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French Aid Bolsters Libyan Revolt

28 February 2011 21:27 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. France is moving quickly to side with the forces trying to overthrow the Libyan leader, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, sending planes on Monday with aid and doctors to eastern Libya, APA reports quoting â€œThe New York Timesâ€.
The French prime minister, FranÃ§ois Fillon, said that two French planes were flying on Monday to the eastern city of Benghazi, the revoltâ€™s birthplace, with doctors, nurses, medicines and medical equipment.
â€œIt will be the beginning of a massive operation of humanitarian support for the populations of liberated territories,â€ Mr. Fillon said on RTL radio. The French government is studying â€œall solutions to ensure that Colonel Qaddafi understands that he should go, that he should leave power,â€ he said.
The French foreign ministry spokesman, Bernard Valero, said that the planes represented only â€œthe first stage in the mobilization of France.â€ He said the two planes carried not only doctors and nurses, but also five tons of medicines and medical equipment.
He spoke the morning after the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, addressed the nation, saying that France welcomed the change of governments in North Africa. â€œThese Arab revolutions have opened a new era in our relations with these countries and we should not be afraid of this changeâ€ from those who share â€œthe values we hold most dear of human rights and democracy,â€ Mr. Sarkozy said.
â€œEurope is in the front line,â€ he said, and called for a European summit meeting to discuss how to help the new democracies and to find a joint position on immigration, to deal with those fleeing uncertainty and violence in north Africa.
But Mr. Fillon, like Mr. Sarkozy, spoke cautiously about any military intervention in Libya, which Western diplomats said France has opposed inside NATO and at the United Nations. Mr. Fillon said the prospect of a no-flight zone over Libya needed a United Nations Security Council resolution, â€œwhich is far from being obtained today,â€ and would require the involvement of NATO.
â€œNo one today in Europe has the means to carry out this operation alone,â€ Mr Fillon said. â€œIt would be necessary to involve NATO, and I think that has to be thought about. Should NATO get involved in a civil war to the south of the Mediterranean? It is a question that at least merits some reflection before being launched.â€
He questioned whether NATO should get involved in a civil war in a North African country, in part because of the bitter history of European colonialism there. But he said that a no-fly zone is an option under study.
He said France and Europe could not ignore â€œimportant migratory movementsâ€ but that before worrying about immigration, â€œthe first topic is how to help these revolutions,â€ Mr. Fillon said.