Fighting in Libya 'could last until Christmas' as Gaddafi clings on, 'for months'



The war in Libya could still be raging at Christmas, William Hague said yesterday, as he warned Colonel Gaddafi could cling on to power for months.

Mr Hague spoke out after returning from a flying visit to Benghazi, where he met rebel leaders.

The Foreign Secretary admitted that plans for Libya post-Gaddafi were still ‘embryonic’ – something likely to dismay critics who say Britain has blundered into a conflict with little idea where it will lead.



In action: British Apache gunship have been introduced in Libya recently - but William Hague still believed it will be a waiting game before Colonel Gaddafi is removed as Libya leader

And he suggested there would need to be peacekeeping forces on the ground once the war is over.

The Foreign Secretary’s comments came despite a dramatic military escalation.



Going into action over Libya for the first time, British Apache ground attack helicopters destroyed radar sites and military checkpoints at the weekend, backed up by Tornado missile strikes on a missile depot in Tripoli.



Asked if the conflict would still be going on at Christmas, Mr Hague said: ‘Well we’re not going to set a deadline. You’re asking about Christmas and who knows? It could be days or weeks or months. It is worth doing.’



Clinging on: William Hague (right) believes that the Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi (left) will not be ousted before Christmas

But he did vow not to repeat the mistakes made after the Iraq war, when many of those who kept the country running under Saddam Hussein were purged once he fell.

Instead, the Foreign Secretary said the opposition interim national council would seek to ‘incorporate technocratic members of the regime’.

He told the BBC: ‘There needs to be such a plan and it is only in an embryonic stage.

‘We were encouraging the National Transitional Council to put more flesh on their proposed transition – to lay out in detail this week what would happen on the day Gaddafi went.



Premature celebration? Rebels cheer, but the war against Gaddafi is far from won

‘They have published a good plan for that, which involves incorporating some of the technocratic members of the regime with the opposition members – which would be the right thing to do – and then holding elections after a certain time.’



He said a post-conflict peacekeeping force ‘might be one of the options’ but attempted to play down the prospect of UK military involvement.

‘Britain does not normally these days play a huge part in peacekeeping. There are many nations, including African nations, that supply large numbers of peacekeeping troops,’ he added.

There is some evidence that calls for moderate members of the Gaddafi government to defect are beginning to bear fruit.

Yesterday two generals who abandoned the dictator said Gaddafi’s army is now operating at just one fifth of its former strength.

