Hague suggests Libya rebel fund

William Hague is joining other delegates in Qatar to discuss the ongoing situation in Libya

The UK cannot put a timescale on its involvement in the conflict in Libya, the foreign secretary has said.

William Hague told the BBC it was not possible to predict when the operation would end but said air strikes “saved thousands of lives” and Col Muammar Gaddafi’s rule “has no future”.

He and other global delegates will meet in Qatar to discuss Libya, amid calls for Nato to intensify its campaign.

It follows weeks of unrest as rebels seek to topple Col Gaddafi’s regime.

Representatives of the rebels will meet the newly formed “contact group” on Libya which includes European powers, the US, allies from the Middle East and a number of international organisations.

The Qatar talks coincide with a worsening humanitarian crisis in the rebel-held city of Misrata, where pro-Gaddafi forces have continued to launch fresh attacks.

Misrata, the last rebel-held area in the west, has been under siege for more than six weeks, with rights groups warning of a shortage of food and medical supplies.

Speaking on his way to the talks, Mr Hague told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme “Are we able to say which week these things will come to an end? Of course not, because it is a fast-moving and unpredictable situation.

“But I think it is clear that the Gaddafi regime has no future… the question is how and when it unravels.”

He also spoke of the effect which Nato air strikes have had so far, insisting that this should not be underestimated.

“Thousands of lives have been saved in places like Benghazi and possibly in Misrata,” he said.

“We would now be looking at a pariah state completely under the control of Col Gaddafi, destabilising an already unstable Middle East, if we had not taken the action we have taken.”

Koussa travel

Former Libyan foreign minister Moussa Koussa, who fled to the UK late last month, is among those also due to attend the talks.

He is expected to meet rebels and the Qatari government on the sidelines of the talks and offer “insights” on the current situation in Libya, according to British officials.

Mr Koussa is a former head of Libyan intelligence and has been accused of being involved in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.

The foreign secretary defended the decision to let Mr Koussa travel to the summit.

Mr Hague said: “We behave according to the law. The matter of arrests is for prosecuting authorities and police; that is not for ministers to decide.

“He is not detained; he came here of his own volition. If he was under arrest, he wouldn’t be allowed to leave.”

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