In Libya, McCain urges more rebel support

BENGHAZI, Libya - U.S. Sen. John McCain, visiting the city of Benghazi on Friday, called for increased military support for Libya's rebels, including weapons, training, and stepped-up air strikes, in a full-throated endorsement of the opposition in its fight to oust Moammar Gadhafi.

McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the United States and other nations should recognize the opposition's political leadership as the "legitimate voice of the Libyan people."

The White House disagreed, saying it was for the Libyan people to decide who their leaders are.

McCain called the rebels "patriots" with no links to al-Qaeda, in contrast to what some critics have suggested, and added they should receive Gadhafi assets that were frozen by other countries. McCain, an Arizona Republican, is the first prominent American official to visit Libya since the revolt began.

In the Libyan capital, meanwhile, a senior official said government troops would step back and allow local armed tribesmen to deal with rebels in the besieged city of Misrata.

The action came a day after the United States began flying armed drones to bolster NATO air strikes, and having the tribesmen take up the fight could make it harder for the Predators to distinguish them from Misrata's civilians or the rebels.

Rebels in Misrata raised their tricolor flag atop an eight-story building in celebration after driving pro-government snipers out of the structure Thursday. The battle-scarred building commands a strategic view of the central part of Libya's third-largest city and the key main thoroughfare of Tripoli Street. The snipers had terrorized residents and pinned down rebel fighters.

As a result, the number of civilian casualties dropped dramatically for the first time in several weeks, said one rebel who spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared retaliation. "Spirits are high, but the military situation is still unknown," he said.

Although there was less fear about snipers, fighting was still taking place near Misrata's central hospital and the vegetable market, a rebel said.

In Tripoli, Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim said tribal leaders had given the army an ultimatum, saying it must step aside if it cannot retake control of Misrata, which has been besieged by Gadhafi's forces for two months. The tribal leaders would fight the rebels if they don't surrender, Kaim said Friday night.

Asked if that meant troops would get out of the way, he said: "This is how I imagine it would happen." However, he said negotiations between the military and tribal leaders were continuing.

On Thursday, the United States began flying armed drones that are "uniquely suited for urban areas," said Marine Gen. James Cartwright. The drones can fly lower and counter the pro-Gadhafi forces' tactic of traveling in civilian vehicles that are difficult to distinguish from those of rebel forces.

Kaim denounced the U.S. move as a "dirty game."

"This will be another crime against humanity committed by the American administration," he said.

At a news conference in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, McCain said he did not believe that the United States should send in ground troops but said it should be much more involved in the air campaign and "facilitate" the arming and training of the rebels - much as it armed the mujahideen who fought the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s.

"We need to urgently step up the NATO air campaign to protect Libyan civilians, especially in Misrata," he said. "We desperately need more close air support and strike assets."

He applauded the Obama administration's decision to use the drones "so we can better identify Gadhafi's forces as they seek to conceal themselves in civilian areas."

He urged the use of combat aircraft more suited for engaging targets in urban areas, such as A-10 Thunderbolts, which are antitank planes, and AC-130 gunships, outfitted with heavy weaponry, including cannons, rockets, and machine guns.

Yemen: Thousands of protesters massed along

a boulevard reaching across Yemen's capital in the largest demonstration in two months. The government tried to halt military defections by arresting dozens of officers. The defections have chipped away at a critical line of defense for President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Two people were killed in protests.

Egypt: Thousands of Egyptians led by hard-line Islamists escalated their protests against the appointment of a Coptic Christian governor in southern Egypt, deepening mistrust between religious communities. Elsewhere, Egypt's general prosecutor extended the detention of ousted President Hosni Mubarak for a second, 15-day period to allow questioning to continue over the killings of protesters.

Bahrain: A medical group says that officials have conducted a campaign of attacks and arrests against medical professionals who treated injured protesters during months of unrest. Physicians for Human Rights said doctors and nurses had been targeted because they had "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police." More than 30 medical workers are reported missing in the crackdown on Shiite dissent in the Sunni-ruled nation, which is under martial law.

- Associated Press

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