NATO pledged on Wednesday no let up of its relentless air war in Libya after Moamer Gaddafi vowed he would never surrender, even as bombs rained down on his Tripoli residence. Spain, meanwhile, joined the growing list of countries which recognise the rebels seeking to topple Gaddafi as the sole representative of Libya’s people, leaving the strongman more isolated than ever. NATO allies meeting in Brussels pledged to stay in Libya “for as long as necessary” and commit the “necessary means” to the military campaign against Gaddafi’s forces. Alliance defence ministers said they were “determined to continue our operation to protect the Libyan people for as long as necessary,” in a statement issued after a working lunch.
“We are committed to providing the necessary means and maximum operational flexibility within our mandate to sustain these efforts and welcome additional contributions to our common efforts,” the statement added, after NATO urged its 28 member states to step up and share out the load.The defence ministers also demanded the strongman to step down. “Time is working against Gaddafi, who has clearly lost all legitimacy and therefore needs to step down,” the statement said. The NATO meeting came hours after Gaddafi in an audio message broadcast late Tuesday said that he was close to the NATO bombing but was still resisting and called on his people to resist too.
“Despite the bombings, we will never submit,” Gaddafi said in the nine-minute message, which was broadcast on his 69th birthday Tuesday. “I am near the bombing but I am still resisting. “We have only one choice — (to stay in) our country to the end. Death, life, victory, no matter what. We will not leave our country or sell it, we will not submit,” he said in his first intervention since he appeared on state TV on May 19.
