NATO bombs 'kill Libyan civilians'
Source: Agencies |
August 10, 2011, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
LIBYAN officials yesterday said dozens of civilians were killed in a NATO strike on a cluster of farmhouses east of Tripoli, but the alliance claimed it hit a legitimate military target.
A strike causing large numbers of civilian casualties could undermine support in some NATO nations for the campaign to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi that has already proved longer, bloodier and more costly than its backers had anticipated.
A spokesman for Gadhafi's government, who took foreign reporters to the scene of the strike, said 85 people had been killed when missiles struck farm compounds in the village of Majar, about 150 kilometers from Tripoli.
He said the dead included 20 men, 32 women and 33 children.
Abdulkader Al-Hawali, a fifth-year medical student at the hospital in nearby Zlitan, where officials said some of the dead and wounded were taken, said: "They (NATO) do not differentiate between soldiers, children and old people."
Gadhafi's government declared three days of mourning for the victims, according to state television.
Reporters, taken to the hospital in Zlitan by Libyan government officials, counted 20 body bags in one room, some of them stacked one on top of the other. One bag contained the body of a child who appeared to be about two years old.
Reporters saw about 30 bodies at the hospital. Officials said more dead were taken to other hospitals.
At a news conference in Brussels, a NATO military spokesman said the target was a military staging area used to support government attacks on civilians.
Colonel Roland Lavoie said: "This was a legitimate target and by striking it NATO has reduced the pro-Gadhafi forces' ability to threaten and attack civilians. We do not have evidence of civilian casualties at this stage, although casualties among military personnel, including mercenaries, are very likely due to the nature of the target."
NATO forces have been mounting regular attacks, from both sea and air, on targets around Zlitan, where the alliance says government forces are killing and persecuting civilians who are trying to end Gadhafi's 41-year rule.
Gadhafi has denied attacking civilians, and claims the NATO bombing campaign is an act of colonial aggression aimed at stealing Libya's plentiful oil.
Libya's conflict began in February when thousands of people protested against Gadhafi. Western powers say the Libyan leader must relinquish power, but despite months of pounding by NATO bombs, defections from his inner circle and international sanctions, Gadhafi shows no signs of quitting.
A strike causing large numbers of civilian casualties could undermine support in some NATO nations for the campaign to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi that has already proved longer, bloodier and more costly than its backers had anticipated.
A spokesman for Gadhafi's government, who took foreign reporters to the scene of the strike, said 85 people had been killed when missiles struck farm compounds in the village of Majar, about 150 kilometers from Tripoli.
He said the dead included 20 men, 32 women and 33 children.
Abdulkader Al-Hawali, a fifth-year medical student at the hospital in nearby Zlitan, where officials said some of the dead and wounded were taken, said: "They (NATO) do not differentiate between soldiers, children and old people."
Gadhafi's government declared three days of mourning for the victims, according to state television.
Reporters, taken to the hospital in Zlitan by Libyan government officials, counted 20 body bags in one room, some of them stacked one on top of the other. One bag contained the body of a child who appeared to be about two years old.
Reporters saw about 30 bodies at the hospital. Officials said more dead were taken to other hospitals.
At a news conference in Brussels, a NATO military spokesman said the target was a military staging area used to support government attacks on civilians.
Colonel Roland Lavoie said: "This was a legitimate target and by striking it NATO has reduced the pro-Gadhafi forces' ability to threaten and attack civilians. We do not have evidence of civilian casualties at this stage, although casualties among military personnel, including mercenaries, are very likely due to the nature of the target."
NATO forces have been mounting regular attacks, from both sea and air, on targets around Zlitan, where the alliance says government forces are killing and persecuting civilians who are trying to end Gadhafi's 41-year rule.
Gadhafi has denied attacking civilians, and claims the NATO bombing campaign is an act of colonial aggression aimed at stealing Libya's plentiful oil.
Libya's conflict began in February when thousands of people protested against Gadhafi. Western powers say the Libyan leader must relinquish power, but despite months of pounding by NATO bombs, defections from his inner circle and international sanctions, Gadhafi shows no signs of quitting.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
