7pm ET: Here's the Guardian's first take on tonight's UN security council vote and what it means:
British, French and US military aircraft are preparing to protect the Libyan rebel stronghold of Benghazi after the United Nations security council voted in favour of a no-fly zone and air strikes against Muammar Gaddafi's forces.
With Gaddafi's troops closing in on Benghazi, the French prime minister, Francois Fillon, said "time is of the essence" and that France would support military action set to take place within hours.
Jets could take off from French military bases along the Mediterranean coast, about 750 miles from Libya. Several Arab countries would join the operation.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
6.36pm ET: Muammar Gaddafi has already made his feelings known, telling the Portuguese TV channel RTP that the UN resolution was an act of "flagrant colonization" for which it had no legal mandate:
This is craziness, madness, arrogance. If the world gets crazy with us we will get crazy too. We will respond. We will make their lives hell because they are making our lives hell. They will never have peace.
There we are: Muammar Gaddafi threatens to "get crazy".
The first raids, possibly conducted by unmanned drones, could happen within hours if Colonel Gaddafi acts on his threat to "show no mercy" to rebels in Benghazi.
The RAF could become involved in any operation by this evening, according to British sources. However, the raids may be spearheaded by an Arab nation such as Qatar or the UAE.
Last night, Col Gaddafi threatened to launch retaliation attacks against passenger aircraft in the Mediterranean if foreign countries launch air strikes against Libya.
The Libyan regime said that "any foreign military act" would expose "all air and maritime traffic in the Mediterranean Sea" as targets for a counter attack.
The warning was sounded within hours of the American Government formally backing a joint British and French initiative for a no-fly zone and other military action to be taken against Col Gaddafi's regime.
Last night, the UN met and endorsed a resolution which authorised the world to take "all necessary measures" to prevent attacks on Libyan civilians by the Gaddafi regime.
It also enforced a no-fly zone to prevent air attacks, strengthened an arms embargo against Tripoli and reinforced a freeze on the financial assets of Gaddafi and his aides.
The resolution, which was proposed by the US, Britain and Lebanon, caused a split among leading powers, with China, Russia, Germany, India and Brazil all abstaining from voting.
It marked a dramatic escalation in the international response to the month-long Libyan crisis ? with signs that diplomats were at odds over a military response at the beginning of the week. However, Col Gaddafi's brutal crushing of the uprising alarmed many members of the UN Security Council.
While Britain and the US were at pains to stress that the resolution ruled out an "occupying force", they raised the prospect of more assistance to rebel forces seeking to overthrow Gaddafi.
Mark Lyall Grant, the British ambassador to the UN, said the world "must allow the people of Libya to determine their own future free from the tyranny of the Gaddafi regime".
"The situation in Libya is clear. A violent and discredited regime that has lost all legitimacy is using weapons of war against civilians". He strongly condemned Gaddafi's attack on Benghazi, "a city that has a history dating back 2,500 years."
William Hague, 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".
Alain Juppe, the French foreign minister, said that the "world is living through one of its great revolutions that changes the course of history" but "the Libyan people's will has chopped down to its feet by Colonel Gaddafi".
"We cannot let these warmongers do this," said Mr Juppe. "Each hour that passes raises the weight on hour shoulders. We should not wait".
Celebratory gunfire rang out across Benghazi last night.
However, in a statement, the Libyan Defence Ministry warned of swift retaliation against foreign intervention.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
The rebels' army, with its citizen volunteers, creaky antiaircraft guns and sand-sprayed gun trucks, is no match for Kadafi's tanks, warplanes, gunboats and artillery. But the regime's army is hardly a model of modern weaponry and efficiency. And Kadafi's militias are manned by mercenaries and gunmen whose loyalty is bought.
The regime's attack pattern has been a scaled-down version of the United States' "shock and awe" tactics used at the start of the Iraq war in 2003. Kadafi's forces have attacked each rebel-held city first with warplanes and then with barrages of tank and rocket fire, sending civilians fleeing while scattering poorly organized rebel fighters. His forces then storm in, allowing rebels to retreat after nightfall before finally forcing them completely out.
