Leader appears in public to meet South African president on peace mission as more senior officials defect regime
South Africa's president, Jacob Zuma, said on Monday night that Muammar Gaddafi was ready for a truce but gave no indication whether the Libyan leader was ready to give up power, as rebels and much of the international community are demanding.
Gaddafi made a rare public appearance for the meeting with Zuma, the South African's second attempt to broker a ceasefire on behalf of the African Union.
Libya's leader, who has been turned into a fugitive in his own capital by the ongoing Nato air strikes, welcomed Zuma at the Bab al-Aziziyah presidential compound wearing his trademark dark glasses. But he appeared healthy, dispelling rumours he had been injured in the air strike that killed his son Saif al-Arab at the beginning of this month. Gaddafi is reported to have shown Zuma the site of that attack.
Zuma said later Gaddafi was "ready to implement the road map" – a reference to an AU peace plan involving a ceasefire and agreement on humanitarian supplies and reforms. The roadmap has already been rejected by the Benghazi-based rebels, and by Nato.
Zuma said Gaddafi had insisted that "all Libyans be given a chance to talk among themselves" to determine the country's future, but made no mention of the Libyan leader's possible departure. His office denied rebel claims that the South African president had raised the subject.
The rebels' morale was boosted by the dramatic defection of more senior Libyan officials. Eight officers – five generals, two colonels and a major – told a news conference in Rome organised by the Italian government that they were among 120 to have abandoned Gaddafi in the past few days.
The officers said they had defected in protest at Gaddafi's actions against his own people, citing killings of civilians and violence against women. One of the eight accused pro-Gaddafi forces of genocide. They claimed Gaddafi's campaign against the rebels was rapidly weakening.
General Melud Massoud Halasa told reporters that Gaddafi's forces were "only 20% as effective" as before the rebellion, as "not more than 10" generals remained loyal to him.
The defections come at a time of intense military pressure on the regime, with the use of British and French helicopter gunships expected in the next few days.
Meanwhile, armed westerners have been filmed on the frontline with rebels in the first apparent confirmation that foreign special forces are playing an active role in the Libyan conflict. A group of six westerners are clearly visible in a report by al-Jazeera from Dafniya, described as the westernmost point of the rebel lines west of Misrata. Five of them were armed and wearing sand-coloured clothes, baseball caps and cotton Arab scarves. The sixth, apparently the most senior of the group, was carrying no visible weapon and wore a pink, short-sleeve shirt. He may be an intelligence officer. The group is seen talking to rebels and quickly leaving on being spotted by the television crew.
There have been numerous reports in the British press that SAS soldiers are acting as spotters in Libya to help Nato warplanes target pro-Gaddafi forces. In March, six special forces soldiers and two MI6 officers were detained by rebel fighters when they landed on an abortive mission to meet rebel leaders in Benghazi, in an embarrassing episode for the SAS. The group was withdrawn soon afterwards and a new "liaison team" sent in its place.
Asked for comment on Monday, a Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "We don't have any forces out there."
The subject is sensitive as the UN security council resolution in March authorising the use of force in Libya specifically excludes "a foreign occupation force of any form on any part of Libyan territory".
Despite more than two months of bombing by Nato, rebels have remained unable to advance west of Misrata, or west of Brega, 300 miles to the east. The capital, Tripoli, also remains in the grip of Gaddafi.
In April, William Hague announced that an expanded military liaison team would be dispatched to work with the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council, which is positioning itself as a democratic alternative to Gaddafi's rule.
The foreign secretary said the team would help the rebels improve "organisational structures, communications and logistics" but stressed: "Our officers will not be involved in training or arming the opposition's fighting forces, nor will they be involved in the planning or execution of the [TNC's] military operations or in the provision of any other form of operational military advice."
There were unconfirmed reports at the time that Britain would send former SAS members and other experienced soldiers to Libya under the cover of private security companies, paid for by Arab states, to train the anti-government forces.