The Libyan airspace "under control", according to France
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Benghazi, Libya (AP) - The French army said Friday that Libyan airspace was "under control" while the international coalition air strikes have continued. For its part, the African Union (AU) has imposed a snub to Moammar Gadhafi in arguing for a transition period, democratic elections and political reforms in Libya.
The new coalition has conducted air raids on the night of Thursday to Friday, hitting a battery of artillery and armored vehicles from government forces near Ajdabiya (east), strategic bolt to Benghazi, the stronghold of insurgents.
The rebels hold the center Ajdabiya, besieged for over a week, but are subject to constant shelling of the pro-Gaddafi posted in the suburbs. The inhabitants of the city have no electricity or running water, and many have fled.
Explosions were also heard in Tripoli, the capital, before dawn Friday, apparently caused by airstrikes.
"Space (Libyan air) is under control," said Chief of Staff French Edouard Guillaud France-Info, explaining that the destruction by a French Rafale a Libyan aircraft on Thursday was the proof. "Last night, a French aircraft destroyed an artillery battery with a laser guided bomb, a battery that fired on the city of Ajdabiya," he stressed.
On the diplomatic front, representatives of the Qaddafi regime has met with officials of the African Union on Friday in Ethiopia. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced the presence of a representative of the opposition at the meeting but Gheriani Mustafa, spokesman for the Libyan National Transitional Council (CNLT), which represents the insurgency, has said he was not aware.
"The position of the National Council has been clear from the beginning: no negotiations" with the Gaddafi regime, "he recalled. The Libyan leader has to "stop the bombing and leave the country."
For his part, President of the African Union Commission, Jean Ping said the AU wanted a transition period in Libya leading to democratic elections. He stressed that political reforms were inevitable and considered "legitimate" aspirations of the Libyan people.
NATO began Friday to prepare to take control of the air exclusion zone in Libya, its member countries have accepted that it takes over the international coalition dominated by Washington, Paris and London.According to an official of the Alliance on condition of anonymity, NATO hopes to begin patrols and strikes in two days.
The coalition aircraft have carried out some 150 Thursday, nearly half were insured by American aircraft. "The operation continues to focus on tanks, combat vehicles and air defense," said Capt. Clint Gebke Marines aboard the U.S. command ship Mount Whitney.
The head of British diplomacy William Hague said on Friday that coalition air strikes had not caused civilian casualties confirmed thus far. "The civilian casualties are caused solely by the Gaddafi regime," he added.
Libyan state television showed charred bodies mutilated and it presented as victims of air strikes in Tripoli.The rebels denounce manipulation.
According to a U.S. intelligence report written Monday, an aide to Gadhafi has been ordered to retrieve the body in a mortuary and place them on the site of a missile strike in the complex of Bab al-Aziziya, the headquarters Qaddafi, before passing journalists. The note, classified top secret, was unveiled by a senior U.S. official who requested anonymity. AP
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