Main Developments:
- Third night of air strikes by western forces
- Obama says US policy is that Gaddafi needs to step down
- Cameron says Libyan air defences largely neutralised
2256 Al Jazeera has reported that coalition forces have hit radar installations at two air defence bases east of Benghazi.
2248 Canadian jets have flown their first missions, with four CF-18s and two refuelling tankers conducting a patrol off northern Libya.
2225 British MPs have passed a House of Commons motion supporting the government's decision to commit British armed forces to Libya by 557 votes to 13, a majority of 544.
2223 British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said the legality of military action over Libya was 'not in the slightest doubt'.
Mr Hague said: 'This is not the West imposing its views on Libya. It's the world saying that the people of Libya should be allowed to express their views without their Government setting out to slaughter them.
'This is not a legal fudge or a questionable interpretation of international law. It is the rigorous application of international law.'
2142 There have been air strikes against the southern town of Sebha, an area where Muammar Gaddafi has strong support.
2111 A Libyan navy base 10kms east of Tripoli was bombarded this evening. Witnesses have reported seeing flames there.
2053 The UN Security Council will meet on Thursday at the behest of Gaddafi's regime, a UN diplomat has said.
The diplomat, who was speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, also said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon would speak at Thursday's meeting.
2005 A Libyan government spokesman has said that 'many people' have been killed in attacks on ports and the city of Sirte today.
1902 An explosion has been heard in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, followed by anti-aircraft rounds, according to Reuters news agency.
1847 US President Barack Obama has said that after Gaddafi's air defences are negated, the US will transfer the lead role in Libya operations to other allies.
Mr Obama said that US policy is that Gaddafi 'needs to go', but that allied military operation is about protecting Libyans.
He said that the US would stick to the mandate of the UN resolution.
1758 US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has told the Interfax news agency in Russia that the US will reduce its participation in Libya operations soon.
Mr Gates also said it would be a mistake for coalition to set the goal of killing Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
1755 An official from the Greek defence ministry official has said he expects four mirage jets from Qatar to arrive at the Souda base in Crete tonight or tomorrow.
1740 France has said the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier should be in place and ready to participate in the operation in Libya from tomorrow.
It said it has deployed around 20 military aircraft over Libya but had not carried out any air strikes.
1635 Gen Ham said that the US does not see a prolonged situation of US leadership of coalition.
1633 Gen Ham has said that there may be a decline in frequency of coalition attacks in Libya.
He said that expanding the no-fly zone will enable humanitarian relief.
1623 Ham has said that there are no American or coalition troops on the ground in Libya at all.
Ham said that Gaddafi staying in power was not ideal but that an attack on Gaddafi was not part of the current mission.
He said that the coalition had flown 70-80 sorties today, and that well over half of these had been non-US.
1623 US Commander Carter Ham has said he doesn't know much about the location of Gaddafi.
Ham said that the mission in Libya was not to support Opposition forces, and that there had been no official communication with the Opposition.
He said that the coalition was not providing close air support to the Opposition, but was instead seeking to protect civilians.
He that so far, the coalition was achieving its military objectives.
1606 US commander says it is expected that the Libyan no-fly zone will soon be extended to 1,000km. The commander also says the mission is not to support opposition forces and says there has been no communication with them.
1605 British Prime Minister David Cameron tells the House of Commons that the UK's intention is that coalition command for the Libyan operation will transfer to NATO.
1600 Watch the Westminister debate on the Libya conflict LIVE
1555 The United Arab Emirates says its role in Libya is limited to humanitarian aid.
1554 Belgium's Defence Minister Pieter De Crem said four Belgian F-16 jets conducted the country's first Libya operation in cooperation with the international coalition.
1544 Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said that using the term crusades to refer to the situation in Libya was 'unacceptable', appearing to publicly criticise the country's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Reuters reported that Mr Medvedev spoke just hours after Mr Putin likened the United Nations Security Council resolution authorising military intervention in Libya to 'medieval calls for crusades'.
