Tripoli, June 07: A series of NATO airstrikes have hit sites in and around the Libyan capital, targeting the military installations of the Muammar Gaddafi regime.
NATO has recently stepped up its aerial assaults on Libya and begun using French and British attack helicopters.
Fighting is also continuing on the ground between forces loyal to Gaddafi and revolutionary fighters.
On Monday, Libyan officials took a group of journalists to view the remains of a government building in Tripoli that they say was damaged in a NATO bombing run earlier in the day.
Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim said some schools and a broadcasting center were also damaged because of their proximity to the bomb sites, AP reported.
Kaim told the media that it was “not in their agenda at all” for Gaddafi to step down.
NATO launched a major air campaign against the forces of the Libyan regime in mid-March under a UN mandate to “protect the Libyan population.”
The United States, France, and Britain say they will not stop their military operation until Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi is removed from power.
The Western coalition airstrikes have claimed the lives of scores of civilians so far.
Libyan revolutionary forces have also frequently criticized NATO for its failure to prevent Gaddafi’s troops from killing civilians.
A revolution against Gaddafi began in Libya in mid-February.
——–Agencies