The African Union (AU) has recognised Libya's interim leaders the National Transitional Council (NTC) as the country's de facto government.
The news came as US President Barack Obama said his ambassador was on the way to Tripoli to re-open an embassy.Mr Obama made the announcement after meeting with NTC chairman Mustafa Abdul Jalil in New York.
Meanwhile, deposed leader Col Muammar Gaddafi warned opponents that Nato protection cannot last indefinitely.
The AU, a pan-African body which has frequently been criticised for its lack of speed when reacting to events in neighbouring states, said that it was ready to help the NTC in its efforts to build an inclusive government.
"The African Union stands ready to support the Libyan people as they rebuild their country towards a united, democratic, peaceful and prosperous Libya," said the president of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema, who holds the bloc's rotating chair.
He made the announcement after consulting with the panel in New York ahead of the UN General Assembly.
'Collective will'
After meeting with Mr Obama, interim government leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil thanked the UN and the international community for its involvement in Libya but warned that their task had only just begun.
New Libyan leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil says his country is grateful for help but will still need UN support
"The road before us is still long and there are many challenges at many levels. Our needs are many, we have lost 25,000 matryrs and there are double the number of wounded."
Addressing a high-level UN meeting on Libya on the sidelines of the General Assembly, Mr Obama praised the international community for having "the courage and the collective will to act" in Libya.
He said that the US ambassador was already on his way back to Tripoli.
"This week, the American flag that was lowered before our embassy was attacked will be raised again, over a re-opened American embassy."
He reassured Libyans that they could count on international support in the future.
"Just as the world stood by you in your struggle to be free, we will stand with you in your struggle to realise the peace and prosperity that freedom can bring," he said.
His comments come as Col Gaddafi issued a defiant audio message warning the opposition that Nato could not be counted upon.
"Do not rejoice and don't believe that one regime has been overthrown and another imposed with the help of air and maritime strikes.
"The bombs of Nato planes will not last," he said. It is not known when or where the audio message was recorded.
Broadcast on the Syria-based Al-Rai network, it is the third since he was ousted late last month.
Mercenary claim
On the ground in Libya, fighting continues for control of Bani Walid and Col Gaddafi's birthplace, Sirte, where pro-Gaddafi fighters are mounting fierce resistance.
It is the third audio message released by Col Gaddafi since he was ousted Claims by Col Gaddafi's spokesman that loyalists had captured 17 foreign mercenaries during recent fighting have been denied by western powers and the NTC.
Moussa Ibrahim said on Monday that the mercenaries were "technical experts and consultative officers", adding that most were French, one was from an unidentified Asian country, two were English and one was from Qatar.
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said there were "no French mercenaries in Libya", while the British foreign office said it had no information about whether the report was true. Nato says it has no troops on the ground in Libya.
Source: BBC News, 20 September 2011 Last updated at 16:52 GMT
No comments:
Post a Comment