The question is whether this strategy will triumph in Benghazi, a much larger and more difficult target. The danger Kadafi faces is that in laying siege to a major population center, Libya's second largest, so many civilians may be killed that Western powers and his neighbors feel compelled to intervene.
A similar scenario unfolded in the 1990s, when Serb forces laid siege to Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia-Herzegovina. As the city held out against Serb shelling and snipers, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization eventually intervened, helping break the siege and push back the Serbs.
In Benghazi, a protracted fight in the streets would play to the rebels' advantage. If Kadafi decides to send in troops, they would be swarmed by tens of thousands of armed rebels intimate with the city's ancient streets and alleys.
"We will try to lure them into an area where we can even the fight," said Gen. Abdul Fatah Younis. He stepped down as Kadafi's interior minister to join the rebels and has emerged in the last week as the commander of a rudderless rebel force.
On Thursday, government warplanes bombed the rebel-held military airport outside Benghazi for a second day. An opposition spokesman claimed rebel warplanes had shot down two government planes, but that could not be independently verified.
Libyan state television claimed Kadafi's forces were on the edge of Benghazi and warned residents to stay away from ammunition depots and rebel fighters. Kadafi urged his supporters to brace for a bloody onslaught.
"This meeting is for those who are ready to die, to be martyred," he said in a speech broadcast Thursday. "These hours represent the time to write a new history, a new glory. Death is welcome. But it is death to the enemy this time."
But it appeared that government forces still were focused on eliminating rebel resistance in Ajdabiya, 95 miles south of Benghazi. There are no rebel defenses on the road north to Benghazi, but Kadafi's tanks and artillery were not yet in range of the rebel capital.
Both sides suffer from poor logistics. Just as the rebels outran their supply lines while winning two early battles for strategic oil cities on the Mediterranean coast, Kadafi risks extending his forces too far as they roll north toward Benghazi. He also needs to dedicate part of his force to securing the capital, Tripoli, and putting down uprisings in western cities.
"He doesn't have large numbers, so he is really helpless because his militias are stretched and his priority will always be securing Tripoli," said Abdallah Shaikhi, a former Libyan major now living in the United States.
In some ways, Kadafi's policies over the last decade have anticipated this moment, giving him an advantage. He has systematically denied adequate weapons and training to army units in the east, which he long feared would rise up against him. The opposition is left with outdated weapons looted from army bases and poorly trained army deserters.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
A French plane has fired the first shots in Libya as enforcement of the UN-mandated no-fly zone begins. The target was a military vehicle, the French defence ministry said.
It came hours after Western and Arab leaders met in Paris to agree a course of action to confront Col Gaddafi.
"Our air force will oppose any aggression," said French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Earlier, pro-Gaddafi forces attacked the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.
However, the Libyan government has denied launching any assault
'Stop the bombardment'
Continue reading the main story
Analysis
Caroline Wyatt
Defence correspondent
French reconnaissance jets are clearly scoping out targets in Libya. I would assume there have been special forces on the ground as well, assessing potential targets.
The planning parts of enforcing this UN resolution have been very complex - we may be talking about 100 planes involved - so once you begin enforcing that no-fly zone, you need to think about enforcing it 24 hours a day to ensure no Libyan jets get up in the air, dividing up the tasks and the bases that are going to be used.
British jets will be performing a range of tasks, with RAF Tornadoes aiming at targets on the ground, Typhoons performing air-to-air sorties, and Awacs planes and Sentinel R1s helping with mapping the ground and reconnaissance.
The supposition is that an awful lot of the operation will be based in southern Italy and the Mediterranean.
The French plane fired the first shot in Libya at 1645 GMT and destroyed its target, according to a military spokesman.
French planes also flew reconnaissance missions over "all Libyan territory", French military sources said earlier.
