Quadriga

Every day brings fresh reports of fighting in Libya. Rebel forces are clashing with government soldiers and mercenaries in the pay of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Forces loyal to Gaddafi have also shown they are prepared to attack civilians. It is an unequal conflict; the rebels have very little military experience, while Gaddafi has highly trained special forces. After initially making gains at the expense of the government in the east, regime opponents are now losing ground in some areas. Their military capability is limited and they have no command structure.

Thousands of people have fled to Tunisia to escape the fighting. Ships and planes have transported many of those refugees to safety while aid organizations are getting food and medical supplies to refugees left in camps. The United Nations and the European Union have sent special envoys to Libya with the aim of assessing the humanitarian situation. The UN Security Council and the EU have also imposed sanctions on Gaddafi but they have had no apparent affect.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has spoken about a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent Gaddafi's air force from flying. Calls are growing in the US for America to act and prevent Gaddafi from arming his supporters. Europe is also debating whether the next step should be military intervention. Britain and other countries are trying to get a UN mandate for a no-fly zone which would legitimize foreign military intervention in Libya.

What do you think? War Against His Own People - Who Will Stop Gaddafi?

Write to us at: Quadriga@dw-world.de

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Our guests:

Wolfram Lacher - After taking degrees in Arabic and African studies at the University of Leipzig and the Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Nationales (INALCO) in Paris, Wolfram Lacher moved to Cairo to take a post-graduate diploma in political sciences. In 2006, he took up a post at the School of oriental and African Studies in London, and also worked as a North Africa analyst with Control Risks in London. He is now a researcher in the Middle East and Africa division at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.

Walther Stützle – Born and raised on Sylt, Walther Stützle soon left the idyllic island to study political science. He began his professional career at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. In 1969 he started working for the German Ministry of Defence, joined the German daily 'Stuttgarter Zeitung' in 1983, was director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) from 1986 until 1991, became Editor-in-Chief of the German daily 'Der Tagesspiegel' in 1994 and worked as a Junior Minister in the German Defence Ministry from 1998 to 2002. Since then, he has written many books and has become known as an expert on German foreign policy and transatlantic relations.

Amer Ghrawi - Amer Ghrawi studied politics and economics in Syria before moving to German. Today he is a fellow of the Potsdam Center for Policy and Management, where he focuses on political and economic development in the Arab world.