Libya revolt as it happened: Monday

Latest BBC coverage of Libya unrest

• The rebels reportedly repel a government counter-attack in the town of Misrata, while pro-Gaddafi forces encircle Zawiya city
• Foreign ministers at the UN in Geneva condemn attacks on Libyan civilians
• Col Muammar Gaddafi tells the BBC that Libyans love him and would die to protect him
• You can also follow events on BBC Arabic
• Live page reporters: Jude Sheerin, Michael Dobie, Anna Jones and Joe Boyle
• All times in GMT

0000 This is where today's live BBC coverage of the unrest ends, on a day where Col Gaddafi remained in power in Tripoli, insisting his people love him and would die to protect him. Please stay with the BBC News website for all the latest updates on Libya and other world events.

2358 An estimated 100,000 people have also fled the country and Col Gaddafi shows no sign of bowing to the overwhelming demand that he leave.

2357 We still have no clear idea of how many people have been killed in the wave of unrest in Libya. The UN says it is at least 1,000 - others say that when the facts emerge, it is likely to be much more.

2351 The unrest has shut down Libya's oil production, affecting global oil prices. But Saudi Arabia has been taking action to ensure stability in the markets.

2348 British government sources have told the BBC the issue of Col Gaddafi's mustard gas supplies is being monitored "very closely", but that the gas is stored securely. Downing Street tonight said it was a matter for concern, that underlined the need for Col Gaddafi to step down.

2338 CSCEC said more than half the work on its public housing contract, worth 17.6 billion yuan (£1.6bn: $2.67bn), remains to be done, says AP.

2335 China's state-owned China State Construction Engineering Corp says it is suspending operations in Libya, AP reports. Tens of thousands of Chinese people had been working in Libya, many in the building industry.

2329 PJ Crowley at the White House tweets: "#Libya is jamming the coverage of news networks including #AlJazeera and #Alhurra. Things are evidently not as calm as the #Qaddafis claim."

2326 The UN's refugee agency, UNHCR tweets: "UNHCR has established a hotline for #refugees and #asylum-seekers in #Libya: [phone] -- Please share widely!"

2319 Michael, a hospital consultant in the UK with family in Libya, said his father had been shot dead by pro-Gaddafi mercenaries. He told the BBC he hoped to one day see Col Gaddafi stand trial. "At least I'll have some internal peace, this guy being bought to justice, so my father's soul will rest in peace."

2315 Reuters reports that dozens of people have been arriving at Benghazi airbase hoping to enlist in the defected forces. "I'm calling all the Libyan youth to be enlisted to confront this despotic dictator to defend our country, blood and lives," said one new recruit.

2311 The World Food Programme says it is sending 80 metric tons of high energy biscuits to the Libya-Tunisia border to help displaced people "until they can get settled or reach their final destination".

2309 The spokesman said he had information that the UK was "planning to carry on some activities that can create an environment of instability in some Arab countries, for the sake of changing regimes". Parliament should move against PM David Cameron "so that Britain will not find herself in a similar situation as in 2003 in Iraq", he said.

2306 The Associated Press has an interview with a spokesman for the Libyan Ministry of Information, Khaled Al-Koabi, in which he blames Britain for the unrest. "Everybody knows that there is a feeling that the British government is leading a campaign to change regimes in Arab countries," he says.

2304 The Dictator tweets: "#Misrata protesters turn electricity off in the area where brigade are situated in attempt to further limit them. #Libya #Feb17"

2250 Col Gaddafi has "been in a unique position for going on 42 years, surrounded by yes men, not used to having his opinions challenged," says our correspondent. "He's looking at life and the current situation very much from his own perspective."

2241 The colonel and his supporters say Libya has been wronged, and that the UN resolution was passed on the basis of inaccurate foreign media reports, says our correspondent.

2240 The BBC's Jeremy Bowen tells BBC's 5Live that Col Gaddafi probably thinks it is the Americans who are delusional. The things he said make perfect sense to him, says our correspondent.

2233 Virtual Activism tweets: "Honestly when Gaddafi was young he was handsome & rational. I remember him v faintly. Hard to imagine now this madman is same guy."

2222 Ms Rice continues: "It only underscores how unfit he is to lead and how disconnected he is from reality."

2218 Here's more from Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the UN, on Col Gaddafi's interview today. "It sounds just frankly delusional, when he can talk and laugh to an American and international journalist while he is slaughtering his own people," she says.

2210 Tripolitanian tweets: "A no-fly zone and humanitarian aid should be the limit of the assistance, anymore and #Libyans will feel like the US has facilitated a coup."

2208 The BBCs Jeremy Bowen, who spoke to Col Gaddafi in Tripoli earlier today, said the colonel appears to be thriving under the pressure he is facing, and relishing the challenge from foreign leaders.

2207 CNN's Ben Wederman tweets: "Saw 13 working T-54 tanks at army base controlled by opposition forces near Ajdabiya. Most of the crews fled to Tripoli."

