Despite Pledge Of Ceasefire, Qaddafi Still On The Attack
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Libya's foreign minister Friday said the country will abide by the United Nations Security Council resolution calling for military action against Col. Moammar Gadhafi's forces and will implement an immediate cease-fire, though reports of renewed assaults against rebel-held towns suggest the fighting continues.
"My country will try to deal with this resolution," Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa told reporters in Tripoli as he read from a prepared statement.
"According to article 25 of the [U.N.] charter and considering that Libya is a member of the U.N., then it is bound to accept the Security Council resolution and has decided an immediate ceasefire and the cessation of all military operations."
Mr. Koussa said the government was also willing to enter "dialogue" with all parties without offering more details or indicating whether this would include rebels and opposition figures now fighting the regime and calling for its overthrow.
The statement given by Mr. Koussa, a hardliner who is part of Col. Gadhafi's inner circle, marks a dramatic shift in the regime's tone after days of warnings that it will crush all its internal and external enemies.
But it remains unclear to what extent Col. Gadhafi's regime will abide by the ceasefire on the ground given that most areas are off-limit to journalists and even U.N. humanitarian teams who have visited the country over the past week.
Earlier, several residents affiliated with the rebels in Misrata, about 130 miles east of Tripoli, said Col. Gadhafi's forces renewed their assault on Friday morning using heavy artillery.
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