大象传媒

What increasingly looks like a civil war in Libya is an unusual conflict, since outside humanitarian agencies have so little role in the country. Independent eyes and ears on the ground are essential if there is to be any proper assessment of the humanitarian conditions, and where urgent medical aid needs to be sent.

The lack of any clear picture of the course of the fighting adds to the uncertainty. The United Nations relief co-ordinator, Valerie Amos, pointed especially to the western city of Misrata, where there has been heavy fighting, and which the Red Crescent has been unable to reach with ambulances or aid. The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, says that the Libyan authorities have agreed to a humanitarian assessment team going in, but initially, they will only be heading to Tripoli.

There seems to have been a significant misjudgement by the outside world as to the pace and trajectory of events in Libya. The battery of sanctions, diplomatic measures and the referral to the International Criminal Court were pursued at great pace, almost on the assumption that the Libyan leader, Colonel Gaddafi, would have been gone by now. The fact that he's fighting back raises the possibility of a lengthy or sporadic conflict, which neither side may be able to win. In the meantime the humanitarian situation will get worse and the calls for outside intervention may grow.

Jonathan Marcus, 大象传媒 News