리비아 정부 대변인은 리비아 군 병영을 목표로 한 나토군의 폭격으로 적어도 3명이 사망하고 10여명이 부상한 것으로 발표했다.
나토군은 민간인을 공격하는 군용 차량주차장에 수차례의 공격을 했다고 성명서를 냈다.
나토군은 지난 몇 주 동안 카다피군에 압력을 가하기 위해 공격을 강화했다고 말하고 리비아의 동부를 지배하는 반정부 운동지도부와 밀접한 관계를 유지하고 있다고 말했다.
미국은 23일 제프리 펠트만 중동문제 고위외교관을 파견하여 반정부군의 실질적 수도인 벵가지에 지지를 표시했다.
새로운 화력을 배치하면서 프랑스와 영국은 공격 헬리콥터의 투입을 시도하고 있다. 지금까지 공군 전투기 공격에 카디피군이 적응하면서 전투가 소강상태로 들어가자 나토는 공격헬기를 투입하는 새로운 전술을 채택한 것으로 보인다.
저공비행이 가능한 헬리콥터는 고공 제트기보다 더 정확하게 목표물을 공격할 수 있는 이점이 있는 반면 지상 화력에 취약한 약점이 있다. 3월 31일 비행금지구역 설정이후 나토 연합군은 아직 사상자가 발생하지 않고 있다.
미국은 펠트만 미 국무부 근동담당 차관보를 파견하면서 반군의 국가과도위원회에 대한 지원의 신호를 보내고 “리비아 국민의 합법적이고 신뢰할 만한 대화상대로 인정한다.“ 는 성명을 발표했다.
(영문기사 원문)
NATO airstrikes hit Tripoli, heaviest bombing yet
TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — NATO warplanes bombarded targets in Tripoli with more than 20 airstrikes early Tuesday, striking around Moammar Gadhafi's residential compound in what appeared to be the heaviest night of bombing of the Libyan capital since the Western alliance launched its air campaign against his forces.
Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said at least three people were killed and dozens wounded in NATO strikes that targeted what he described as buildings used by volunteer units of the Libyan army.
NATO said in a statement that a number of the strikes hit a vehicle storage facility adjacent to Bab al-Aziziya that has been used in supplying regime forces "conducting attacks on civilians." It was not immediately clear if the facility was the only target hit in the barrage. Bab al-Aziziya, which includes a number of military facilities, has been pounded repeatedly by NATO strikes.
NATO, which said in its statement that it took care to "minimize the risk of collateral damage to the fullest extent possible," has been escalating and widening the scope of its strikes over the past weeks, hiking the pressure on Gadhafi, while the alliance's members have built closer ties with the rebel movement that has control of the eastern half of Libya. On Monday, the highest-ranking U.S. diplomat in the Middle East, Jeffrey Feltman, was in the de facto rebel capital of Benghazi in a show of support.
In a significant new deployment of firepower, France and Britain are bringing attack helicopters to use in the strikes in Libya as soon as possible, French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet said Monday.
The use of attack helicopters would appear to mark a new strategy for NATO, which has relied on strikes by fighter planes and seen that result in a stalemate on the ground as Gadhafi forces adapted, often turning to urban fighting to make such strikes more difficult.
Nimble, low-flying helicopters have much more leeway to pick targets with precision than high-flying jets. But they also are much more vulnerable to ground fire. The alliance has had no military deaths since it first started enforcing a no-fly zone on March 31.
The U.S. State Department statement said the visit by Feltman, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, was "another signal of the U.S.'s support" for the rebels' National Transitional Council, which it called "a legitimate and credible interlocutor for the Libyan people."
김희광 기자 april4241@naver.com