Around 20 French aircraft were involved in Saturday's operation, a defence ministry official told the Reuters news agency.
Other air forces and navies are expected to join the French.
The US would use its "unique capabilities" to reinforce the no-fly zone, said US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, warning that further delays would put more civilians at risk. However, Mrs Clinton said again that the US would not deploy ground troops in Libya.
A naval blockade is also being put in place, said Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. France is sending its Charles De Gaulle aircraft carrier to the Libyan coast, a military spokesman said.
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A fighter jet, seen in this composite photo, plummeted from the sky and burst into flames as artillery fire fell in Benghazi, Libya, on Saturday, March 19. An opposition fighter said the plane belonged to rebels and was dispatched to try to stop forces supporting Moammar Gadhafi from entering Benghazi. CNN could not independently confirm who the plane belonged to.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
[6:20 p.m. ET, 1:20 a.m. in Libya] A defiant Moammar Gadhafi says missile strikes launched Saturday night are grounds for a "crusade war" and vowed to fight back.
"The Libyan people will fight against this aggression. All you people of the Islamic nations and Africa. And all you people in Latin America, and asia to stand with the Libyan people in its fight agaist this aggression," he said.
"France has carried an aggression against Libya. The security council and the international community has a responsibility to do what it takes about this aggression against the sovereign state."
[6:01 p.m. ET, 1:01 a.m. in Libya] Hours after coalition forces launched the first wave of attacks against his military forces, Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi said his people will fight back against undeserved "naked aggression."
Libyan state TV broadcast Gadhafi's response, which included a call for people to take arms in the "war zone."
[5:45 p.m. ET, 12:45 a.m. in Libya] Moammar Gadhafi is due to make an address soon, according to media reports citing Libyan TV.
[5:36 p.m. ET, 12:36 a.m. in Libya] Russia reacted "with regret" Saturday to the start of international military action in Libya, urging an end to violence on all sides.
It said the United Nations resolution that authorized the use of force had been "hastily adopted."
"We again urge all Libyan sides, as well as the participants of the military operation, to do everything they can to prevent the suffering of innocent civilians and to ensure a speedy cease-fire and an end to violence," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
[5:04 p.m. ET, 12:04 a.m. in Libya] Armed police are gathering outside government buildings in Tripoli and the streets are mostly clear of the revelers that had gathered earlier Saturday evening, CNN's Nic Robertson said.
Earlier, people were playing music and dancing in the street outside Gadhafi's palace compound in an apparent show of celebration, Roberston said. The missile strikes were inaudible over the music and revelry, he said.
[5:04 p.m. ET, 12:04 a.m. in Libya] Coalition strikes were launched despite a government-initiated cease-fire and "major reforms in economic and organizational contexts," a Libyan government spokesman says.
"The claim that this aggression is for the protection of civilians is contradicted by what has really happened on the ground tonight."
[5:04 p.m. ET, 12:04 a.m. in Libya] President Obama is planning for the U.S. portion of the military action in Libya to only last for a few days, according to a senior administration official.
"In terms of the heavy kinetic portion of this military action, the president envisions it as lasting days, not weeks," said the senior official. "After that we'll take more of a supporting role."
[4:58 p.m. ET, 11:58 p.m. in Libya] Air attacks on several locations in Tripoli and Misrata have caused "real harm" to civilians, a Libyan government spokesman said Saturday.
"I am very sorry and saddened that my country is facing a barbaric and armed attack," the spokesman said, adding that "this aggression will not weaken our spirits."
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[4:28 p.m. ET, 11:28 p.m. in Libya] More than 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles were fired from U.S and British ships and submarines, striking more than 20 integrated air defense systems and air defense facilities ashore, a Joint Chiefs of Staff official said Saturday.
The goals of "Operation Odyssey Dawn" are to prevent further attacks on Libyan citizens and opposition groups and to degrade the capability of Moammar Gadhafi's forces to resist a no-fly zone, Vice Admiral William E. Gortney Director said.
