Air force destroyed; fierce fighting at key cities

The British military said today that Gaddafi's air force "no longer exists as a fighting force" after five days of UN-sanctioned attacks.

British Air Vice Marshal Greg Bagwell said Libyan ground forces were also being targeted when they threatened civilians.

A military base in Tripoli was reportedly destroyed by allied air raids, killing a "large number" of civilians, Libya's official JANA news agency said.

It quoted a military official as saying Tajura, 32km east of the capital, was struck three times.

Coalition military spokesman insist raids are avoiding areas inside Libya's cities in order to limit civilian casualties.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said continuing air strikes could fuel a mutiny inside Libya and bolster the ranks of opposition forces.
"I think there are any number of possible outcomes here and no one is in a position to predict them, whether there are further major defections within his own ruling circle, whether there are divisions within his family," Gates said.

On a bitter day of fighting in key rebel strongholds, forces loyal to Colonel Gaddafi pounded a hospital in the western city of Misrata, a rebel spokesman said.

The city, approximately 209km southeast of Tripoli, has witnessed some of the heaviest fighting in recent days with dozens of people reportedly killed.

A rebel spokesman confirmed the attack on the hospital, saying, "The situation here is very bad and very serious. The tanks are shelling the hospital and houses."

According to rebels on the ground, Misrata has been without electricity and water for several days during the siege.

In Ajdabiya, rebels continued to stage a series of small attacks but were repeatedly repulsed by Gaddafi forces, reports said.

Rebels captured the city in the early days following the uprising but the city was taken back by Gaddafi's forces.

There were signs of disarray on the diplomatic front with reports that NATO envoys in Brussels had failed to reach consensus on giving the western alliance command of military operations.

While the US remains keen to hand off the military responsibility of enforcing a no-fly-zone to the alliance, France and Turkey have expressed reservations for different reasons. While France has argued that a NATO-led mission would be opposed by Arab leaders, Turkey has expressed concern that the coalition airstrikes have exceeded the mandate as set forth by the UN.

A meeting on Monday was so tense that it ended with the German and French ambassadors walking out after their positions were criticused by NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen, The New York Times reported.