2205The BBC's Anne Waithera has been hearing from relieved Kenyans and Ugandans who've just arrived in Kenya from Libya. Some had to wait for days in Tripoli airport to get a flight.

2157 Scraggledog sends this tweet to @BarackObama: "#Libya not a square on a board game- oil belongs to Libya, Libya belongs to Libyans. No-fly-zone, humanitarian aid. No troops."

2152 Leila Fadel of the Washington Post has visited the Voice of Free Libya studios in Benghazi. She says people call the station from across Libya to share their stories. "When they can't get through on regular phone lines, they call the cellphones, which Mjreesi and others hold up to the microphones."

2151 BBC Monitoring has been listening to the broadcast and says the presenter then recited a patriotic poem addressed to Col Gaddafi: "Just go, you cursed one; the people want the removal of the tyrants."

2145 Voice of Free Libya, the rebel radio station set up in recent days in the anti-Gaddafi stronghold of Benghazi, has called on its listeners to stage a "million-man demonstration" in the city tomorrow, to show support for their compatriots in "our eternal capital".

2137If you haven't already listened to Col Gaddafi's interview with the BBC's Jeremy Bowen, then the website now has a transcript you might like to read. We've done our best to transcribe all of it - even the bits that are almost unintelligible.

2133

Al-Jazeera's Dima Khatib tweets: "Ms Clinton: the Libyan people do not want your country's military intervention. Please listen to them. They say it out loud & clear #libya"

2128 Feb 17 voices tweets: "AJA: The aims of the #Feb17 military council are: 1. protect the internationally recognized borders 2. protect the people. #Libya "

2126

Elizabeth Flock from the Washington Post blogs: "Protesters in the town of Misrata, 125 miles east of Tripoli, fired at a helicopter that was trying to attack the antenna of the local radio station. According to residents of the town and an eyewitness account, the helicopter was armed with missiles. The helicopter flew away in the direction of Gaddafi's hometown of Sirt, further to the west, after opposition supporters opened fire on it. Residents spoke on condition of anonymity because they fear for their lives."

2124AFP news agency reports Mr Cannon declined to state Canada's position, but quoted him as saying: "There are too many elements still not known, so I would not want to offer an opinion at this time. We still don't have enough information."

2122More on the possibility of a no-fly zone over Libya: Canadian foreign affairs minister Lawrence Cannon says: "In terms of the no-fly zone, there doesn't seem to be consensus among our allies."

2114In a statement to the Jamahiriyah news agency, Saif questions the motives of foreign politician in mentioning foreign assets, saying: "Unless the real undeclared target is to seize all the funds of the Libyan Investment Foundation which they themselves know is a sovereign fund, investing its money for the coming generations of the Libyan people. The accounts, assets and investments of this fund are owned by the Libyan people and not under anybody's name."

2112Saif al-Islam is following his father again, insisting that the Gaddafi family has no assets abroad.

2109 Iyad El-Baghdadi tweets: "Unconfirmed reports that citizens in Azawiya have attacked & taken over #Gaddafi's checkpoint at Jeddain, took weapons & ammo."

2108The US state department has released a breakdown of its efforts to tackle the situation in Libya, including the pledge to set aside $10m for immediate aid needs.

2102A witness tells AFP news agency that Gaddafi loyalists opened fire on passers-by in Misrata, killing two people.

2058Libyan TV reports that the government has appointed a new interior minister and a new justice minister.

2055

NBC reporter Richard Engel tweets: "#libya.. US official confirms mercenaries from Chad. Wouldn't confirm Darfur..wouldn't deny"

2048Susan Rice says Col Gaddafi is "delusional" and unfit to run his country - a noticeable step up in rhetoric from the US.

2039American UN envoy Susan Rice says she hopes sanctions on the Libyan regime will make them face up to the critical choice - violate human rights and be held accountable, or stop the violence and respect the people's demands.

2036France and Britain call for an emergency EU summit to discuss events in Libya, Reuters reports, citing a statement from French President Nicolas Sarkozy's office.

2031 Iyad El-Baghdadi tweets: "Warning: #Gaddafi today arresting anyone in Tripoli who appeared in Youtube videos, went on news media, or tweeted. Extreme caution please."

2029ABC News' Christiane Amanpour was also at the Gaddafi interview with the BBC's Jeremy Bowen, she's written a piece claiming the colonel has invited a UN fact-finding mission to visit Libya.

2024 On The Arabist blog, Steve Negus has been looking at why some uprisings are quick and successful, while Libya's is dragging on. "Cold hard realists should realize that this "people power" thing is only good against genteel dictatorships."

2017 The US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, will be giving a briefing shortly on the White House response to the Libyan unrest.

2008 The Washington Post's Melissa Bell has blogged on the unexpected origins of a parody video of one of Col Gaddafi's speeches which has attracted a lot of interest online.

2000 The US Treasury says its blocking of Gaddafi assets is the largest amount ever blocked in a single order by a US government, Reuters reports.

