Paris: France vowed yesterday to step up air strikes on Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces and acknowledged that it has military officers already working with Libyan rebels on the ground.
France and Italy joined Britain in announcing their commitment of military officers to help the rebels, who have failed to rout Muammar Gaddafi's forces despite weeks of Nato-led air strikes.
Both France and Italy remained firm against sending ground troops into Libya, a dangerous and politically risky step. However Nato, which is leading the UN-sanctioned international military operation to protect civilians, is now acknowledging that air strikes alone cannot stop the heavy shelling of cities by Gaddafi's forces.
Pockets of resistance
Gaddafi's forces attacked a mountain town and a besieged coastal city yesterday, part of a drive to crush pockets of resistance in the western part of the country that is largely under the Libyan leader's control.
"France has placed alongside our special envoy in Benghazi a small number of liaison officers," French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Christine Fages said in an online briefing yesterday.
The officers are working on technical, logistical, and organisational help, she said. She did not indicate how long they have been there.
French government spokesman Francois Baroin suggested less than 10 officers were involved and insisted the move conforms to the UN resolution authorising the international military campaign in Libya. France sent a diplomatic envoy to Benghazi earlier this month.
Opposition leader
French President Nicolas Sarkozy met yesterday with visiting Libyan opposition leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil, who said he asked France "to intensify the support accorded to the Libyan revolution".
"We will intensify the strikes," Sarkozy responded, according to a presidential aide.
"The aide was not authorised to be publicly named according to presidential policy.
"We will help you," Sarkozy promised his Libyan visitor. He gave no details.
