http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8505693 /Libya-Col-Gaddafi-targeted-in-series-of-precision-strikes.html
Libya: Col Gaddafi targeted in series of precision strikes Col Muammar Gaddafi and his armed forces have been directly targeted in a series of precision strikes in Tripoli and the key town of Misurata as concerns grow that the regime is attempting to swamp Europe with refugees. Link to this video <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/libya- video/8504747/Tripoli-bombarded-by-Nato-missile-strikes.html> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/libya-v ideo/8504747/Tripoli-bombarded-by-Nato-missile-strikes.html By Thomas Harding <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/thomas-harding/> , and Andrew Gilligan in Tripoli 7:34PM BST 10 May 2011 The new phase of highly accurate attacks, shown in photographs released by the Ministry of Defence on Tuesday, was launched as an increasingly desperate refugee crisis has seen thousands from Libya flee for Europe in just a few days. In a sign that the regime is trying to force a refugee crisis as a weapon against its Nato enemies, almost 1,900 people from <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/> Libya arrived in five boats on the Italian islands of Lampedusa and Linosa this weekend alone. Another vessel sank - bringing the total lost to four boats. Hundreds of bodies are now washing ashore along the Libyan coast. Some of the refugees said they were forced on to the boats by Libyan troops and police, the International Organisation for Migration reported. Others were given free passage, in contrast to the normal practice where migrants are charged fortunes for the crossing. "The flow of migrants from Libya to Italy has undeniably accelerated very recently," said the IOM's spokesman, Jean Philippe Chauzy. "Until recently, the flow to Europe was overwhelmingly Tunisians and there were no departures [by sea] from Libya. But as of yesterday, a total of 12,360 people on 35 vessels have arrived in Lampedusa and Malta from Libya." Early on Tuesday, Nato forces carried out some of their heaviest strikes on the capital, Tripoli, for weeks, attacking targets said to include part of Col Gaddafi's leadership compound. A hospital next to one of the targets, said by the Libyans to be a "government administrative complex" but claimed by Nato as an intelligence building, was slightly damaged in the raids. There was speculation last night that Col Gaddafi had been killed in Nato bombings of his compound, although the Foreign Office said it had received no reports that he was dead. The Libyan leader has not been seen in public since the air strike 10 days ago in which his son, Saif al-Arab, was killed. He did not attend the funeral. Libya's prime minister, Al-Baghdadi Ali al-Mahmoudi, has denied that Col Gaddafi was hit in the raid and said that he is in mourning for his son. Aerial footage of the action in Misurata showed two bombs targeted the third floor of a four-storey building where Gaddafi loyalists were directing heavy machinegun, artillery and rocket fire on to the port as humanitarian aid ships were unloading supplies. Photographs show that the precision guided Paveway IV bombs detonated after passing through the roof then the ceiling of the third floor before detonating, destroying troops and weapons on only the top two floors. The bottom two floors remained intact. "The Tornadoes were ordered to destroy only the top two floors of the building on the outskirts of the besieged Libyan city, and did exactly that, in an attack that demonstrated the level of precision that RAF crews can deliver," a Ministry of Defence official said. It is understood that the deployment of US Predator unmanned drones - which are able to stay in the air for 24 hours - has enabled Nato to build up a much clearer intelligence picture of enemy troop movements. Persistent surveillance by drones has allowed the RAF to target other buildings without fear of causing civilian casualties. Since the weekend four buildings have been hit, some believed to be hiding snipers. The strike was made as Nato announced that rebel forces had taken control over much of Misurata, a move which has forced Gaddafi's troops to use artillery and rockets at longer range and indiscriminately. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/850569 3/Libya-Col-Gaddafi-targeted-in-series-of-precision-strikes.html> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [email protected]. -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [email protected] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [email protected] Unsubscribe: [email protected] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. 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