LIBYA | Live blog February 22

Reporting by Karl Stagno-Navarra, Matthew Vella, Miriam Dalli and Nestor Laiviera.
19:46 Embassies to make use of Virtù Ferries to evacuate citizens to Malta: first reports that American and French citizens could be evacuated via sea.

19:45 The foreign ministry has announced new Air Malta flights tomorrow. The regular flights will leave Tripoli at 8:10pm (CET + 1hr), while a new flight, KM3697, will leave Tripoli at 12pm (CET + 1hr).

The ministry says this arrangement is still subject to clearnace from the Libyan civil aviation authorities.

Family members are urged to inform relatives in Tripoli to avail themselves of the flights. The Maltese embassy in Tripoli is assisting the Maltese citizens in Libya.

Video by Nestor Laiviera and Miriam Dalli

18:34 The United States government is closely monitoring the situation in Libya and considering possible evacuation locations that include Malta, an embassy official has told MaltaToday.

This newspaper has been informed that security firms contracted by private firms have been involved in evacuations from Libya of business personnel. The US government has not contracted any such firms, the embassy official said.

Diplomatic representations in Malta are on stand-by for orders to conduct rapid evacuation operations from Libya, as the oil-rich country further descends into chaos.

17:50 In his second television address since the start of the current unrest, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi says he will not leave Libya and will die a martyr. Among other things he declared himself "the leader of the revolution... Revolution means sacrifice until the very end of your life."

"I will fight until the last drop of blood with the people behind me. I haven't even started giving the orders to use bullets - any use of force against authority of state will be sentenced to death," he said quoting from his Green book.

"They are just imitating Egypt and Tunisia," he said referring to protestors, claiming they want to turn Libya into an Islamic state.

"If you love Muammar Gaddafi you will go out and secure Libya's streets."

He gave protesters until Wednesday to remove all placards and barricades. After that, the police and army will move forcefully against them, he said. Opposition activists will be executed without mercy, he said. "They will beg for pardon, but they will not be pardoned," he said.

17:37 Italian coast guard reported to be assisting boat carrying 'Libyan migrants'. Another boat carrying Tunisians apparently intercepted by Italian coast guard.

17:06 Around 200 believed to be aboard Libyan naval frigate just inside Maltese waters. Libyan flag has been lowered.

16:59 Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi delivering live speech on Libyan state TV from his former residence that was bombed by American forces: "I am a revolutionary and a bedouin... the Arab media is betraying you and depicting you like a bad people... they don't want us to be victorious."

Gaddafi said oil-rich Libya led the continents of Africa, Asia and South America.

16:12 Reports that a 'defecting' Libyan naval asset has reportedly entered Maltese waters. According to Al Jazeera, the vessel is being monitored by radar by the Italian army and concerns exist that if the vessel has defected, it might be attacked by the Libyan air-force.

15:56 Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi will address the nation shortly, Libyan state television reported. A military plane from the Netherlands has been authorized to land in Tripoli to evacuate about 100 Dutch nationals.

15:53 Air Malta flight from Tripoli that had to arrive at 1pm, now scheduled for 5:30pm.

14:40 From Benghazi, Ibraheem's flickr page captures protests in Libya http://www.flickr.com/photos/a7fadhomar/

14:21 Libyan ambassador to US joins growing number of diplomats resigning. The Libyan ambassador to the United States, Ali Ageli, called for longtime Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to resign Tuesday in an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America."

14:15 Video shows remains of soldiers burned to death for refusing to cooperate with Gaddafi regime [Warning: Graphic images] Source: The Libyan Thinker on Twitvid

14:10 Picture of snipers in Tripoli from Twitpic, shooting at anti-Gaddafi protestors.

14:02 Air Malta flight from Tripoli was delayed by 90 mins after having been expected to arrive at 1:05pm in Malta. Air Malta has so far been denied permission by the Tripoli airport authorities to operate an extra five charter flights to the Libyan capital to evacuate foreign workers.

13:57 Police outside Libyan embassy have confirmed that Libyan ambassador Saadun Suayeh is not inside the embassy, but that he will only meet protestors' representatives tomorrow morning "on condition that the crowd of protestors disperses". Nestor Laiviera and Miriam Dalli in Attard said that protestors told them they will "sleep out in front of the embassy if necessary."

Protestors also said they want to have some form of communication with their families and relatives in Libya.

13:37 GRTU says it has set up meetings for affected businesses in Libya and has called on government to press for EU funds for businesses.

13:20 Nestor Laiviera in Attard says protestors have asked the Police to communicate with the ambassador. According to one representative, Sadiq Souki, the protestors want Ambassador Saadun Suayeh to step down, join the protests and replace the “unconstitutional” green Libyan flag on the embassy with the pre-revolution green, black and red flag. Protestors have also burnt Libyan dinars.

