NATO commander warns against attacks on civilians

[WestVirginiaRebel]

TBO.com:

BRUSSELS (AP) -- NATO has made it clear that rebel forces in Libya are not impervious to bombardment if they attack civilians.

Canadian Lt. Gen. Charles Bouchard, commander of the NATO operation which assumed control of Libyan airspace on Thursday, said anyone attacking civilians "would be ill-advised to continue such activities. I recommend that you cease such activities."

NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said "This applies to both sides, whoever targets risks becoming a target. We will apply the mandate across the board."

But Lungescu emphasized that the issue was hypothetical because the U.N. resolution mandating NATO's intervention had been triggered by the systematic attacks of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's security forces against civilians, and not by any action of the rebels.

NATO said the allies had supplied a total of 205 aircraft and 21 navy vessels for the operation, which includes patrolling the seas off Libya to prevent the delivery of weapons to the warring sides.

The U.S. contributed 90 aircraft and one warship. Among the 14 nations listed, France provided 33 aircraft and one ship, and Britain 17 planes and two warships.

The hand-over from the U.S., which had been leading the impromptu group of countries bombing forces loyal to Gadhafi, "has been seamless with no gaps in the effort," Bouchard told journalists from his headquarters in Naples, Italy.

His remarks were transmitted by video link to other journalists in Brussels.
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Or, "How to create something that will bite us in the rear end afterwards..."