THE HAGUE, Netherlands: The International Criminal Court prosecutor asked judges Monday to issue arrest warrants for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and two other senior members of his regime, accusing them of committing crimes against humanity by targeting civilians in a crackdown against rebels. Luis Moreno-Ocampo says Gaddafi, his son Seif Al-Islam Gaddafi and intelligence chief Abdullah Al-Sanoussi ordered, planned and participated in illegal attacks. He said Gaddafi's forces attacked civilians in their homes, shot at demonstrators with live ammunition, shelled funeral processions and deployed snipers to kill people leaving mosques. Judges must now evaluate the evidence before deciding whether to confirm the charges and issue international arrest warrants. “The case is now in their hands,” Moreno-Ocampo told reporters at a press conference. The warrants are not expected to have any immediate impact on the war in Libya, but they could make it harder for their targets to end the conflict by going into exile. Because the Security Council ordered the ICC investigation, all UN member states would be obliged to arrest him if he ventures into their territory. British Foreign Secretary William Hague welcomed the news, saying crimes against civilians would not go unpunished and calling on the international community to “fully support” the UN war crimes court. “The request for these warrants is a reminder to all in Gaddafi's regime that crimes will not go unpunished and the reach of international justice will be long. Those responsible for attacks on civilians must be held to account,” he said. Meanwhile, rebels inside the Libyan city of Misrata said Monday that they drove Gaddafi's forces from another key point on the outskirts of the country's third-largest city. Abdel Salam, a rebel militia fighter, said Monday that opposition forces were able to advance on the southeast gate of the city after NATO bombings in recent days. In Moscow Russia's foreign minister says that his country is ready to hold talks with the Libyan rebels to discuss peaceful settlement of the crisis in their country. Sergey Lavrov said Monday that a delegation of Libyan rebels had planned to come to Moscow for talks but canceled the trip for technical reasons. He voiced hope that they would be able to visit Moscow soon.