1957Arvind Shah, from London, writes: "The man is deluded and in denial. After all these years in power he fails to see that his countryman are looking for a change. Power does not last forever. Many have fallen as will this man and it looks like he will end up a dead man."

Have Your Say

1955 The BBC's Andrew North in Washington says the Pentagon announcement that it is repositioning its forces in the Libya region seems largely designed to send a message to Col Gaddafi, but the military resources could be used to enforce the much-discussed no-fly zone over the country.

1954 More on the plight of those people who have fled across Libya's borders. The UN's High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres says Africans seem to be particularly at risk of attack or abuse "as they are being associated with foreign mercenaries".

1950 UK PM David Cameron has said Britain is working with its allies on a plan to establish a military no-fly zone over Libya.

1947 People in embattled town of Zawiya have told the BBC they are in need of food and medicine.

1946 Stephanie Nussbaumer of the Red Cross, at the Tunisian border, tells AP most of the Egyptians coming over have no contact with their families. "We are trying to provide them, with the support of the Tunisian Red Crescent and other partners, a possibility to call their families," she says.

1939 Guardian correspondent Martin Chulov tweets: "Col Hamid Belkhair, now rebel leader, 2 weeks ago libyan officer, says Ghaddafi won't yield. 'I'm 1000% sure there'll be a battle'.."

1937 Remember that if you're finding it hard to keep on top of all the fast-moving events and protests in the region, the BBC's Middle East and Arab unrest special report is packed with information and explainers.

1935 Our correspondent adds: "Col Gaddafi may well be gambling that after the experiences of Iraq and Afghanistan, many countries just won't have the stomach for that."

1934 The BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says the UN has taken quick and strict measures against Libya, but the question if what to do if they don't work. "The idea of a no-fly zone didn't appear to get much support," she says. "The United States insisted no form of action had been ruled out. But could that mean military intervention?"

1930 Of course, such moves will mean little to Col Gaddafi, who has insisted he and his family have no overseas assets.

1929 Those US freezes target Col Gaddafi and his family, but spokesman David Cohen said: "We are considering whether to add to the list of individuals."

1924 AFP is reporting that the US Treasury has frozen $30bn (£19bn) of Libyan assets.

1921 Here's that footage of Col Gaddafi's defiant interview with Jeremy Bowen.

1918 Dicey Lee tweets: "Reports that there was bombs dropped outside of Benghazi, sources say that strikes missed target, hitting the unoccupied desert."

1917 More from Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim, on plans to talk to the opposition. "If all attempts and efforts for dialogue ... are exhausted, a very well guided force will be used in accordance with international rules," he told a news conference.

1914 Italy's Foreign Minister Franco Frattini has said he is not embarrassed that his country previously had a good relationship with Col Gaddafi. "This is nothing to do with the current situation, where we see a regime killing its people," he said. Yesterday, Mr Frattini said Col Gaddafi's downfall was inevitable.

1911 The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said Libya has 9.5 metric tonnes of "Category One" mustard gas, but that the munitions needed to trigger it were destroyed some years ago.

1910 The organisation responsible for monitoring Libya's reserves of mustard gas has told the BBC it is "as concerned as everyone else" about the possibility of it falling into the wrong hands.

1907 We'll shortly be bringing you video footage of the interview Col Gaddafi gave to BBC's Jeremy Bowen a few hours ago. It shows the colonel being extraordinarily calm, but insistent that his people love him.

1904 The US Pentagon said earlier it was repositioning its resources in the region around Libya. There's more on that in this BBC news story.

1901 Reuters is reporting that Libya's deputy foreign minister has said the authorities will try dialogue with the anti-Gaddafi movement before using force.

1858 UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos says it is currently too dangerous for aid agencies to operate in and around the capital. "We want to go in and do proper assessments of what the needs are," AP quotes her as saying.

1854 Guardian correspondent Martin Chulov tweets: "Rebel military leaders told me tonight they haven't enough arms and would accept foreign air force help."

1851 The engineer says bread is the only food that can be found in Tripoli. "It costs two to three Dinar ($1.5-3.5) and you have to wait for three hours in a queue to get it."

1849 A Pakistani engineer in Tripoli has been telling BBC Pashto that the situation in the capital is anything but normal. "You can neither get out of Tripoli nor you can enter. There is a little bit of traffic on the road but all the markets are closed. You can't get food and water."

1841 If you're just joining us, welcome to the BBC's live coverage of events in Libya. In the past hour, we've heard directly from Col Gaddafi, who has insisted there are no protests in the capital and that he is loved by the Libyan people. Many disagree.

1834 Iyad El-Baghdadi tweets: "From what I can put together, #Gaddafi and his inner circle are absolutely freaking out. Afraid they'll do something desperate."

1830 The BBC's Kim Ghattas in Geneva tweets: "Int'l community hopes that freezing assets etc will dry up funds to pay mercenaries fighting for Gaddafi."

