Libyan air forces planes bombed the airport located in Benghazi, the sole stronghold left to rebel forces in the country. Rebels had only just captured the site, using helicopters and planes there to attack the advancing Libyan forces. Three opposition forces’ planes counterattacked government forces working to cut off the rebels from the smaller city of Ajdabiya, the linking community that connects the rebels to the larger city of Benghazi. The rebels at the airport and entrenched in the small city of Ajdabiya are hoping to hold of the government forces until Western military power joins their cause, if NATO and other international organizations deem the operation legal and the correct course of action. Earlier this week, Sec. of State Hilary Clinton stated quite clearly that the US would not intervene unilaterally, and would wait to be called upon, and joined by, NATO authorization and assistance.
Britain and France, meanwhile, have vocally supported a vote today to authorize air strikes in Libya and sanction military action on the ground in the immediate future. The US was convinced by the UK and France earlier this week to support a no-fly zone over Libya, though no official vote has yet to be held. Susan Rice, an ambassador for the US, says a no-fly zone would not go far enough to protect Libyan forces facing the onslaught of Gaddafi’s forces.
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