Libya

From the BBC:

• NATO has agreed to take over the responsibility of enforcing the no-fly zone over Libya but Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, said there would still be what he called separate coalition operation


• The UAE became the second Arab country to agree to contribute to the international mission


• There were reports of explosions in Tripoli and anti-aircraft fire over the Libyan capital, with Libyan state TV saying long-range missiles hit the city


• A French jet has destroyed a Libyan aircraft said to have been flying in breach of the UN no-fly zone


• More heavy fighting was reported between rebels and government forces in Misrata and Ajdabiya


• UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said there was no sign that the Libyan government had been complying with UN Security Council demands for an immediate ceasefire

Some questions to ponder: What if the outcome of this conflict is stalemate and a de facto division of Libya, with a rump state controlled by Colonel Gaddafi's regime in the west, and the eastern half of the country under rebel rule, from Libya's second city of Benghazi to the Egyptian border?

What if Gaddafi remains in power? The man is not known for his magnanimity - but he is known for his support of international terrorism.

What are the aims of the rebels? What are their vision for Libya and how do they intend to achieve that vision, beyond toppling Gaddafi?

What are the implications for the region? As I write, Syria's government has announced a series of reforms, aimed at quelling rising unrest in the country's south. Meanwhile Yemen's president Ali Abdullah Saleh has warned that his country stood on the brink of civil war.