Libya calls ceasefire amid UNSC action

TRIPOLI, Mar 18 (AFP): Libya will halt all military operations immediately, Foreign Minister Mussa Kussa said in Tripoli on Friday. "Libya has decided an immediate ceasefire and an immediate halt to all military operations," Kussa told a press conference. He said that, because Libya is a member of the United Nations, it is "obliged to accept the UN Security Council's resolutions." Meanwhile, a report from Brussels adds: NATO allies agreed Friday to speed up planning for possible military action in Libya, but the alliance has yet to decide whether to intervene in the conflict, a NATO official said. The decision was made by ambassadors of the 28-nation alliance after the UN Security Council approved military action, including the enforcement of a no-fly zone, to stop Moamer Kadhafi's regime from defeating rebels. UN chief Ban Ki-moon is to join a summit on Libya between the European Union, the Arab League and the African Union in Paris on Saturday, the head of the League's secretariat said on Friday. "The Arab League has received an invitation from France to take part in a one-day summit between the EU, the African Union and the Arab League tomorrow to discuss the situation in Libya and how to tackle it in the light of the latest UN resolution," Hisham Yussef said. Reuters adds: The UN Security Council, meeting in emergency session on Thursday, passed a resolution endorsing a no-fly zone to halt Libyan government troops. It also authorised "all necessary measures"-- code for military action -- to protect civilians against Gaddafi's forces. But time was clearly running short for the city of Benghazi in the western part of Libya that has been the heart of Libya's month-old revolution. Pro-Gaddafi forces were around 100km (60 miles) away from Benghazi at the time of the voting of the UN resolution by its Security Council. The United Nations authorised military strikes to curb Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, hours after he threatened to storm the rebel bastion of Benghazi overnight, showing "no mercy, no pity." "We will come. House by house, room by room," Gaddafi said in a radio address to the eastern city late on Thursday. Al Jazeera television showed thousands of people listening to the speech in a central Benghazi square, then erupting in celebration after the UN vote, waving anti-Gaddafi tricolours and chanting defiance of the man who has ruled for four decades. Fireworks burst over the city and gunfire rang out. French diplomatic sources said military action could follow within hours, and could include France, Britain and possibly the United States and one or more Arab states; but a US military official said no immediate U.S. action was expected. While other countries or NATO may play roles in military action, US officials expect the United States with its extensive air and sea forces would do the heavy lifting in a campaign that may include airstrikes on tanks and artillery. Residents said the Libyan air force unleashed three air raids on Benghazi, a city of 670,000 on Thursday and there has been fierce fighting along the Mediterranean coastal highway. Ten of the Council's 15 member states voted in favour of the resolution, with Russia, China and Germany among the five that abstained. There were no votes against the resolution, which was co-sponsored by France, Britain, Lebanon and the United States. Apart from military action, it expands sanctions against Gaddafi and associates imposed last month. Among firms whose assets it orders frozen are the Libyan National Oil Corp and the central bank. US President Barack Obama called British and French counterparts David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy and agreed to coordinate closely on their next steps.