1828 The foreign pressure being applied to Col Gaddafi appears to be having little effect, says the BBC's Jeremy Bowen. The colonel was dismissive of the protests from abroad, saying all that mattered is that Libyan people are behind him.

1824 The colonel has said repeatedly in recent weeks that he cannot resign as he has no official position. The BBC's Aidan Lewis has writen a profile of this extraordinary leader's role in Libya and the country's history.

1820 Col Gaddafi rejected any suggestion that his forces had fired on demonstrators, or had been ordered to do so, says Jeremy Bowen.

1819 The opposition group Libyan Youth Movement tweets: "One thing is certain, gaddafi runs an almost 'one city state' he is no longer the leader of 'Libya' #Libya."

1817 More on Jeremy Bowen's interview with Col Gaddafi in the past hour, at a seafront restaurant in the capital. He was asked if he would use mustard gas on his people, and replied that such weapons were so terrible, he could not see how people could use them on their enemies, let alone their own people.

1814 Libya United tweets: "Gaddafi says, Libyans love and ready to die for him apparently he is ready to kill all of us to prove we have died for him."

1810 Jeremy Bowen in Tripoli says the colonel told him "true Libyans" would not demonstrate, and again said that the political structure of Libya means he is not the leader so cannot resign.

1809 Col Gaddafi's latest comments are now the focus of our main news story.

1804 Col Gaddafi challenged UK PM David Cameron to produce evidence of the Libyan leader's alleged foreign assets, and said he sticks his two fingers in the eyes of Western leaders.

1803Jeremy Bowen says Col Gaddafi appeared relaxed during the interview, which took place at a restaurant in the city. He arrived and left at high speed in a large convoy of vehicles.

1802 When asked whether he would leave Libya, Col Gaddafi laughed and replied: "Who would leave their homeland."

1800 Col Gaddafi said he felt betrayed by those western nations with whom he had built a relationship over recent years, accusing them of attempting to colonise Libya.

1756 The BBC's Jeremy Bowen was among a small group of journalists the colonel spoke to in Tripoli. He repeated his claim that the protesters are under the influence of drugs supplied by al-Qaeda, says our correspondent.

1755 Col Gaddafi has given very few media interviews during the unrest, and has made only three public speeches

1746 BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says the survival of the Gaddafi regime depends on being able to pay and support the mercenaries and paramilitaries keeping them in power: "They have a lot of money stashed away and if they can get their hands on that they can probably stay in power, at least in Tripoli for the time being."

1745 Col Gaddafi tells the BBC that all his people love him and would die to protect him.

1743 In an interview with the BBC, Col Gaddafi refuses to acknowledge that demonstrations are taking place in Tripoli.

1742 Enough Gaddafi tweets: "Rumors about turmoil within #gaddafi inner circle, people being fired and so on, I wonder what effect pressure is having? #libya #feb17"

1741BBC Arabic's Abderrahim Farsi, who's in Tripoli, has been told by a source that Libyan tanks and armoured cars attempting to break into Zawiya have been repelled by opposition fighters. The source said the attacking force belongs to the Khamis Brigade of the Libyan army, led by Col Gaddafi's son Khamis.

1739 Ibrahim, a resident of the - for now - opposition-held city of Zawiyah, has told Reuters news agency by phone: "We are expecting attacks at any moment by brigades belonging to [Col Gaddafi's son] Khamis. They are on the outskirts of the town, about 5-7 km away. They are in large numbers."

1731 The BBC's Jim Muir on the Tunisian border says tempers are flaring among the tens of thousands of Egyptians who have fled Libya by the nearest route. They demand to know why the Egyptian military has not yet come to collect them. The Tunisian authorities and international agencies are struggling to cope.

1726 A Tripoli resident tells the BBC: "[The authorities are] inviting people to come to school and to work, and if you send your children to normal class they take them to the squares to raise Libyan flags and Gaddafi pictures and act as supporters. But if you go there and say, 'don't take my children', then you are in trouble."

1723 Could the West be about to snuff out the Gaddafi fightback? The US military is moving naval and air forces into position around Libya: "We're repositioning forces to provide for that flexibility once decisions are made," says Pentagon spokesman Colonel Dave Lapan.

1718 The Guardian reports that Libya's ethnic Berbers are joining the anti-Gaddafi movement to reclaim their ancient identity. "We never thought this could happen in our lifetime," one Amazigh tribesman tells the newspaper.

1715 The UN Refugee Agency tweets: "UNHCR urges evacuation of people trying to leave #Libya - there are no planes and boats to evacuate people originating from war-torn or very poor countries."

1708 FourYawkeyWay tweets: "An American intervention in #Libya would give their revolution, & all future regional revolutions, the neo-imperialist kiss of death."

1659British PM David Cameron's full statement to the House of Commons on Libya now up on Number 10 website.

1650 Libyan TV is now flashing snaps in English: "Social activists from all Great Jamahiriya (pro-Gaddafi) regions agree on launching an initiative of meaningful dialogue that realises stability and security to all Libyan cities, ensures the normal life return, plans future path, safeguards the achievements and prevents the foreign intervention in Great Jamahiri internal affairs."

