Security Council votes for no-fly zone

France, Britain and the US have been given the green light to conduct air strikes against Colonel Gaddafi’s forces in Libya after the UN Security Council approved a resolution authorising “all necessary measures’’ to protect civilians under threat from the Libyan regime.

As Col Gaddafi threatened to launch an imminent assault on the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, the UN Security Council passed a resolution endorsing the establishment of a no-fly zone to halt government troops that are now around 60 miles from the city.

The UN Security Council also authorised “all necessary measures” – code for military action – to protect civilians against attacks by Col Gaddafi’s forces. Following the vote, Barack Obama, the US president, conferred with David Cameron, UK prime minister, and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, to co-ordinate “next steps”, according to the White House.

It was unclear how quickly the move would translate into action. Francois Baroin, French government spokesman, told a radio interviewer on Friday morning that air strikes against Col Gaddafi’s forces could begin within “a few hours”. Before a British cabinet meeting got underway on Friday morning, London however played down talk of imminent action.

A senior aide to Mr Cameron said on Thursday night it was too early to say what form military intervention would take and which countries would participate in it. “All this needs to be worked through in the next few days,” he said.

As the vote was passed, protesters in Benghazi cheered and let off fireworks, waving flags from the monarchy era in celebration.

The key question on the minds of defence experts however was whether the UN resolution had come too late to stop Col Gaddafi’s advance. On Thursday night, he threatened to storm Benghazi overnight. “We will come, zenga, zenga. House by house, room by room,” he said in a radio address to the eastern city.

Nonetheless, the resolution already appeared to spark a shift in the momentum of the conflict, with Tripoli now openly talking of a ceasefire with rebels. Mr Kaimm said that the government had already discussed a ceasefire on Wednesday with a representative of UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon. “We are ready immediately to do that but we need to talk to someone about the technical details,” he said.

The Libyan army will surround but not enter Benghazi and “anti-terror” forces will be sent in to disarm rebel forces which are in control there, CNN quoted Saadi al-Islam Gaddafi as saying on Thursday night

In probable pre-emptive strike against a no-fly zone, Libya let it be known on Friday morning that it had closed its air space to all traffic.

Libya’s government tried to make light of the resolution after the vote, saying it shared the UN’s goal of protecting civilians. “We welcome that,” said Khaled Kaimm, Libya’s deputy foreign minister, in a press conference in Tripoli following the UN vote. “The intention of our armed forces is to protect civilians and to protect food and medical supplies.”

Immediately before the vote, Col Gaddafi had said on TV: “The UN Security Council has no mandate. We don’t acknowledge their resolutions ... If the world is crazy, we will be crazy too.”

After intense lobbying by France and Britain for passage of the resolution, 10 security council states voted in favour, with five countries – Russia, China, India, Germany and Brazil – abstaining. The vote came after the US had signalled earlier in the week that it was stepping up support for military action.

Any military action would involve the participation of Arab states with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates pledging assistance, diplomats said.

On a visit to Tunisia, Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state, said options being considered against Col Gaddafi’s forces include use of drones and arming rebel forces. “It is important to recognise that military experts across the world know that a no-fly zone requires certain actions to be taken to protect the planes and the pilots, including bombing targets like the air defence systems,” she said.

But there was a call for swift implementation of the resolution from US senators John Kerry, John McCain and Joe Lieberman.

“With Gaddafi’s forces moving towards Benghazi, we must immediately work with our friends in the Arab League and in Nato to enforce this resolution and turn the tide before it is too late,” they said.

In London, William Hague, Britain’s foreign secretary, said the UN resolution was necessary “to avoid greater bloodshed and to try to stop what is happening in terms of attacks on civilians”.

He added: “This places a responsibility on members of the United Nations and that is a responsibility to which the United Kingdom will now respond.”

Italy said it was ready to make its military bases available to enforce the UN resolution. The air base at Sigonella in Sicily, which provides logistical support for the US Sixth Fleet, is one of the closest Nato bases to Libya and could be used in any military operation.

Germany said that it had abstained from voting because it saw “considerable dangers and risks” in military action against Col Gaddafi.

The resolution also extends an asset freeze on Libyan entities. The draft named the Libyan Central Bank and the Libyan National Oil Corporation as entities that would be targeted.

April-delivery crude climbed more than $2 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on news of the vote.

Before the vote the UN had been the scene of dramatic diplomatic manoeuvring.

Alain Juppé, France’s foreign minister who had flown to New York to attend the meeting, said it was urgent to act. “It’s a question of days, perhaps hours,” he told reporters before the vote.

Mr Juppé said it was an important and historic moment for the UN to stand up against dictators willing to attack their own people to stifle democracy. “If we did not do what we are doing now, we would be ashamed,” he said.

In a sign of residual US doubts, Gen Norton Schwartz, US air force chief of staff, said “it would take upwards of a week” to establish a no-fly zone.

Turkey’s position, important for any decision within Nato, remains ambivalent. A statement from the prime ministry on Friday called for an immediate ceasefire and a stop to the violence against civilians.

While noting that the UN resolution was binding on all countries, italso reiterated both Ankara’s support for the Arab League’s call for a no fly zone, and its opposition to any foreign intervention in Libya.

Additional reporting by Charles Clover in Tripoli, Daniel Dombey in Washington, Delphine Strauss in Ankara and Alex Barker and Javier Blas in London