"This is just the first phase of what will likely be a multi-phase designed to enforce the U.N. Security Council resolution."
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[3:55 p.m. ET, 10:55 p.m. in Libya] The U.S. military has launched its first missiles in Libya against Moammar Gadhafi's forces in the western part of the country, a senior Defense Department official said Saturday.
U.S. Tomahawk missiles landed in the area around Tripoli and Misrata, the official said, adding that the action was taken after Gadhafi failed to comply with a cease-fire.
The first part of the multi-phase approach will be to degrade air defenses, CNN's Chris Lawrence reports, citing the Defense Department official. Most of the first strikes will be concentrated around Tripoli and Misrata, specifically to take out his air defenses. Ground forces will be targeted as well because they carry capability to shoot down planes, the official said.
[3:44 p.m. ET, 10:44 p.m. in Libya] British Prime Minister David Cameron said military action was necessary to enforce the cease-fire and prevent Moammar Gadhafi from attacking his people.
"What we are doing is necessary, it is legal and it is right," he said. "I believe we should not stand aside while this dictator murders his own people."
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[2:32 p.m. ET, 9:32 p.m. in Libya] A U.S. defense official said the United States is poised to launch cruise missiles from warships in the Mediterranean Sea, and that these strikes would target Moammar Gadhafi's air defenses. The United States is prepared to "defend its allies flying over Libyan airspace and enforce the no-fly zone," the official said.
[1:15 p.m. ET, 8:15 p.m. in Libya] French planes fired on a Libyan military vehicle Saturday evening, according to the French Defense Ministry.
[12:43 p.m. ET, 7:43 p.m. in Libya] The United States is standing with its allies and partners in enforcing the U.N. resolution on Libya, and it is also behind the Libyan people, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday. "We will stand with the people of Libya and we will not waiver (in our effort) to protect them," she said.
[12:39 p.m. ET, 7:39 p.m. in Libya] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton praised the Arab League's stance on Libya, saying it "changed the diplomatic landscape." The group last week approved the establishment of a no-fly zone in Libya.
[12:34 p.m. ET, 7:34 p.m. in Libya] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that despite talk of a cease-fire from Libya, Moammar Gadhafi "continues to defy the world." "His attacks on civilians go on," she told reporters Saturday.
[11:04 a.m. ET, 6:04 p.m. in Libya] The French air force is opposing any aggression by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi against the population of rebel-held Benghazi, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Saturday. "As of now, our aircraft are preventing planes from attacking the town," Sarkozy said. "Our French aircraft are ready to intervene against tanks."[/quote]
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[10:58 a.m. ET, 5:58 p.m. in Libya] Countries attending a meeting in Paris sent Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi a warning, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Saturday.
"If there is not an immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of the forces that have been attacking civilian populations in the last few weeks, our countries will have recourse to military means," Sarkozy said. Sarkozy said the warning was endorsed by all participants at the Paris summit.
Libya's population "must not be deprived of its rights by violence and terror," Sarkozy said. "There is still time for Colonel Gadhafi to avoid the worst, by complying immediately and unreservedly with all the demands of the international community. The doors of diplomacy will open once again when the aggression stops."
[10:51 a.m. ET, 5:51 p.m. in Libya] U.S., European and Arab leaders met Saturday at a last-minute Paris meeting on Libya. "There is minute-by-minute consultation between the United States and the militaries of other countries that are considering their support of action" under a U.N. resolution authorizing the use of force, a senior State Department official told reporters.
[10:40 a.m. ET, 5:40 p.m. in Libya] A French official confirms that French fighter jets are flying over Libya.
[9:55 a.m. ET, 4:55 p.m. in Libya] Moammar Gadhafi's military forces pushed into the rebel stronghold of Benghazi on Saturday. Artillery rounds landed inside the city, and pro-Gadhafi tanks rolled into the town firing rounds, witnesses said. Plumes of smoke rose in Benghazi as civilians said buildings came under small arms fire.
