British nationals speak of “disastrous” evacuation from Libya
Race to rescue Britons from Libya
Scores of Britons are stranded in Libya as efforts are redoubled to bring them back amid continuing protests there.
The prime minister is due to chair a high-level meeting of the National Security Council on Friday morning.
High on the agenda will be the question of how to rescue the Britons who remain in Tripoli and in the desert.
On Thursday David Cameron said he was “incredibly sorry” for the government’s handling of the evacuation of British nationals from Libya.
His comments followed criticism of a slow government response to the crisis.
The Foreign Office confirmed there were up to 220 Britons still stranded in Libya, 50 of them in Tripoli and between 150 and 170 in the more remote oil-producing areas in the Libyan desert.
The BBC’s security correspondent Frank Gardiner said the SAS had been put on standby for an “emergency deployment”.
Several people who arrived back at Gatwick on a government-chartered flight on Thursday described the Foreign Office’s response as “disastrous”.
They complained about being cold, wet and hungry waiting 14 hours for the plane to arrive and take them home.
One told the BBC: “If the government’s going to do something it needs to pull its finger out and actually physically do something.”
Another said: “The people on the ground from the British embassy, when we finally found them at the airport, they couldn’t have been better. But the communication with London, it was just a fiasco.”
One of the lucky ones to get out was a British woman who was airlifted with her newborn baby by an Irish government LearJet.
The woman, who had just given birth by Caesarean section, was evacuated to Malta with her husband and two other children.
Stuck in the desert
Time goes slowly when you’re stuck in a country in turmoil (writes an anonymous oil worker based on the outskirts of Tripoli).
Mobile communications have been down for several days now, and the internet is sporadic at best.
We have been depending on a generator for much of our electricity, so have managed to keep a semblance of normal life ongoing.
We have enough supplies to last for two months, but fresh food and bread are luxuries we shall have to wait for. At night we sit and worry about our colleagues in other parts of the country, wondering whether they are safe.
Some of you may be wondering why I’m still here. Well the reason is simple. I have four men still stuck in the desert, and I won’t be leaving the country until they have been safely evacuated.
Mr Cameron said it had not been an easy situation and ministers needed to “learn the lessons”.
The Foreign Office said it had helped a total of 350 British nationals leave Libya on Thursday, including 79 on a flight chartered by oil company BP.
US President Barack Obama and Mr Cameron also discussed Libya on the telephone on Thursday night.
A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The prime minister updated the president on his trip to the Middle East, stressing the importance of seizing this moment of opportunity for change in the region.
“The leaders discussed Libya and agreed to work together closely on the swift evacuation of nationals. They also agreed to co-ordinate on possible multilateral measures on Libya, including at the UN Human Rights Council on Monday.”
A flight chartered by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), carrying 181 adults and two children, including 113 Britons, landed at Gatwick at 2030 GMT on Thursday.
Another plane was due to arrive at 0330GMT.
Foreign Office helplineUK nationals in Libya wishing to get on the charter flights are advised to call the following numbers: 020 7008 0000 from the UK or 021 3403644/45 from LibyaGaddafi says Bin Laden to blame British evacuation plans ‘Tripoli airport is like a zoo’ Libya rescue: What went wrong?
Mr Cameron said of the British response: “Of course I am incredibly sorry. They have had a difficult time. The conditions at the airport have been extremely poor.
“There are going to be lessons to be learned from this and we will make absolutely sure that we learn them for the future but, right now, the priority has got to be getting those British nationals home.”
Labour leader Ed Miliband criticised the government’s reaction to the crisis.
He said: “I’m afraid the government has been slow off the mark and lessons need to be learned, but the priority now is to get Our correspondent said an SAS contingent has been put on standby for emergency deployment to parts of Libya, backed up by paratroopers of the Special Forces Support Group.
UK nationals wishing to register an interest in flights out of Libya should call 020 7008 0000 from the UK or 021 3403644/45 from Libya.
The Foreign Office is advising against all but essential travel to Libya.
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