Ottawa prepares to join effort to aid Libyan opposition

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Ottawa is drawing up plans to take part in an international effort to airlift aid to opposition-held areas of Libya, as the world wrestles with the question of how much military muscle it will use to side with protesters against Moammar Gadhafi's regime.

Beyond sanctions, the pace of international pressure quickened on Monday: The United States repositioned air and naval assets in the region; British Prime Minister David Cameron said he would work with allies to establish a no-fly zone and France announced it was sending planes with medical assistance to the rebel-controlled city of Benghazi.

Canada, too, stepped up its military preparations, sending a 13-person reconnaissance team to Malta, where four Canadian Forces planes are stationed to assist efforts to evacuate Canadians after Britain and Germany sent military rescue missions into Libya over the weekend. CTV News reported that it has been told Canadian special forces are also on the ground in Libya.

Western countries including Canada now back the idea of entering Libyan territory, at least to evacuate citizens or deliver aid, effectively ignoring the Gadhafi regime's claims to territorial sovereignty - but they have not yet agreed on the question of whether it will be extended to direct military intervention such as enforcing a no-fly zone.

In Libya, Gadhafi troops escalated attacks against anti-government forces using fighter jets, special forces and regular troops in what could become an all-out civil war. The Libyan leader's troops clashed with rebels in two important cities, Misurata and Zawiyah, both within about 200 kilometres of Tripoli, but rebels, armed with automatic rifles, were said to be putting up stiff resistance.

Now Western nations, moving to impose sanctions under a UN resolution, have taken the rare step of backing forays into Libya's territory to effectively side with the rebels. The question is how far they will take it.

France's Prime Minister, François Fillon, said his country is sending two planes with doctors, nurses and medical supplies to opposition-held areas in Libya's east in what he called the beginning of a massive operation of humanitarian support.

Canada is drawing up contingency plans that include the possible use of military planes in Malta - two massive C-17 aircraft and two smaller Hercules transports - to airlift international aid to rebel-held areas of Libya.

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But the question of whether a humanitarian mission would require troops for protection is complicating planning, because it raises the issue of how far Canada and other countries will go in sending troops into Libya's territory to assist opposition-controlled areas during a civil war, sources said. Ottawa is considering several options as countries co-ordinate aid to follow the French lead.

In a speech to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon signalled that Canada "stands ready" to help the humanitarian mission. He told reporters later that Ottawa is now developing plans.

"The UN resolution [on sanctions]obviously as well calls for humanitarian aid, so we're very supportive of the fact the French will be going forward with that," he said. "We're certainly prepared to give a hand in that regard, and I think as the days go forward we'll be better positioned to appreciate the different options that are there as they're being more refined."

But while Britain's Mr. Cameron called on allies to work on plans to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya to ground the Gadhafi regime's air force, Mr. Cannon said there was no consensus among allies on that, and would not say whether Canada supports such a move.

"It's one thing to say 'no-fly' but it's another element be able to apply it and put it into effect," he said.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper spoke by telephone with U.S. President Barack Obama Monday night, and both issued statements saying they had agreed to co-ordinate in expanding humanitarian efforts and in considering "other options should they become necessary."

Moves to impose UN sanctions including an arms embargo, travel bans on Mr. Gadhafi and associates, and freezing of assets have already been imposed by most Western nations. In Canada, the federal government imposed a unilateral ban on all financial transactions with the Libyan government, saying it had already blocked attempts by the regime to withdraw unspecified sums.

Government House Leader John Baird said the measures do not amount to a full ban on commercial activities by Canadian companies, but that they will be prohibited from making any payments to the Libyan regime. Canadian firms with major operations in Libya, including oil firm Suncor Energy and engineering giant SNC-Lavalin, said they were studying the sanctions, and declined to comment on what impact they have had.

"Obviously we don't want to see commercial operations flowing money into the regime at this time that would be used - either to be stolen, or even worse, used to finance the violence against the Libyan people," Mr. Baird said.

With reports from Associated Press and New York Times News Service