13:16 Attard: Nestor Laiviera says protestors outside Libyan embassy have held mass prayer, and around 30 police officers have surrounded the embassy. "Protestors are calling for Maltese support and for Maltese citizens to join them in their calls for the resignation of the Libyan ambassador, and to the international community to force Gaddafi's ousting."

13:00 Office of the Prime Minister coordinating evacuations from Libya with foreign ministry. First reports that Malta might be used as logistical base for EU evacuations.  

LISTEN TO Turmoil in the Arab world by intelligence2

12:09 Over 50 protestors outside Libyan embassy in Balzan set fire to a Libyan flag and tear it apart. They are calling for the resignation of Libyan ambassador to Malta. A stone has been thrown at the window of the embassy as soon as an official tried to see what the commotion was.

Video just uploaded on YouTube of anti-Gaddafi protestors in Khummus.

11:49 Libyan protestors enter Malta mosque and remove all portraits of Gaddafi from coordinator's office and burn them. Around 40 protestors are gathering outside the Libyan embassy in Balzan, Nestor Laiviera says. "One protestor, the familiar actor Khaled Riyani 'il-Ginger', was among the protestors. He said that even if Gaddafi stayed in power, he would be ruling over a nation of corpses," with reference to the ongoing massacre in Libya.

Protestors are also demanding that the Libyan ambassador

11:30  UNCHR office in Malta says it has not yet met the two Libyan fighter pilots who defected and want to apply for asylum in Malta. Any political asylum will have to be determined by the Commissioner for Refugees.

11:18 JAMES DEBONO blog: Gaddafi is the sinner

11:00 UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has called for an international investigation into Libya's attacks on anti-government protestors, saying they may amount to crimes against humanity. In a statement, Pillay called for the immediate halt to human rights violations and denounced the reported use of machine guns, snipers and military planes against civilians. "Widespread and systematic attacks against the civilian population may amount to crimes against humanity," said Pillay, a former United Nations war crimes judge.

10:21 Eyewitness report from Tripoli tells MaltaToday situation is "bad beyond any words... we have Africans and Bangladesh mercenaries shooting randomly at people and all we got is few bricks and knives... it's not a fair fight."

10:18 Libyan forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi are still waging a bloody operation to keep him in power, with residents reporting gunfire in parts of the capital Tripoli and other cities, while other citizens, including the country's former ambassador to India, are saying that warplanes were used to "bomb" protesters.

Nearly 300 people are reported to have been killed in continuing violence in the capital and across the north African country as demonstrations enter their second week.

Residents of the Tajura neighbourhood, east of Tripoli, said that dead bodies are still lying on the streets from earlier violence. At least 61 people were killed in the capital on Monday.

Ibrahim Dabbashi, Libya's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, said Gaddafi had started a "genocide against the Libyan people".

00:55 Maltese authorities have reportedly denied a request by the Libyan ambassador to Malta to see the two Libyan Colonels who defected and asked for political asylum in Malta. The pilots made an unauthorised landing at Malta's International Airport with two 'fully armed' Libyan air force fighter Mirage jets.

Sources told MaltaToday that the two pilots will be visited by officials from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and may be granted special protection status, while other reports suggest that the two Air Force officers may be granted temporary asylum in an EU country or in the United States.

The planes landed at MIA without authorisation and the pilots have surrendered to the Maltese authorities. The planes have reportedly escaped from Benghazi where the air base has been looted and destroyed by demonstrators.

Meanwhile, two civilian helicopters with seven passengers has also landed at MIA. Only one passenger had a passport and is said to be French.

The fact that only one passenger had a passport is evidence of the haste of the civilians escape from Libya that is now in chaos.

Senior military sources have told MaltaToday that the pilots had initially told air traffic control operators to be allowed emergency passage into Malta's airspace and also permission to land, as they were without fuel.

Once landed, the planes were surrounded by AFM personnel that took the pilots into custody for investigations.

It is reported that the pilots declared that they fled from Libya after fearing for their lives when the air base in Benghazi was attacked by hundreds of demonstrators.

While the base was destroyed, the two planes took to the air and defected.

However, other sources have said that the pilots latest version is that they were ordered to take to the air and bombard the protestors in various parts of Benghazi where the situation is dramatic and civilians have taken over military assets.

The pilots decided to make a run and flee to Malta, explaining why the planes were fully armed.

The two mirages are the pride and glory of the Libyan airforce,  The Dassault Mirage F1 is a French air-superiority fighter and attack aircraft designed .  More than 700 F1s have been produced.most significantly because almost all of its users have used it in wars and regional conflicts.

The size of the Libyan Air Force is 22 000 persons including 15 000 conscripts. It has 426 combat aircraft and 52 armed helicopters.