The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions against Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi in a new bid to halt the bloodshed in Libya, while ordering a crimes-against-humanity investigation into his crackdown on opponents.
A vote by the 15-nation body at a solemn Saturday night meeting called for a travel ban and assets freeze against Qaddafi and his family and associates and an arms embargo against Libya, where the UN said more than 1,000 people have been killed.
The council united to condemn what it called violence incited “from the highest level” of Libyan leaders.
The travel ban and assets freeze in Resolution 1970 target the 68-year-old Libyan leader, four of his sons and daughter Aisha, and top defense and intelligence officials accused of playing a role in the bloodshed.
The 16 names on the sanctions list were cut from 22 during negotiations. Diplomats said this was a move to encourage senior regime members to turn against Qaddafi.
The bloodshed was referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) because the council said “the widespread and systematic attacks currently taking place [in Libya] against the civilian population may amount to crimes against humanity.”
Under the resolution, all arms sales to Libya must stop immediately. The resolution also called on Libya to let in humanitarian supplies and to protect foreigners.
The measures were “a powerful signal of the determination of the international community to stand with the people of Libya and determine their own future,” said British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant who led the resolution campaign with France, Germany and the US.
Reflecting the unanimous condemnation of Qaddafi, South Africa’s envoy Baso Sangqu said the whole world had been shocked by “the untold atrocities.”
US Ambassador Susan Rice said the council “has come together to condemn the violence, pursue accountability and adopt biting sanctions, targeting Libya’s unrepentant leadership.”
The landmark vote saw the US support referring a crisis case to the ICC for the first time.
The US is not a member of the ICC and abstained when the Darfur conflict in Sudan was sent to the international court in 2005. China and Russia also backed the Libya resolution even though they also traditionally oppose sanctions action against individual countries.
Libya is the first of the Arab nations hit by political and social turmoil in recent weeks to be discussed at the Security Council.
Libyan Deputy Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi, who has turned against the Qaddafi regime, said the resolution would give “moral support for the people who are resisting and being fired upon by the regime.”
Pressure on the council to act had increased after a warning from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Friday that a delay in taking “concrete action” would cost lives.
Libyan Ambassador Abdurrahman Shalgam, the country’s former foreign minister, also made an impassioned plea for the council to take action against the “atrocities” committed by his childhood friend Qaddafi.
In negotiations, several countries raised reservations about referring Libya to the ICC.
However, Shalgham wrote a letter to the council on Saturday expressing strong backing for the resolution and involving the ICC.
“Faced with the atrocities we are seeing, impunity is no longer an option,” French UN envoy Gerard Araud told the council.
Debate on the Libya crisis is scheduled to return to the UN headquarters tomorrow when the UN General Assembly votes on a motion to suspend the nation from the UN Human Rights Council. The action requires a two-thirds majority from the 192 member states and Western nations are already lobbying for support.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned