New York:
The UN Security Council on Tuesday condemned Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi's crackdown on anti government protesters and demanded an immediate end to the violence.
A press statement agreed to by all 15 council members expressed "grave concern" at the situation in Libya and condemned the violence and use of force against civilians, "deplored the repression against peaceful demonstrators, and expressed deep regret at the deaths of hundreds of civilians."
The council called for "steps to address the legitimate demands of the population, including through national dialogue."
The council also underlined the need for the Libyan government to respect the rights to peaceful assembly, free expression and press freedom.
The council issued the statement hours after Gaddafi vowed in a television address to keep fighting to his "last drop of blood" and urged his supporters to take to the streets, setting the stage for even more deadly violence.
Libya's deputy UN ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi, who has called for Gaddafi to step down, said the council statement was "not strong enough" but was "a good message to the regime in Libya about stopping the bloodshed."
He said he had received information that Gaddafi's collaborators have started "attacking people in all the cities in western Libya" and that "the Gaddafi statement was just a code for his collaborators to start genocide against the Libyan people."
Gaddafi's retaliation has already been the harshest in the Arab world to the wave of anti-government protests sweeping the Middle East.
Nearly 300 people have been killed, according to a partial count by the New York-based Human Rights Watch.
In two nights of bloodshed, Tripoli residents described a rampage by pro-Gaddafi militiamen - a mix of Libyans and foreign mercenaries - who shot on sight anyone found in the streets and opened fire from speeding vehicles at people watching from windows of their homes.
A press statement agreed to by all 15 council members expressed "grave concern" at the situation in Libya and condemned the violence and use of force against civilians, "deplored the repression against peaceful demonstrators, and expressed deep regret at the deaths of hundreds of civilians."
The council called for "steps to address the legitimate demands of the population, including through national dialogue."
The council also underlined the need for the Libyan government to respect the rights to peaceful assembly, free expression and press freedom.
The council issued the statement hours after Gaddafi vowed in a television address to keep fighting to his "last drop of blood" and urged his supporters to take to the streets, setting the stage for even more deadly violence.
Libya's deputy UN ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi, who has called for Gaddafi to step down, said the council statement was "not strong enough" but was "a good message to the regime in Libya about stopping the bloodshed."
He said he had received information that Gaddafi's collaborators have started "attacking people in all the cities in western Libya" and that "the Gaddafi statement was just a code for his collaborators to start genocide against the Libyan people."
Gaddafi's retaliation has already been the harshest in the Arab world to the wave of anti-government protests sweeping the Middle East.
Nearly 300 people have been killed, according to a partial count by the New York-based Human Rights Watch.
In two nights of bloodshed, Tripoli residents described a rampage by pro-Gaddafi militiamen - a mix of Libyans and foreign mercenaries - who shot on sight anyone found in the streets and opened fire from speeding vehicles at people watching from windows of their homes.
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