Reading Libya Amidst the Defections: Scott Lucas on the BBC

This morning, I chatted with BBC Coventry and Warwickshire about the latest developments in Libya, including the defection of former Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa and the possibility that the Qaddafi regime would soon fall.

The discussion starts at the 1:07.00 mark.

And on Thursday afternoon, I spoke with BBC Radio WM about similar political and military matters.

The interview begins just before the 1:34.00 mark.

Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Defections v. A Military Push

2030 GMT: Al Jazeera English's Hoda Abdel-Hamid reports from her position with opposition forces at the western gate of Ajdabiya --- she was stopped by the insurgents from going further towards the front-line near Brega. She notes that Libya's opposition has appointed Abdel Fatah Yunis, the former Minister of Interior who defected in the early days of protests, as the head of military forces.

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Libya: The CIA Operations Inside the Country (Mazzetti/Schmitt)

Lots of flutter this morning about this story in The New York Times by Mark Mazzetti and Eric Schmitt over US covert operations inside Libya.

Personally, I'm shrugging my shoulders about some of this. Air operations often require "spotters" on the ground --- consider Pakistan, for example, where this type of assistance to drone strikes has been going on for years. Far more interesting are the US attempt at a bit of psychological warfare --- "[Information from covert operations] might help weaken Libya’s military enough to encourage defections within its ranks" --- and this political nugget: "The American spies are meeting with rebels to try to fill in gaps in understanding who their leaders are and the allegiances of the groups opposed to Colonel Qaddafi."

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Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Rallying

1930 GMT: Our live blog coverage ends here. We will be back tomorrow morning.

1920 GMT: Miguel D’Escoto Brockmann, a former foreign minister of Nicaragua, has been named by Qaddafi as Libya’s ambassador to the UN.

1900 GMT: CNN reports a rebel spokesman in Benghazi, Libya saying that fighters are executing a "tactical withdrawal" from territory they previously controlled. It is reported that rebels withdrew towards Brega, prepared to defend Ajdabiya. Other sources report that rebels are leaving their places in Ajdabiya to defend Benghazi!

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Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Not So Fast

2100 GMT: Tonight's take-away from the 40-nation gathering in London to discuss Libya is US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's indication that arms supplies to the opposition may be under consideration: "It is our interpretation that [United Nations resolution] 1973 [authorising the no-fly one and measures to protect civilians] amended or overrode the absolute prohibition of arms to anyone in Libya so that there could be legitimate transfer of arms if a country were to choose to do that. We have not made that decision at this time."

2025 GMT: CNN's Ben Wedeman quotes an eyewitness that residents of Brega are fleeing east after the Libyan army regained control of Ras Lanuf, the next town to the west, tonight.

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Libya Feature: Who are the Insurgents? (Anderson)

During weeks of reporting in Benghazi and along the chaotic, shifting front line, I’ve spent a great deal of time with these volunteers. The hard core of the fighters has been the shabab --- the young people whose protests in mid-February sparked the uprising. They range from street toughs to university students (many in computer science, engineering, or medicine), and have been joined by unemployed hipsters and middle-aged mechanics, merchants, and storekeepers. There is a contingent of workers for foreign companies: oil and maritime engineers, construction supervisors, translators. There are former soldiers, their gunstocks painted red, green, and black --- the suddenly ubiquitous colors of the pre-Qaddafi Libyan flag.

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Libya Video & Transcript: President Obama's Address to the US People

THE PRESIDENT:  Tonight, I’d like to update the American people on the international effort that we have led in Libya –- what we’ve done, what we plan to do, and why this matters to us.

I want to begin by paying tribute to our men and women in uniform who, once again, have acted with courage, professionalism and patriotism.  They have moved with incredible speed and strength.  Because of them and our dedicated diplomats, a coalition has been forged and countless lives have been saved.

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Libya Audio Snapshot: The Latest from Regime Stronghold Sirte

Offering a sharp counterpoint to reports at the start of today that the opposition had taken Sirte, the regime stronghold and Qaddafi birthplace east of Tripoli, Ian Black of The Guardian describes a town which is still under the control of regime forces. He says well-equipped units, switching to lighter weapons to avoid air strikes, are moving into Sirte:

Libya, Syria, and Yemen: Scott Lucas on BBC Radio Wales

Former British diplomat Paul Whiteway and I appeared on BBC Radio Wales this morning to discuss the latest situation on the ground in Libya and the development of NATO and US approaches, including the move beyond the "no-fly zone" and protection of civilians " to the support of the opposition and "regime change".

We also had a moment to consider Syria and Yemen, where --- in a statement missed by the media --- US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates appears to have given support to President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The item starts just before the 2:07.00 mark.

Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Breakthrough?

1820 GMT: The Egyptian stock market has rised for a second day in a row, after almost two months of suspension and then a sharp fall on re-opening last week.

The EGX 30 Index rose 0.8% to 5,251.3 at the close. It has fallen 26% this year amidst the uprising against the Mubarak regime.

1715 GMT: British Tornado jets attacked and destroyed regime ammunition bunkers in the Sabha area of the southern desert early Monday.

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