NATO: Will enforce blockade robustly

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation NATO will enforce the arms and mercenaries blockade on Libya robustly, with force if needed,and hopes more nations will join those who have committed ships,planes and submarines,the operation head said on Thursday.

We will ensure the free flow of legitimate shipping which the people of Libya need, Vice Admiral Rinaldo Veri,head of Operation Unified Protector,told a news conference at NATOs Southern Europe headquarters in Naples.

Veri said his force had begun operations on Wednesday evening with ships already in the area,but had not detected any attempt to breach the embargo so far.

He said his force was still in a build-up phase and would have enough assets in a few days to fully sustain the embargo.