1637 The BBC's Christian Fraser in Paris says for an explanation of France's fast footwork on the Libya issue in recent days, look no further than last week's dismal opinion poll ratings for President Sarkozy.

1624 The Arab uprisings have surprised Europe and the US, adds the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva. It is dawning on everyone that in the 21st Century, a repressive regime can no longer go on TV, say what's happening and think everyone will believe them.

1617 The BBC's Imogen Foulkes, at that UN foreign ministers' meeting in Geneva, says the consensus there is that the Gaddafi regime has reached the end of the road. Everybody is saying it is time for him to go, and the only question is what comes next?

1615 If Col Gaddafi goes, who will shower pop stars with megabucks to perform private gigs? Canadian singer Nelly Furtado has tweeted: "In 2007, I was paid 1million$ by the Gaddafi clan to play a 45min show for guests at a hotel in Italy. I am going to donate this $." In response, the Libyan Youth Movement tweets: "I would like to thank @NellyFurtado, our faith in humanity was restored." Over to you, Beyonce...

1613 The son of Abdurrahman Sewehli - a prominent opponent of Col Gaddafi - tells the BBC his father and brothers have been arrested in Tripoli. "I think they may be used as human shields," he says. "I am not hopeful at all about what will happen to them."

1606 British PM David Cameron has told the House of Commons that Britain would work with allies on plans to enforce a no-fly zone in Libya, and has not ruled out "the use of military assets".

1601 Update on that Vietnamese pro-democracy activist's arrest (see 1206 entry): Nguyen Dan Que has now been freed, but ordered to attend daily police "interrogation sessions" in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnamese speakers can listen to an interview with his brother on BBC Vietnamese website.

1551 Joe Lowry, a Red Cross representative at the border between Tunisia and Libya, tweets: Am in Jerba airport. There are hundreds of Egyptians getting on flights to Cairo. The air bridge seems to be working.

1545 Iman Bugahaighis, a dentistry professor now acting an an unofficial spokesman for the anti-Gaddafi movement, tells Time magazine the colonel's system of rule means they are now having to learn as they go along. "The problem is that we don't have anyone with any political experience whatsoever," he says.

1544 More on those White House "exile" comments: spokesman Jay Carney declines to say if the US would help Col Gaddafi leave Libya, should he choose to flee, AFP news agency reports.

1542 Col Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam ridicules media claims that his family have amassed foreign assets, according to on-screen urgent caption on Libyan satellite TV channel al-Libiyah.

1537 Col Gaddafi has appointed the head of his foreign intelligence service to speak to the rebel leadership in the east of the country, according to al-Jazeera TV.

1531 The White House tells reporters that going into exile would be "one option" for Col Gaddafi, to satisfy the demands of the protesters.

1520 A South African who has just landed in Pretoria tells BBC Focus on Africa what she saw in Tripoli after Friday prayers three days ago: "The men came out of the mosque to start a peaceful protest march and... after going only a few metres, the mercenaries started opening fire on them."

1518 Col Gaddafi's alleged use of mercenaries has angered many Libyans. But writing on Salon, Glenn Greenwald says the UN resolution in Libya included a section which could protect some of the mercenaries from prosecution at the International Court of Human Rights.

1512 The opposition group Libyan Youth Movement tweets: The help we are currently receiving from Egypt and Tunisia, is in the form of medical aid, and is an incredible amount of support.

1510 More on those reported air strikes in the Benghazi area: Witnesses have told AFP news agency that warplanes fired on a munitions dump at Rajma, just south of the city, and an ammunition store in Adjabiya, further south.

1501 British Foreign Sec William Hague says they are "very sympathetic" to German idea of a 60-day ban on cash transfers to Libya, but he sounds a more tepid note on a no-fly zone, saying that would need "very strong international support".

1459 Pro-Gaddafi jets have struck ammunition depots near Libya's opposition-held second city of Benghazi, witnesses tell AFP news agency.

1454The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Benghazi says lots of the shops are open, traffic's on the streets and new committees are being set up in the courthouse. The pre-Gaddafi flag is flying and people excited about "free Libya".

1449 US Sec of State Hillary Clinton says: "It is not my mother's or even my world anymore... Young people know everything that is going on everywhere, and they will no longer tolerate a status quo that blocks their aspiratons. This [Arab spring] is a hopeful season for all humanity."

1446 US Sec of State Hillary Clinton tells the Geneva foreign ministers' meeting: We will continue to explore all possible options for action. As we've said, nothing is off the table so long as the Libyan government continues to threaten and kill Libyans.

1443 BBC Newsnight's Paul Mason tweets: This #hillaryclinton speech is amazing: she is effectively giving green light to youth across region to oust dictators. Riyadh anyone?

