2011 Libyan Uprising Update:
Live Blogs: BBC; Guardian; CNN; Al Jazeera.
Gaddafi forces shell Benghazi, civilian casualties mount; rebels accidentally shoot down their only jet (additional photos; see video footage below).
International military action begins as French warplanes take to the skies above Benghazi to enforce UNSC-approved no-fly zone; French Defense Official: French jets fire on Libyan military vehicles (AJE report: 4 tanks destroyed); Canadians sending fighter-bombers, instituting naval blockade.
Obama: Libyans must be protected, “our coalition is prepared to act with urgency”; Clinton: Libyan gov’t “has lost all legitimacy.”
Much-lauded Libyan Citizen journalist Mohammed “Mo” Al-Nabbous, operator of Alhurra TV livestream, reportedly killed in firefight.
[photo: afp via cnn.]
UPDATE: Multinational coalition led by US forces launches Operation Odyssey Dawn with heavy missile strike against 20 Libyan air-defense targets; Director of the Joint Staff William Gortney: This is the first phase of multi-phase operation; Obama: Use of force not first choice, but actions have consequences; UK PM David Cameron: Military action “necessary, legal and right”; interactive map: Nato military strength in the Mediterranean; infographic: How does Libya’s airforce compare to the coalition’s?