Arab League nod for Libya no-fly zone

Gaddafi forces eye new gains.

ETHAN BRONNER & KAREEM FAHIM

As forces loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi pushed Libyan rebels eastward on Saturday,the Arab League endorsed a no-flight zone over Libya in an effort to end the bloody three-week conflict. The Foreign Minister of Oman,Youssef bin Alawi bin Abdullah,said that the Arab leaders meeting in Cairo have voted to ask the United Nations Security Council to impose a no-flight zone over Libya.

Gaddafi seemed to be strengthening his hold around Tripoli,the capital,as his forces retook oil installations near Ras Lanuf,about 400 miles to the east. The rebel defeat in Ras Lanuf moved the front line toward the town of Uqaylah. Government forces also launched an attack on Saturday on the town of Misurata,the last rebel holdout in the western part of the country. I think they are five kilometers from the town now, Reuters quoted a rebel spokesman named Gemal as saying.

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In Benghazi,Abdul Hafidh Ghoga,vice-chairman of the rebel Libyan National Council pleaded with international officials to impose a no-flight zone. If the international community chooses to play the role of bystander, he said.

The 22-member league cannot impose a no-fly zone. But its endorsement is seen as vital as the Western powers debate whether to intervene militarily.