1433 Col Gaddafi still has his admirers in the capital: BBC Arabic's Abderrahim Farsi, also in Tripoli, says he's met many people in the city who have expressed support for the embattled leader.

1428 BBC Arabic's Firas Kilani toured the outskirts of Tripoli on Sunday, where he saw burnt-down police and revolutionary committee stations. But protestors seemed to have avoided other [civilian] government buildings.

1428 US Sec of State Hillary Clinton tells the Geneva foreign ministers' meeting: The people of Libya have made themselves clear: it is time for Gaddafi to go. Now. Without further violence or delay.

1425 BBC Arabic's Firas Kilani in Tripoli reports that hundreds of people are still gathering outside banks to receive their share of financial aid, which the authorities have promised in a bid to quell dissent. He says they appear in a rush to get the money.

1421 Amid widespread reports that Col Gaddafi sent African mercenaries against the protesters, Ghana's Foreign Minister Mohammed Mumuni tells the BBC no hired guns were being recruited in his country: "There's not an iota of truth in that allegation."

1417 US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. She said Col Gaddafi was using "mercenaries and thugs" against civilians, Reuters reports.

1413 There's been speculation on those unconfirmed reports that Col Gaddafi sent a plane to Belarus. Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz wonders if members of the Gaddafi family were aboard. Other reports wonder if a Gaddafi envoy came to purchase weapons or to stash the colonel's rumoured gold reserve. Belarus has dismissed all these rumours as being just that.

1409 About 400 people protested in Tripoli's Tajoura district against Col Gaddafi, Reuters reports. Government supporters wearing green bandanas then arrived and fired shots in the air to try to break up the protest.

1404 Col Gaddafi has now lost control of Libya's large oil and gas installations, the EU's energy commissioner Gunther Oettinger is reported as saying by AFP.

1359 The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, says: "If people were on the square and they were attacked by soldiers, tanks or airplanes, in a widespread and systematic way, it's a crime against humanity."

1357 The head prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague has said an investigation into the violence in Libya could be opened "within a few days". The UN Security Council referred Libya's use of force against anti-government demonstrators to the court on Saturday at the same time as it imposed other sanctions.

1353 According to the New York Times , the Arab spring protests could spell an "epochal disaster" for al-Qaeda as the demonstrators have embraced democracy and shunned the two central tenets of the Islamists' credo: murderous violence and religious fanaticism.

1349 Libyan youth movement Shabab Libya tweets: "Over a week into the Libyan revolution, we are now finding ourselves explaining to the world why we do not want foreign military intervention."

1347 Our Europe correspondent says there is real concern in Brussels that the refugee crisis could spread across the Mediterranean into southern Europe.

1345 The BBC's Europe correspondent Matthew Price has more details on those EU sanctions against Libya. He says they include travel bans and asset freezes for 26 people, including Col Gaddafi.

1341 A spokesman for the UN refugee agency, Firas Kayal, has told the BBC World Service's Newshour programme that Tunisia would soon need urgent help to deal with all the refugees fleeing Libya: "The numbers are significantly increasing and the capacity of the local community to absorb these numbers is actually reaching the limit. So there is an urgent need for the government of these persons to send planes or ships, and any means of transportation, in order to bring these people back home."

1334 Indonesia's ambassador in Tunisia, Ibnu Said, has told BBC Indonesia that hundreds of Indonesians are stranded in Tunisia trying to get on flights. They arrived on Sunday from Tripoli, but so far haven't got tickets to travel home. A second batch of Indonesians is expected to arrive in Tunis later this week. There are thought to be some 850 Indonesians working or studying in Libya.

1330 BBC Arabic correspondent Abdullah Ghorab in Yemen reports: "Opposition figures in Yemen have rejected President Ali Abdullah Saleh's offer to join a national unity government, saying it did not reflect current realities in the country.

1327 Spain's Foreign Minister Trinidad Jimenez says she expects the last five Spanish citizens in Libya to leave today. "Spain was one of the first countries to put together an evacuation plan," Efe news agency quotes her saying.

1322 New York Times journalist Nicholas Kristof tweets: "Just heard by phone that Khomes, #Libya, 75 miles east of Tripoli, is still firmly in government hands".

1315 EU member states have approved sanctions against Col Gaddafi and his family. They include travel bans, an arms embargo and asset freezes, Reuters reports.

1312 If you're just joining us, welcome to the BBC's live coverage of events in Libya, where Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year rule is hanging in the balance. Stay with us for the latest updates, reports from our correspondents, expert analysis and your reaction. You can contact us via e-mail, text or Twitter.

1307 Many thousands of Egyptians who are trying to leave Libya, or who are stuck in Tunisia, say they have been frustrated by a lack of help from their government. Egyptian foreign ministry official Mohammad Abdel Hakam told state TV Egypt will send a total of 52 planes to evacuate citizens from the two countries.

1304 More from the BBC's Paul Danahar: "In Tajoura on the outskirts of Tripoli, a post office has been gutted by fire and posters of Col Gaddafi have been torn down. Today though it's quiet. Traffic seems normal, but most shops have their shutters down."

