der Familie des libyschen Diktators Muammar al-Gaddafi und Personen aus seinem Umfeld in Österreich eingefroren werden. Die Vorkehrungen für die Sperrung von Bankkonten, die dem Regime des libyschen Machthabers Gaddafi zuzuordnen sind, seien am Dienstag im Ministerrat beschlossen worden, erklärte auch SP-Bundeskanzler Werner Faymann nach der Regierungs-sitzung: "Wir haben alle Maßnahmen getroffen, um Kontensperren zu verfügen."
Österreich handle dabei "im europäischen Gleichklang", sagte er in Anspielung auf die am Montag beschlossenen EU-Sanktionen gegen das Gaddafi-Regime. Konkret setzen solche Maßnahmen am Sanktionengesetz an, wurde im Büro von VP-Finanzminister Josef Pröll erläutert. Die Nationalbank könne auf dieser Basis Kontensperrungen per Verordnung veranlassen, so es einen entsprechenden Beschluss der Regierung gibt. >>> APA/Red. | Dienstag, 01. März 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: SANA, Yemen — As thousands of demonstrators for and against President Ali Abdullah Saleh took to the streets on Tuesday, a cleric accused by the United States of having links to Al Qaeda joined the protesters for the first time to call for the replacement of the government with an Islamic state.The call by the cleric, Sheik Abdul Majid al-Zindani, seemed a marked contrast to the upheaval that brought down the leaders of Tunisia and Egypt and threatens the rulers of Libya, Bahrain, Oman and, to this point, Yemen, where uprisings have been seen as secular and inspired by democratic goals.
Mr. Zindani’s appearance coincided with an unusual display of anti-American sentiment by Mr. Saleh, who accused Washington and Israel of fomenting unrest to destabilize the Arab world — an accusation that seemed more remarkable because the United States has been Mr. Saleh’s most powerful Western backer during his three decades in power.
“From Tunis to the Sultanate of Oman,” Mr. Saleh said, the wave of protest is “managed by Tel Aviv and under the supervision of Washington,” he said. >>> Laura Kasinof | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
VOICE OF AMERICA: Omani forces have dispersed demonstrators who were blocking the road to a port in the northern industrial city of Sohar, where protests earlier this week turned deadly.
Reuters news agency quotes witnesses as saying one person was injured Tuesday when security forces fired warning shots into the air. Witnesses said tanks were also deployed.
The protesters had taken to the streets for a fourth day. They want more jobs, higher salaries and democratic reforms in the Gulf state, where ruler Sultan Qaboos bin Said has been in power since 1970. >>> | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
VOICE OF AMERICA: Iranian opposition websites say security forces and plainclothes militiamen have clashed with protesters in Tehran, as Iranian officials continue to deny reports that they have jailed two opposition leaders.
The opposition said Tuesday Iranian security forces fired tear gas in an effort to disperse protesters demanding the release of opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi and their wives. Opposition websites say they were jailed on Monday.
Iranian opposition activists have called for protests to be held every Tuesday to demand the release of the two leading reformists.
Iran's prosecutor general, Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi, told the semi-official ISNA news agency Tuesday that the opposition leaders are not in prison. >>> | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Even as their father proclaimed he was building a classless state built on socialist and Islamic principles, Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi's and his children built vast fortunes in sectors from hostels to oil.Britain has announced that the assets of the dictator and his family have been frozen, and the Treasury has created a special unit to trace the multi-billion pound assets they are thought to have squirrelled away in investments in the city. For years, though, that fortune helped the Gaddafi family win friends and influence across the world.
Saif al-Islam, the suave, western-educated second son of the Libyan dictator, was the best known of the sons.
Seen as the natural successor to his father before the wave of protests across the north African nation, the 38 year old Saif al-Islam presented himself as a reformer. He was welcomed in the West as the acceptable face of the regime, and claims the Duke of York, Peter Mandelson and Tony Blair among his "good friends".
In 1995, he received his degree in architecture and engineering at Tripoli's al-Fateh University, and then went on to obtain a management degree from the International Business School in Vienna before gaining a doctorate at Britain's London School of Economics (LSE).
