US, French and British warplanes continued to strike targets in Libya March 21—including Qaddafi's central compound, sparking accusations that Allied forces are trying to kill the Libyan leader. This was denied by the Pentagon, but Hillary Clinton stated: "We will continue to work with our partners in the international community to press Qaddafi to leave, and to support the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people." There were rumors that Qaddafi had been killed; he spoke the day before the strike to pledge resistance to the Allies' "naked aggression," but hasn't been heard from since. The Libyan military announced a ceasefire, but this was met by skepticism. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said: "I sincerely hope and urge the Libyan authorities to keep their word. They have been continuing to attack the civilian population." Rebel fighters trying to retake the eastern town of Ajdabiya said they were driven back by rocket and tank fire from government loyalists still controlling approaches to the city. Fighting was also reported from Misurata, the last western city held by the rebels.

The international operation to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya "has been successful," top US military commander Michael Mullen said March 20. "They are no longer marching on Benghazi," Mullen, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told ABC News. Meanwhile, the Arab League secretary general, Amr Moussa, protested the air-strikes against Libya, saying he would call a league meeting to reconsider Arab approval of the Western military intervention. "What is happening in Libya differs from the aim of imposing a no-fly zone," he said. "And what we want is the protection of civilians and not the shelling of more civilians." (Middle East Online, WP, March 20)

Following opening French air-strikes near Benghazi, US and British warships launched more than 110 Tomahawk missiles at defense facilities along the Libyan coast. The strikes targeted specifically surface-to-air missile sites and radar detectors that are part of the Libyan military's air defense infrastructure, said Vice Admiral William E. Gortney, commander of US Naval Forces Central Command. The campaign, code-named Operation Odyssey Dawn is being co-ordinated at a US headquarters in Germany. In a brief statement, Qaddafi pledged resistance to the "colonial crusader" attacks. (LAT, BBC News, March 19)

France has launched military strikes on Libyan tanks advancing on rebel-held Benghazi, Paris announced March 19. After an international meeting on the situation in Libya at Elysee Palace, President Nicolas Sarkozy said: "At unity with our partners our air forces will counteract any attacks from Col. Qaddafi planes on the residents of Benghazi. Other French aircraft are ready to countervail against armored vehicles which may threaten civilians." The French air-strikes on Qaddafi's forces came just as Qaddafi's planes carried out their first air-strikes on Benghazi, sending thousands of residents fleeing the city. The highway to al-Bayda, the next town to the east, is reported to be clogged with cars packed with families fleeing Benghazi. (APA, BBC News, AP, AGI, March 19)

The Libyan government announced an immediate ceasefire in its offensive against rebels in the country's east March 18, as a coalition of Western and Arab nations prepared for air-strikes following the previous day's UN Security Council resolution. Rebels said government forces had been bombarding Misrata, the last rebel-held city in the west—but the government denied that this had continued after the ceasefire. Government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim told Reuters: "Libya has already implemented the ceasefire. We have not carried out any military operations today on Misrata or anywhere else in the country." He added that Tripoli wanted the Turkish and Maltese authorities to "supervise and help implement the ceasefire."

Moammar Qaddafi pledged an imminent assault on rebel stronghold Benghazi March 18. "The decision has been taken. Prepare yourselves. We will arrive tonight," the strongman said on state television. "We will chase the traitors from Benghazi. Destroy their fortifications. Show them no mercy. The world needs to see Benghazi free." Invoking again his claims that al-Qaeda is behind the rebellion, Qaddafi said "we will hunt down the miscreants and bearded ones that have destroyed out country and we will punish them without mercy." (AFP, March 18)

Libyan rebels battled Qaddafi-loyalist forces at Ajdabiya on March 16, as the provisional opposition government in Benghazi, just 150 miles up the coast, prepared for an assault on the city. In response to international calls for a no-fly zone, Saif al-Islam Qaddafi, the dictator's son, boasted to reporters: "The military operations are finished. In 48 hours everything will be over. Our forces are close to Benghazi. Whatever decision is taken, it will be too late."

The February 20 movement, which is pushing for democratic reform in Morocco, on March 13 "strongly condemned" the crackdown on a protest in Casablanca in which dozens were injured. Police stormed the office of the United Socialist Party (PSU) after protesters took refuge there. The movement called for further demonstrations to go ahead as planned on March 20 in several cities to press for sweeping political changes. "The [king's] speech of March 9 was a first gain for the Moroccan people because he announced new constitutional reforms. But it was followed by a process of repression against our movement which we strongly condemn," protest leaders said in a statement. (Middle East Online, March 14; Press TV, March 13)