1301 BBC Middle East bureau editor Paul Danahar says there are long queues at bread shops in Tripoli and much longer ones at banks as people try to collect the 500 dinar ($400) promised to all families by the government in an attempt to quell the uprisings in the country.

1300 Venezuela's state-run news channel Telesur, has sent a special correspondent into Libya. Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has close ties to Col Gaddafi. Telesur's correspondent, Jordan Rodriguez , tweets: "We are now in Surman. Forces loyal to Gaddafi are in control of the city. Trade and traffic are normal."

1254 Mr Hague is speaking from Geneva where he has been at a meeting of the UN Human Rights Council.

1252 British Foreign Secretary William Hague is speaking live now. He has said that Libya should be suspended from the UN Human Rights Council.

1250 EU foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, is to meet later today to implement UN sanctions, and other restrictions, against Libya, AFP reports.

1247 Belarus has now denied the report that Col Gaddafi's plane landed in Minsk on Saturday and left a day later. The foreign ministry labelled the report as "lies" and "insinuations against Belarus".

1242 There is an anti-government demo taking place now in Col Gaddafi's stronghold of Tripoli, reports BBC Arabic correspondent Abderrahim El-Farsi. He is in Tajoora, a suburb of the city. Protesters are chanting: "The blood of martyrs won't go to waste."

1237 Meanwhile, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has confirmed reports that he telephoned Col Gaddafi to urge him to quit. Mr Blair told Monday's Times newspaper he rang the embattled leader twice last week.

1230 Libyan TV quotes "medical sources" in Al Marj in the north-east as saying there were 12 cases of injuries in the town's hospital, caused by an "absurd use of weapons by misguided youth".

1226 BBC World Service is checking out unconfirmed reports in a Belarussian newspaper, Belarusky Partizan, that Col Gaddafi's plane landed in the capital Minsk on Saturday and took off a day later. The aircraft was apparently tracked by plane spotters - a rare breed in Belarus. There is speculation that the plane brought some of Gaddafi's family and some money to Belarus.

1220 The international community continues to turn the screw financially on Col Gaddafi: Germany's foreign minister says in Geneva they are proposing a moratorium on all money transfers to Libya for 60 days, reports Reuters.

1215Another doctor in Libya's third largest city of Misrata has told the BBC World Service that pro-Gaddafi forces are using heavy weapons against protesters: "They are shooting by anti-aircraft [weapons], they are not shooting by simple gunshot. We are not able to send the ambulance because they are shooting at the ambulance."

1208 A doctor in the western Libyan town of Zawiya tells the BBC World Service: "Zawiya is now in the hands of the protesters. Things are stable, but I feel this is the calm before the storm. Zawiya is heavily surrounded... heavy weaponry and tanks. This is when the catastrophe will happen if these pro-Gaddafi forces enter, it will be a real disaster... There will be massacres."

1206 Of course, it's not just in the Arab world that dissent has been brewing. One of Vietnam's main pro-democracy activists, Nguyen Dan Que, has been detained after calling for a revolution to overthrow the Communist government, state-controlled media reports.

1157 Algeria - desperately trying to prevent its own sporadic protests from snowballing - has meanwhile denied exporting mercenaries to Libya. BBC Monitoring reports that Algiers' delegate to the Arab League, Abd-al-Qadir Hadjar, has told a meeting of that body that these claims are untrue.

1151 Amid fears that Col Gaddafi might have a stockpile of mustard gas to unleash on rebels, British Prime Minister David Cameron's official spokesman has told reporters: "We are concerned about what Colonel Gaddafi might do, and [need to] be alive to a number of possibilities."

1147 Meanwhile, over at the foreign ministers' meeting in Geneva, some countries have cast doubt on the feasibility of a Libya no-fly zone. But Australian FM Kevin Rudd has urged them not to stand idly by while civilians are bombed, like during the Guernica massacre in the Spanish Civil War.

1142Colin Barbasiewicz from Wokingham writes: "Surprised with the 20 Arab countries calling for a no-fly zone over Libya. Do they expect the rest of the world impose the ban? Surely between them they have bought enough aircraft to put the ban in place themselves."

Have Your Say

1133 Bryan Richards, one of a group of British oil workers evacuated from Libya last week, has told the BBC: "The Libyans were pushing us to get out of the country because they know it won't be pretty when the push comes to take Tripoli."

Have Your Say

1131 Ali Tweel, who says he is tweeting from Libya: "In Tripoli the roads looks like 50% full. Based on a normal Monday it should be twice crowded as today, few shops are open."

1129 Meanwhile, the unrest continues in another Arab country: hundreds of protesters have barricaded Oman's second biggest port, Sohar, AFP news agency reports.

1120 And in Iraq, which has also been rocked by deadly demonstrations in recent days, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is to call on people not to take to the streets of Baghdad, as planned on Friday, according to a copy of his speech obtained by AFP news agency.

