Britain preparing to send advisers to help anti-Gadhafi forces

[Turborama]

Source: USA Today & The Guardian

Update at 2:16 p.m. ET: Britain is preparing to send unarmed advisers to help anti-Gadhafi forces in eastern Libya, The Guardian reports.

Richard Norton-Taylor, a correspondent for the British newspaper, says the unarmed advisers will be deployed to Benghazi and other towns in eastern Libya where British officials are in touch with a range of opposition figures.

Britain has also placed air, sea, and ground forces on alert to be ready to intervene quickly in the conflict if so ordered, the Guardian reports.

The newspaper, quoting defense officials, says Typhoon jets would be deployed to one of two base areas in Cyprus, while the 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland has been placed on 24 hours' notice to help in evacuation and humanitarian operations.

Read more: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2011/03/libyan-security-forces-fire-tear-gas-at-protesters-in-tripoli-/1

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5.51 p.m. GMT: My colleague Richard Norton-Taylor has details of British help for anti-Gaddafi forces:


Britain is preparing to send advisers to help anti-Gaddafi forces in eastern Libya, it emerged as Nato commanders were instructed to draw up plans for a wide range of military options, including a no-fly zone.

As the situation in Libya was deteriorating rapidly, ambassadors representing Nato's 28 nations tasked military commanders to start planning for what an alliance spokesperson described as "all eventualities".

In addition to unarmed advisers deployed to Benghazi and other towns in eastern Libya - where British officials are in touch with a range of opposition figures - the government has placed on alert air, sea, and ground forces that could quickly intervene in the conflict if ordered to do so.

Typhoon jets would be deployed to RAF Akrotiri in one of the two sovereign base areas in Cyprus, while 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland - the Black Watch - is on 24 hours' notice to help in evacuation and humanitarian operations, defence officials said.

An RAF airborne radar and early warning aircraft is based in Malta where the Ministry of Defence has also set up a forward joint task force headquarters. Officials yesterday declined to say what intelligence they had gathered on the quality and number of pro-Gaddafi aircraft and armour.

A full story on this will be up on our site soon.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/mar/04/libya-uprising-continues-live-updates#block-3

[WolfoftheWild]

1. Gadhafi's done. This seals it. It's only a matter of time now.

[SkyDaddy7]

4. I don't know about that...

I am watching or listening to Aljazeera all day long & according to the reporting they are doing Gaddafi is no where near gone...Actually his forces have taken back a city or two today. They were also saying some of the rebel fighters are losing motivation because they are realizing overthrowing him is not going to be easy!

This is a LONG WAY from ending...And my guess is Gaddafi is safe & sound until there is a Safe Fly Zone established...And that does not look likely right now. Gaddafi will have to do something really nasty going forward to get US to bomb Libya.


Stay tuned...I HOPE I AM DEAD WRONG BUT I DO NOT THINK I AM.

[WolfoftheWild]

5. Do you really think the West will let him take it back now?

It won't happen. A reason will be found to provide air support. Then Gadhafi will last about a week or less.

[SkyDaddy7]

7. Will the West allow him to take back Libya?

I have no idea about that...One thing is becoming obviously clear the rebels will need AT LEAST a "No Fly Zone" in order to topple Gaddafi.

Who knows if a all out air campaign started & it became clear to many around Gaddafi the end could be near the entire regime could come apart then.

However, my point is no knows when or even IF the West will get involved...I want to agree with you that the West would not stand by & watch Gaddafi retake the parts of the country he lost to the rebels...However, it looks like right now they could not get a UN Resolution because China & especially Russia would veto it. So, it would take NATO or the US going it alone or maybe with British help? I have no idea who would be willing to do the dirty work without legal international authorization.

This is why I say something really nasty might need to happen to get the West into action...Maybe it would be Gaddafi making a move to reclaim the country & the massacres that would have to take place to accomplish such a feat...We will see.

[jwirr]

2. That is good. EU gets a lot of their oil from Libya and they can handle

this better than we can.

[defendandprotect]

3. Sounds good, if this is what the Libyan protesters actually want -- !!

[Turborama]

6. The Guardian article: Libyan opposition leaders to get advice from UK military

British move comes as Tripoli says it has accepted a peace initiative put forward by Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez

Patrick Wintour and Richard Norton-Taylor
guardian.co.uk, Friday March 04 2011 22.58 GMT

Britain is to send experts able to give military advice into east Libya to make contact with opposition leaders, as the struggle for control escalates.

The move is a clear intervention on the ground to bolster the anti-Gaddafi uprising, learn more about its leadership, and see what logistical support it needs. Whitehall sources said the diplomatic taskforce would not give arms to the rebels, as there is an international arms embargo.

=snip=

David Cameron has been determined to back the resistance, partly because, following advice this week by experts and Libyans in the UK, he believes it is neither simply tribal nor Islamist, but built round democratic demands that could, in the medium term, mark a decline in the Middle East's anti-western mood. The foreign secretary, William Hague, has been in telephone contact with General Abdul Fattah Younis Obaidi, the former interior minister, now based in Benghazi, seen as a likely successor to Gaddafi. He was placed in charge of military defences in the city in a sign he is at the helm of the opposition.

British officials know the identity of all the members of the broad-based Benghazi committee focused on keeping essential services and defences going.

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/04/libyan-opposition-leaders-advice