UN Security Council ends mandate for international military operations in Libya

UN Security Council ends mandate for international military operations in Libya

2011-10-28 18:33:24 GMT+7 (ICT)

UNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) -- The United Nations (UN) Security Council on Thursday voted unanimously to end its authorization of foreign military intervention in Libya, a week after the killing of ouster Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and the declared liberation of the North African nation by former rebels.

The 15-member UN body agreed to lift the no-fly zone over Libya on October 31 and end military action to protect civilians. The resolution comes more than seven months after the body allowed UN Member States to take "all necessary measures" to protect civilians caught up in the fighting between rebels and forces supporting Gaddafi.

According to the resolution, the authorization for foreign military intervention in Libya will end at 11:59 p.m. local time in Libya on October 31. Authorization for the no-fly zone will lapse at the same time.

The Council said the North African country now has better prospects for a "democratic, peaceful and prosperous future." It also reiterated the need for the transitional period to be underpinned by a "commitment to democracy, good governance, the rule of law, national reconciliation and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people."

Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) on Sunday declared the full liberation of the country, more than eight months after the popular uprising began, and days after the death of Muammar Gaddafi.

Gaddafi was captured on October 20 by fighters supporting Libya's transitional government as he tried to flee his hometown Sirte. He was eventually shot dead but it remains unclear whether he was executed by his captors or if he was killed during fighting between pro-Gaddafi and anti-Gaddafi forces.

On Saturday, a review of newly released video showed how an unidentified man sodomized Gaddafi with an object before he was eventually killed. The video was released by the website the Global Post, which obtained the footage from rebel fighters.

It is believed more than 25,000 people have been killed during the civil war.

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