France fires first shots against Libya after Gaddafi’s forces enter Benghazi

TRIPOLI, Libya — A French fighter jet fired on a Libyan military vehicle Saturday in the first reported offensive action by an international mission to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya.French Defense Ministry spokesman Thierry Burkhard said that the jet had not reported encountering hostile fire and that the type of military vehicle it targeted was not clear, the Associated Press reported.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy confirmed the launch of military operations in a brief news conference earlier Saturday, saying that Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi had defied international demands for a cease-fire and was attacking civilians in eastern cities with “murderous madness.”

“Today we are intervening in Libya with a U.N. Security Council mandate,” Sarkozy said. The rapid deployment of warplanes came as Gaddafi appeared to move quickly to try to rout an embattled rebel army in Benghazi and consolidate his control over the country before international forces could intervene.

The French warplanes are expected to be joined in coming days by aircraft and logistical support from Britain, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and other countries under a U.N. mandate authorizing a broad use of force to prevent the slaughter of Libyan citizens.

Sarkozy spoke at the close of an emergency meeting in Paris that was described as an effort to project international unity and resolve against Gaddafi. U.S. officials had said that the meeting in Paris, which drew leaders from 22 countries, among them Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, would focus on developments in Libya and the next steps to take.

An administration official, speaking shortly before the news broke about the French intervention, said all the leaders recognized the urgency of the situation in eastern Libya.

“We’ve made clear what our expectations are, and we have also made clear that the international community is prepared to act if he doesn’t meet those expectations,” the official said.

Forces loyal to Gaddafi entered the eastern rebel stronghold of Benghazi early in the day after shelling and fierce fighting, a fresh act of defiance of U.N. calls for a cease-fire. Government troops in tanks and trucks entered Benghazi from the southwest, in the university area, and began to shell the city, including civilian areas. Intense fighting broke out in some enclaves. The city of 1 million quickly became a ghost town, with residents fleeing or seeking cover in barricaded neighborhoods.

A warplane crashed down over Benghazi, and rebel leaders later claimed it as one of theirs. Although they said mechanical problems caused the crash, calls from mosques across the city suggested that friendly fire brought down the plane. “Don’t attack the airplanes, because these are our planes,” a mosque preacher urged over loudspeakers.President Obama, speaking at an appearance in Brasilia with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, reiterated his call for the Libyan government to stop attacking rebels or face military action.

“Our resolve is clear: The people of Libya must be protected,” Obama said in brief remarks after a meeting with Rousseff. He did not take questions.

On Friday, Obama had warned that the Libyan leader faced imminent military action unless his troops were withdrawn from all disputed cities in the country. But the besieged town of Misurata, 130 miles east of Tripoli, was still coming under heavy artillery fire, residents said, and there were also reports of continued fighting around Ajdabiya, even farther to the east. The assaults on rebel-held towns took place despite government promises of a cease-fire.

In what appeared to be a desperate attempt to avert military action, Gaddafi sent two letters to international leaders, according to deputy foreign minister Khaled Kaim, who read the letters to journalists. One was a warm, conciliatory note to Obama, and the other was a sharply worded, menacing message to the United Nations, France and Britain.

To Obama, he wrote: “If Libya and the US enter into a war you will always remain my son, and I have love for you.” Libya is battling al-Qaeda, he said, seeking Obama’s advice. “How would you behave so that I can follow your example?” he asked.

In the other letter, addressed to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the leaders of France and Britain, he warned that the region would be destabilized if they pursued strikes against Libya. “You will regret it if you take a step to intervene in our internal affairs,” he wrote.

Libyan government spokesman Ibrahim Musa said rebels, not government forces, were the ones breaking the cease-fire by attacking military forces, the Associated Press reported. “Our armed forces continue to retreat and hide, but the rebels keep shelling us and provoking us,” he said.

The conditions set by Obama were more specific than those contained in a resolution approved a day earlier by the U.N. Security Council, suggesting that the United States and its allies are in no mood to countenance delays by a Libyan regime whose forces have recaptured large swaths of territory from rebels in recent days.

U.S. ships in the Mediterranean were preparing to bombard Libya’s air defenses and runways to clear the way for European and Arab forces to establish a no-fly zone throughout the country, according to U.S. and European officials. Fighter aircraft from France, Britain and the United Arab Emirates converged on bases in and around Italy to begin operations over Libya under the command and control of the United States at its naval base in Naples.