1114 Elsewhere in the Arab world, a 25-year-old Algerian man has died after turning himself into a human torch on Saturday outside a government office. His was the fifth death by self-immolation in the protest-plagued country since mid-January.

1101 Meanwhile, a spokesman for Egypt's public prosecutor has just slapped travel bans on deposed president Hosni Mubarak (remember him?) and his family.

1056 Tripoli's man in South Africa is the latest Libyan envoy to tell Col Gaddafi to go. Abdalla Alzubedi told journalists in Pretoria the veteran ruler must "stop killing innocent people", but says he himself won't quit like other Libyan ambassadors as he has duties to perform.

1047 The Guardian's Ghaith Abdul Ahad in western Libya has been telling the BBC World Service: "I am in a little town that has been taken over by the anti-Gaddafi rebels. There are militia men driving pick-up trucks with anti-aircraft guns, manning checkpoints, it's like a war zone here."

1041 BBC China editor Shirong Chen says China's air force has joined the rescue operation, sending four transport planes to Libya. The navy's frigate is meanwhile in the Mediterranean. So far China has evacuated about 29,000 nationals from Libya.

1038 BBC Monitoring says Libyan state TV is denying reports by "some biased satellite stations" that the central-western Libyan district of Wadi al-Shati is being shelled.

1032 Reuters and al-Jazeera report witnesses as saying the airport in the town of Misrata -said to be the scene of heavy fighting right now - is in the hands of the rebels.

1027 The BBC Ukrainian Service in Kiev reports that Galyna Kolotnytska - ever to be known as Col Gaddafi's "voluptuous blonde" nurse, thanks to Wikileaks - is being closely guarded by family and friends against prying media. A photographer trying to approach her was manhandled at Kiev airport as she arrived home.

1021Our Middle East bureau editor Paul Danahar, now at Tripoli airport, says: Thousands of people, mainly migrant workers from China and other Arab states, are queuing to get out. I had to wade through rubbish, discarded possessions and thousands of people who are camped on the floor and pavement as they await flights.

1014 Kenyan workers who have just flown in to Nairobi after fleeing the unrest have been telling how they were set upon by Libyans who took them for mercenaries. "We were being attacked by local people... Let me say that they did not want to see black people," Julius Kiluu, a 60-year-old building supervisor, told Reuters.

1004 Guardian's correspondent Martin Chulov tweets: "Saw a lot of Libyans arriving in Benghazi today on a Greek ferry. Not everyone's fleeing. Many stranded Bangladeshis still in Benghazi port. Most work for foreign companies. No spot on British warship for them."

1003 Anti-Gaddafi forces have shot down a military aircraft near the town of Misrata and captured its crew, a witness tells Reuters news agency.

1000 An unnamed witness tells Reuters news agency that Libyan rebel forces are battling pro-Gaddafi units near the town of Misrata, 200km (125miles) east of Tripoli.

0954 A coalition of more than 200 Arab organisations from 18 countries, and 30 prominent intellectuals from across the region have accused the UN of not doing enough to protect Libyan civilians, and have called for a no-fly zone to prevent "further atrocities".

0949 Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim also says the West and Islamist militants have a shared goal of chaos in Libya - the militants, so al-Qaeda can form a "crescent of terror" across North Africa, and the West because it wants Libya's oil.

0945 This revolt could be about to get much bloodier, if government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim is to be believed. He has just told media in Tripoli that "hundreds of thousands of lives might be lost" if the conflict escalates, reports BBC Middle East bureau editor Paul Danahar.

0939 The foreign ministers' meeting in Geneva has just begun and the Libya revolt is top of the agenda. UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay tells the opening session: "I remind all those concerned that widespread and systematic attacks against the civilian population may amount to crimes under international law."

0932The BBC's Middle East bureau editor Paul Danahar has just attended a media briefing with Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim. He condemned UN resolution 1970, agreed on Saturday night against Col Gaddafi's administration. "There were no massacres, no bombardment of cities and no reckless violence against civilians," said Mr Ibrahim.

0921 Meanwhile, media organisations will doubtless be vying to scoop the story of Col Gaddafi's "voluptuous blonde" Ukrainian nurse. She has just flown home to Kiev.

0909 The BBC's Jim Muir, on the Libya-Tunisia border, says that every hour 1,000 refugees are fleeing over the boundary into Tunisia, which of course saw its own revolution last month.

0904 Meanwhile, state-owned China National Petroleum Corp has become the latest energy giant to turn off the oil taps in Libya. It has halted production and evacuated all its employees from the country.

0857 Col Gaddafi's isolation grows as French Prime Minister Francois Fillon announces they are sending two planeloads of medical aid to opposition groups in Libya, and have not ruled out backing a Nato no-fly zone over the country.

0840 Welcome to the BBC's live coverage of events in Libya, where Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year rule is hanging in the balace. Stay with us for the latest updates, reports from our correspondents, expert analysis and your reaction. You can contact us via e-mail, text or Twitter.