PARIS – Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi are near the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and everything will be over in 48 hours, Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam told France-based TV channel Euronews on Wednesday.
He also attacked French President Nicolas Sarkozy for having backed opposition rebels and accused him of having accepted Libyan funds for his election campaign. Asked about talks among world powers to impose a no-fly zone over Libya, Saif al-Islam said: “The military operations are finished. In 48 hours everthing will be over. Our forces are close to Benghazi. Whatever decision is taken, it will be too late.”
Gaddafi’s forces pushed towards Benghazi, in eastern Libya, on Wednesday as diplomatic efforts to stop him appeared to lose momentum. A meeting of Group of Eight foreign ministers in Paris this week failed to get the agreement France was hoping for to support a no-fly zone being imposed over Libya, an issue that has also divided the UN Security Council.
