'Give up now or we’ll kill you,' Liam Fox warns Gaddafi as he starts talks with U.S. on widening scope of airstrikes
Defence Secretary Liam Fox will meet senior U.S. commanders today to draw up a final plan to finish Colonel Gaddafi. Before flying to Washington last night, Dr Fox warned the dictator and his commanders they face assassination unless they give up now.
[He said:] 'If the regime continues to wage war on its people, those who are involved in those command-and-control assets need to recognise that we regard them as legitimate targets. 'Those who are... controlling the regime's activities against its own people, would have to recognise the risks they would have if they were there during Nato strikes.' [He added:] 'Colonel Gaddafi is the one who is standing in the way of a peaceful resolution in Libya.'
Today's summit will see Dr Fox and General Sir David Richards, the Chief of the Defence Staff, hold talks with Pentagon chiefs including U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff. They will discuss dramatically widening the scope of targets that Nato aircraft and drones can hit, possibly to include regime leaders.