ICRC warns situation in Libya qualifies to ’civil war’ as France recognizes opposition’s national council

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, the situation in Libya now qualifies as a civil war…

This simple “warning” summarizes the dangerous conflict which erupted in Libya after long-time ruler Muammar Gaddafi refused to step down or, at least, to “understand” his people’s “legal” rights. Instead, he chose to launch a “war” against his own nation, a war which is furthermore escalating day after another.

CRISIS ONGOING
In the latest developments, news agencies reported on Thursday that Libyan tanks have fired on positions held by the protesters around the oil port of Ras Lanuf and warplanes hit another oil hub further east as Gaddafi carried counter-attacks deeper into the insurgent heartland.

In the west, Gaddafi's army laid siege to try to starve out opposition fighters clinging to parts of the shattered city of Zawiyah, strategically significant because it is close to his powerbase in the capital Tripoli, after fierce see-saw battles this week.

However, AFP reported that demonstrators have fled from Ras Lanuf, a strategic coastal oil town in eastern Libya they had captured last Friday. According to the agency, their vehicles streamed eastward from the town after hours of heavy shelling and rocket attacks that swept from the western outskirts of Ras Lanuf to the east.

The only man left, Doctor Mahmud Zubi stood beside the body of a man laid out on a stretcher, his nose and the top of his head blown away, and puddles of blood on the floor. "We have evacuated the hospital. They were shelling us. It's only me here," the doctor told AFP.

FRANCE RECOGNIZES NATIONAL COUNCIL
Meanwhile, the Libyan opposition took an important step toward international legitimacy when France recognized its national council, a move that brought a quick reaction from Tripoli, which suggested Paris was acting stupidly and said it could sever diplomatic relations.

However, a source close to French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the latter will propose "targeted air strikes" in Libya.

NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who said "time is of the essence," affirmed that the alliance stands ready to act if there is a clear mandate.

NATO and the European Union were looking into imposing a "no-fly" zone over Libya to stop the government using jets and helicopters against the outgunned rebels, who seized a string of cities east and west of Tripoli early in the three-week-old war to end Gaddafi's 41 years of iron-fisted rule.

RED CROSS WARNS
In an alarming statement, meanwhile, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross Jakob Kellenberger said on Thursday that he was braced for an intensification of the conflict in Libya, suggesting it amounted to a civil war. "We always have to prepare for the worst. In this specific case, we have to prepare for a further intensification of the fighting," Kellenberger said. "It will certainly mean much more wounded arriving in the hospitals," he added, although he would not give forecasts or estimates that the agency is working with.

He also pointed out that refugee outflows from Libya or the numbers of people displaced from their homes could increase sharply if fighting were to intensify. The numbers of wounded are already increasing rapidly, he said.

For Kellenberger, the situation now qualifies as a civil war. "My understanding now is that we have now a non-international armed conflict and I have no problem with the term civil war," he said.

Kellenberger also deplored that the ICRC has not been granted access to areas controlled by Gaddafi’s regime. "I am very disappointed I have to say this... as with all humanitarian organizations, we still have no access to areas controlled by Tripoli. We have made efforts to get access, we have not been successful so far," he added. He revealed that he has "spoken to someone pretty close to the power" to seek access but to no avail. "I have been told that everything is under control that all hospitals are working perfectly and there is no need for external international assistance. And we are worried, we would like to assess ourselves what is the situation," he added.