'Gaddafi is finished'

2011-02-22 03:53:56

21 February 2011 Last updated at 23:55 Share this page Delicious Digg Facebook reddit StumbleUpon Twitter Email Print Libya protests: Tripoli hit by renewed clashes

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Libya's most senior diplomat in the United States, Ali Aujali, has criticised Colonel Gaddafi's regime in a BBC interview

An eyewitness in Tripoli told the BBC he could see people being shot down by aircraft.

Another eyewitness in the capital said the suburbs of Fashloom and Zawiyat al-Dahmani had been cordoned off by security forces.

Protesters were out on the streets, and flames and smoke could be seen rising from the areas, the witness said.

Fashloom is one of Tripoli's poorest areas, and a BBC correspondent in the city says there are fears that many people may have died in the clashes.

Witnesses estimated more than 50 people had been killed in Tripoli since Sunday.

Before the unrest spread to the capital, the US-based Human Rights Watch estimated 233 people had been killed, but other campaign groups said the figure was much higher.

Col Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, later told state media that there had been bombing raids near Tripoli and Benghazi, but said they had targeted ammunition stores and no civilian areas were hit.

In an earlier TV address, Saif al-Islam warned that the protests could lead to civil war, and vowed that the regime would "fight to the last bullet".

Continue reading the main story Mid-East unrest: Libya Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has led since 1969 Population 6.5m; land area 1.77m sq km, much of it desert Population with median age of 24.2, and a literacy rate of 88% Gross national income per head: $12,020 (World Bank 2009) Country profile: Libya Gaddafi family tree Oil price jumps on Libya unrest Difficulty of reporting from inside Libya

Amid the turmoil on the streets, senior officials have begun to desert the regime.

Justice Minister Mustapha Abdul Jalil quit the government because of the "excessive use of violence", the privately owned Quryna newspaper reported.

Libya's envoy to the Arab League, Abdel Moneim al-Honi, announced he was "joining the revolution".

And several diplomatic missions reportedly said they were pledging allegiance to the people of Libya rather than the Gaddafi government.

US ambassador Ali Aujali said he could no longer represent a government that killed its own people.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he had urged Col Gaddafi in a 40-minute phone call to halt the escalating violence.

EU foreign ministers released a statement condemning the "ongoing repression against demonstrators", and said they deplored the violence and death of civilians.

Some European ministers have voiced concern that there could be a wave of illegal immigration, after Libya threatened to break co-operation on controlling the flow of Tunisians to Italy.

Meanwhile, Maltese officials say two Libyan fighter jets have landed there after the pilots asked for asylum because they were ordered to bomb civilians.

The violence has helped to push up oil prices to their highest levels since the global financial crisis of 2008.

International firms including BP, one of the world's biggest oil companies, are preparing to pull their staff out of Libya.

Thousands of Europeans have already fled the country.

Are you in Libya? What is your reaction to Saif Gaddafi's statement? Have you witnessed the protests? What next for Libya? Send us your comments and experiences using the form below.

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