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[6:05 a.m. ET Saturday, 1:05 p.m. in Libya] A CNN team saw tanks belonging to forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi enter Benghazi on Saturday, and observed rebel tanks moving to confront them. Tank, mortar and artillery fire echoed across the city, interspersed with sustained bursts of small arms fire. Plumes of smoke could been seen rising above Benghazi.
[4:35 a.m. ET Saturday, 11:35 a.m. in Libya] CNN journalists observed tanks moving north from 5 kilometers south of Benghazi and other tanks moving through the western part of the city. It is not known which side the tanks belonged to. The journalists also saw tank and artillery rounds land inside the city.
[3:56 a.m. ET Saturday, 10:56 a.m. in Libya] A fighter jet was shot down and burst into flames Saturday in the area of Benghazi. Meanwhile, explosions could be heard in the city, which has been a stronghold for rebels opposing Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. It was not immediately clear who the fighter jet belonged to. Rebels have vowed to defend Benghazi to the death.
On Friday, the Libyan government said it was abiding by a cease-fire, but witnesses have said violence from pro-Gadhafi forces has continued.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
TRIPOLI At least 11 American warships and submarines are near the coast of Tripoli. Ships from Britain, Canada, France and Italy are also in the Mediterranean. Tomahawk missiles, fired from American warships and submarines and one British submarine, strike air defense targets around the city.
MISURATA Tomahawk missiles knock out air defense targets near this city.
BENGHAZI The French military reports that its jet fighters attacked Libyan armored units near the city. Government forces fight in the western part of the city. Pro-Qaddafi snipers are atop the rebel foreign ministry building, not far from the courthouse that is the rebel headquarters.
BAYDA Vehicles, some bearing rebel flags, are seen leaving Benghazi toward this rebel-held city.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
Western forces have pounded Libya's air defences and patrolled its skies, but their day-old intervention has hit a diplomatic setback as the Arab League chief condemned the "bombardment of civilians".
As European and US forces unleash warplanes and cruise missiles against Moamar Gaddafi's air defences and armour, Libya's armed forces called for a new ceasefire and a peaceful march in the country.
A spokesman says the ceasefire had been decided following an African Union call for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
The Libyan leader earlier said the air strikes amounted to terrorism and vowed to fight to the death.
While his eastern forces fled from the outskirts of Benghazi in the face of the allied air attacks, Mr Gaddafi sent tanks into Misrata, the last rebel-held city in western Libya. Among the densely packed houses full of civilians they were less vulnerable to attack from the air.
A Libyan government health official says 64 people have been killed in the Western bombardment overnight, but it was impossible to verify the report as government minders refused to take reporters in Tripoli to the sites of the bombings.
Heavy anti-aircraft fire has been heard over central Tripoli for a second night.
Arab League chief Amr Moussa has called for an emergency meeting of the group of 22 states to discuss Libya. He has requested a report into the bombardment, which he said had "led to the deaths and injuries of many Libyan civilians".
"What is happening in Libya differs from the aim of imposing a no-fly zone, and what we want is the protection of civilians and not the bombardment of more civilians," Egypt's state news agency quoted Mr Moussa as saying.
Arab backing for a no-fly zone provided crucial underpinning for the passage of a UN Security Council resolution last week that paved the way for Western action to stop Mr Gaddafi killing civilians as he fights an uprising against his rule.
The intervention is the biggest against an Arab country since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Withdrawal of Arab support would make it much harder to pursue what some defence analysts say could in any case be a difficult, open-ended campaign with an uncertain outcome.
A senior US official rebuffed Mr Moussa's comments.
"The resolution endorsed by Arabs and UNSC (the UN Security Council) included 'all necessary measures' to protect civilians, which we made very clear includes, but goes beyond, a no-fly zone," the official said during a visit by president Barack Obama to Rio de Janeiro.
The senior US military official says the US expects to conduct more strikes on Libya.
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