Facing a possible military standoff, NATO forces this week stepped up the pressure on Muammar al-Qaddafi’s regime by bombing his residential compounds in Tripoli and warning of further attacks on Libyan government buildings and military headquarters. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said there would be no attempt to kill Qaddafi himself, but that “command-and-control” centers were “legitimate targets.”
NATO, meanwhile, aimed much of its air power at pro-Qaddafi troops besieging Misurata, currently held by rebels. The Western alliance has found it difficult to take out the armor and artillery that have been shelling the city, because those heavy weapons have been placed in residential neighborhoods. But last week, the U.S. decided to provide NATO with two unmanned Predator drones, which can more precisely hit targets in urban areas.
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