Presenting himself as a humanitarian ambassador through the charitable body he set up in 1997, the young Gaddafi – whose name means the sword of Islam in Arabic – was at the heart of the complex negotiations over the Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian doctor freed by Libya in July 2007. >>> Fiona Govan | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
FIGARO – BLOG _ GEORGES MALBRUNOT: L’ex raïs tunisien a quitté le Palais de l’ex roi Faysal à Djeddah, où il avait été hébergé à son arrivée en Arabie saoudite, le 15 janvier dernier. «Mais depuis personne ne sait où il est », nous affirme un habitant de la cité portuaire saoudienne sur la Mer rouge. «Il y a beaucoup de rumeurs, mais c’est un sujet qui est tabou ici à Djeddah», ajoute-t-il. Continuez à lire et écrire un commentaire >>> Georges Malbrunot | Lundi 28 Février 2011
LE FIGARO: L'héritier du roi Idriss Ier, renversé par Kadhafi il y a quarante-deux ans, se considère comme un point de ralliement possible, «une ombrelle pour tous les groupes d'opposition».
De Londres, il regarde à la télévision les insurgés libyens brandir son drapeau, la bannière rouge, noire et verte frappée de l'étoile et du croissant, celle de la monarchie libyenne. Mohammed al-Sanusi, 51 ans, héritier du trône de Libye, souhaite le départ de celui qui, jeune capitaine, avait renversé son grand-oncle le roi Idriss Ier il y a quarante-deux ans. «Son combat pour rester au pouvoir ne sera pas de longue durée en raison de la volonté de liberté du peuple libyen. Cette grande révolution populaire finira par être victorieuse, grâce à l'unité du peuple libyen», dit-il dans un communiqué. Rêve-t-il de monter sur le trône? Rencontrant Le Figaro à Paris en décembre 2007, il laissait la porte entrouverte: «Je me bats d'abord pour l'histoire, pour faire respecter le nom ma famille. Si dans l'avenir les Libyens choisissent la monarchie, je suis là. S'ils font un autre choix, je le respecterai.» Mohammed al-Sanusi s'était installé dans un hôtel parisien à 300 mètres de la tente de Kadhafi, alors en visite officielle à Paris. >>> Par Pierre Prier | Lundi 28 Février 2011
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FAZ.NET: „Habe Rücktrittsgesuch schweren Herzens angenommen“ : Bundeskanzlerin Merkel hat mit Bedauern auf den Rücktritt von Verteidigungsminister zu Guttenberg reagiert. Einen Nachfolger im Verteidigungsministerium gab sie nicht bekannt. Guttenberg hatte als Folge der Plagiats-Affäre seinen Rücktritt eingereicht. Er habe die Grenzen seiner Kräfte erreicht, sagte er in Berlin. >>> FAZ.NET | Dienstag, 01. März 2011
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REUTERS: Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi despatched forces to a western border area on Tuesday in defiance of Western military and economic pressure, stirring fears that the bloodiest Arab revolt may grow more violent.
As the West weighed military options, suspicions grew that the veteran leader, in power for 41 years, did not grasp the strength of the forces now gathering against him.
In Moscow, a Kremlin source suggested Gaddafi should step down, calling him a "living political corpse who has no place in the modern civilized world," Interfax news agency reported.
But Gaddafi appeared oblivious to outside pressure. >>> Maria Golovnina | Tripoli | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
AL JAZEERA ENGLISH: Defence minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg resigns amid claims he plagiarised his doctoral dissertation.Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, Germany's defence minister, has resigned over allegations he plagiarised his doctoral thesis, saying he could no longer carry out his duties as minister.
The popular politician, who was seen as a rising star in government, said on Tuesday he had "reached the limits of his strength" as he announced his resignation.
The 39-year-old had his doctorate title revoked after admitting last week there were "grave mistakes" in his 2007 thesis. He said he made some errors, but not deliberately, and insisted it was not plagiarised. >>> Agencies | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: The conflict inherent between policy and principle continues to this day
The international community has been compromised by the revolution sweeping the Arab world. In three uncertain weeks, the United States vacillated from urging stability to shore up a strategic ally in Hosni Mubarak to cheering his overthrow. France trod the same path in Tunisia. Happily, the foreign minister Michèle Alliot-Marie, whose first reaction to the uprising was to offer Ben Ali France's superior knowledge in riot control, has finally resigned. But her family's involvement with the ancien regime (her parents had shares in a property company owned by a businessman close to the regime) provided its own morality play.
Few were disinterested observers. When it came to the crunch, such as organising the interrogation under torture of jihadis picked up in Pakistan, the CIA, among others, traded with the darkest elements of Mubarak's regime being denounced with such ardour today. Russia and China, both of whom have much to fear from spontaneous demonstrations by their own people, have fared little better. Continue reading and comment >>> Editorial | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
SKY NEWS: The Libyan regime has accused the British government of being behind the recent unrest in Arab countries.
A spokesman for Libya's Ministry of Information accused UK Prime Minister David Cameron of leading a campaign for regime change in Libya and neighbouring countries.