'In no way is it acceptable to use expressions that in essence lead to a clash of civilisations, such as crusades and so forth - this is unacceptable,' Mr Medvedev said at his residence outside of Moscow. 'Otherwise everything may end up far worse.'
1540 At least 11 people have been killed and dozens more were wounded by fire from forces loyal to Gaddafi in the city of Misrata, east of Tripoli, a rebel spokesman has told AFP.
1538 UK Prime Minister David Cameron has said that coalition forces have largely neutralised Libyan air defences.
1532 An EU official has said the EU is ready to mobilise military for Libya humanitarian aid.
1520 The coalition fired 10 to 12 missiles at targets in Libya overnight, a spokesman for the US Africa Command said on Monday.
1452 Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has strongly criticised the UN resolution allowing military action on Libya as a 'medieval call to crusade' and hit out at the United States for its readiness to resort to force.
'The resolution by the Security Council, of course, is defective and flawed,' Mr Putin told workers on a visit to a missile factory.
'To me, it resembles some sort of medieval call to crusade when someone would appeal to someone to go to a certain place and free something there.'
1416 Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned the Western intervention in Libya, saying it is aimed at 'getting their hands on its oil'. He said Iran supports the Libyan rebels.
1356 The UN Security Council will probably hold a close door meeting on Libya this afternoon, a diplomat has said.
1257 Hundreds of people have demonstrated against the Syrian government in the town of Jassem, activists said.
'They are staging a sit-in the centre of the town,' one of the activists said.
1241 Speaking about the release of the four New York Times' journalists Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said 'Thanks to the Libyan authorities and their cooperation, the four New York Times journalists were... handed over to our embassy a while ago.'
1217 Three Danish fighter jets took part in an overnight mission in Libya early yesterday, an air force spokesman said.
1215 The Turkish Foreign Minister has said that four New York Times reporters are free at the Turkish embassy in Tripoli.
1214 Libyan rebels have welcomed more air strikes by foreign forces against Gaddafi's army but do not want foreign ground troops to intervene in the war, a rebel spokesman has said.
'The committee rejects foreign troops on the ground but we encourage the bombardment of Gaddafi's army,' Ahmed El-Hasi, a spokesman for the February 17 opposition coalition, said in.
1159 Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says Gaddafi’s regime does not meet democratic criteria, but said that does not justify military intervention.
1140 The military intervention in Libya is an 'adventure' driven by petroleum interests, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has said.
'We are not participating for the simple reason that (the allied campaign) does not have formulated objectives and ways to achieve them. I would not let our pilots into an adventure like this,' Mr Borisov told private TV7 television in an interview.
'Petrol and who will exploit Libya's oil fields are to a great extent the interests behind this operation.'
'There are many African countries where hundreds of thousands were killed, where unrest is ongoing... But there are no operations conducted there,' he added.
Borisov said that 'a financial-economic blockade' would have forced Gaddafi 'to withdraw much faster'.
1126 Iraq has said it supports international intervention in Libya.
Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Iraq supported the UN Security Council resolution that authorised the intervention, and would back any action as long as it was authorised by the United Nations.
'The Iraqi government supports the international efforts to prevent any acts of violence made by the Gaddafi regime against its people.'
However, influential Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr condemned it and said Western states should avoid civilian casualties
1053 Indian Foreign Minister SM Krishna has called for an end to air strikes in Libya, saying they would lead to more harm to 'innocent civilians, foreign nationals and diplomatic missions.'
'We regret the air strikes that are taking place,' Krishna told reporters in the Indian capital.
'India calls upon all parties to abjure violence and the use of threat and force to resolve the differences. I think the need of the hour is cessation of armed conflict,' he added.
1026 Turkey has said it is disturbed by fellow NATO member France's 'prominent role' in the UN-mandated intervention in Libya, signalling further disagreements within the alliance.
'It seems impossible for us to understand France being so prominent in this process. We are having difficulty in understanding it being like the enforcer of United Nations decisions,' Turkish Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul told reporters.
Several NATO nations, led by France, Britain and the US, have taken part in air attacks on Libya.
But NATO as an organisation has been divided on whether to take part.
1010 Donal MacIntyre tells Today with Pat Kenny that the bombings have been so far quite precise and he is sceptical about reports of large civilian casualties.
1008 Around 50 demonstrators loyal to Gaddafi surrounded UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Cairo's Tahrir Square today, forcing him to retreat into the adjacent Arab League headquarters.
Chanting, carrying banners and the national flag of Gaddafi's Libya, the protestors surged towards Ban and his 15-strong delegation.
Police and troops intervened to let the UN group escape.
0950 A spokesman for the Iraqi government said it supports the international efforts to protect the Libyan people.
0948 A rebel spokesman said that pro-Gaddafi forces are bringing civilians from nearby towns to Misrata to use as human shields.
0927 Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini has joined EU talks saying the allied campaign in Libya 'shouldn't be a war' on the country.
'We want to verify all the actions undertaken are consistent with the mission objectives' under United Nations Resolution 1739,' he said.
'We do not want to go beyond the scope of the Resolution,' he added as he joined talks between foreign ministers of the 27-nation bloc.
0925 UN chief Ban Ki-moon has told the Arab League that it was vital the world speak as one on Libya, speaking next to the bloc's secretary general who had criticised coalition air and missile strikes.
0901 Germany's Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Arab League criticism of alliance action in Libya showed Germany had 'good reasons' to fear military intervention.
0900 The Libya war and revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia should be a warning to authoritarian leaders in the Middle East and North Africa still ordering forces to shoot demonstrators, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.
Mr Ban, who has criticised the King of Bahrain and strongly condemned the repression of demonstrations in Yemen and Syria in recent days, said that other nations have a duty to speak out.
‘It is clear that a wind of change is sweeping this region,’ he said in an interview.
‘The international community, while we closely follow the situation, has a responsibility to help those people, so that leaders could hear clearly and sincerely the voices of the people, their aspirations.’
0858 Western forces launched air strikes until early today on Muammar Gaddafi's forces around Ajdabiyah, a strategic town in east Libya that rebels aim to retake, rebels said.
'There were air strikes till early this morning. The rebels attacked at about 3am and Gaddafi's forces counter-attacked. They are still at the eastern gate of Ajdabiyah,' said Ahmed al-Tir, a rebel fighter in Zueitina about 15km away.
He and other rebels said air strikes on Ajdabiyah began late on Sunday.
'The air strikes were on the eastern gate. I saw that myself and I think there were air strikes on the western gate but I only saw smoke from that direction,' he said.
Others said the attacks mainly targeted the western gate.
The initial allied air raids destroyed Libyan army tanks and other heavy weapons on the road to Benghazi.
0837 William Hague said he had spoken to Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa after Mr Moussa was quoted as saying he did not want military strikes that hit civilians.
‘Of course he was expressing his concern, as we as all do, about any civilian casualities,’ Mr Hague told BBC Radio 4.
‘He continued to support the UN resolution, the implementation of the resolution,’ Mr Hague added.
‘I think too much was made of Amr Moussa's comments. I will be talking to him again today. I talked to Arab foreign ministers yesterday. I did not detect in them any weakening of their commitment to implement this resolution.’
0830 British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said there will be no occupying force or invasion of Libya.
0823 British Tornado jets pulled back from attacking Libyan air defence systems overnight because of a fear of hitting civilians.
Royal Air Force planes approached a target but decided not to launch their weapons because of information that there were civilians in the area, military spokesman Major General John Lorimer said.
0750 The French government has said it has found no evidence that civilians have been killed in international strikes against Libya.
‘There is no information of killed civilians that the French command is aware of,’ spokesman Francois Baroin told Canal+.
0740 Ryanair has said that from today, its flight schedule will not operate from Trapani Airport in Sicily because of the military operation in Libya.
The airline said flights would be diverted to Palermo Airport, 56km from Trapani, for an indefinite period.
Ryanair said 28 flights would be affected today.