Khaled al Koabi claimed to have information that Britain is "planning to carry on some activities that can create an environment of instability in some Arab countries, for the sake of changing regimes".
He also called on British MPs to oppose what he called the Government's "dangerous behaviour". >>> Adam Tate, Sky News Online | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
I would like to take this opportunity to wish all my Welsh visitors a very Happy St. David’s Day!
St. David is the patron saint of Wales, whilst the daffodil and the leek are the emblems of Wales.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: There is no place in British law for Christian beliefs, despite this country’s long history of religious observance and the traditions of the established Church, two High Court judges said on Monday.
Lord Justice Munby and Mr Justice Beatson made the remarks when ruling on the case of a Christian couple who were told that they could not be foster carers because of their view that homosexuality is wrong.
The judges underlined that, in the case of fostering arrangements at least, the right of homosexuals to equality “should take precedence” over the right of Christians to manifest their beliefs and moral values.
In a ruling with potentially wide-ranging implications, the judges said Britain was a “largely secular”, multi-cultural country in which the laws of the realm “do not include Christianity”.
Campaigners for homosexual rights welcomed the judgment for placing “21st-century decency above 19th-century prejudice”. Christian campaigners claimed that it undermined the position of the Church of England.
The ruling in the case of Owen and Eunice Johns, from Derby, is the latest in a series of judgments in which Christians have been defeated in the courts for breaching equality laws by manifesting their beliefs on homosexuality.
Senior churchmen, including Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, recently began a campaign urging Christians to stand up for their rights and have petitioned the Prime Minister to review human rights laws.
In their ruling yesterday, the judges complained that it was not yet “well understood” that British society was largely secular and that the law has no place for Christianity. >>> Tim Ross, Religious Affairs Editor | Monday, February 28, 2011
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ABC NEWS: U.S. Exclusive: Christiane Amanpour Sits Down for an Interview With Libya's Embattled Leader
I interviewed Col. Moammar Gadhafi this evening, when he told me he could not step down because he is not a president or king, and denied there were demonstrations against him anywhere in Libya.
"They love me. All my people with me, they love me," he said. "They will die to protect me, my people."
We conducted the interview at a beachfront restaurant in the Corniche, a coastal road on Tripoli's Mediterranean coast. Dressed in his flowing trademark robes and gold-rimmed aviator sunglasses, Gadhafi looked every inch the flamboyant character he's known to be. The longtime leader, who didn't seem to be surrounded by huge amounts of security, seemed relaxed and focused. Walking unabashedly into the restaurant, Gadhafi wanted to show he's not hiding in any underground bunker and that he believes he's still very much in charge.
Gadhafi said he wanted to speak to the press to get the truth out, and he spent more than an hour with us trying to put forth his side of the story.
The Libyan leader laughed when I asked him whether he would step down in response to calls against violence by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama.
"Would anyone leave his homeland? Why would I leave Libya?" Gadhafi said, laughing.
He invited the United Nations and any other organization to come to Libya and do a "fact finding mission" and questioned how they could freeze assets, impose sanctions and an arms embargo, and implement a travel ban based purely on media reports alone. >>> REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK BY CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, TRIPOLI, Libya | Monday, February 28, 2011
REUTERS: Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi were massed in the west of the country on Tuesday, residents said, and the United States said it was moving warships and air forces closer to Libya.
Residents feared pro-Gaddafi forces were preparing an attack to regain control of Nalut, about 60 km (38 miles) from the Tunisian border in western Libya, from protesters seeking an end to Gaddafi's rule.
The United States and other foreign governments discussed military options on Monday for dealing with Libya as Gaddafi scoffed at the threat to his government from a popular uprising.
U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said Gaddafi was "disconnected from reality," was "slaughtering his own people" and was unfit to lead.
She said Washington was in talks with its NATO partners and other allies about military options. The United States also said about $30 billion in assets in the United States had been blocked from access by Gaddafi and his family.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said his government would work to prepare for a "no-fly" zone in Libya to protect the people from attacks by Gaddafi's forces.
Gaddafi rejected calls for him to step down and dismissed the strength of the uprising against his 41-year rule that has ended his control over eastern Libya and is closing in on the capital Tripoli.
"All my people love me. They would die to protect me," he told the U.S. ABC network and the BBC on Monday.
He denied using his air force to attack protesters but said planes had bombed military sites and ammunition depots. He also denied there had been demonstrations and said young people were given drugs by al Qaeda and therefore took to the streets. Libyan forces had orders not to fire back at them, he said. >>> Maria Golovnina | Tripoli | Tuesday, March 01, 2011
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