Gaddafi Compound Struck in Operation Odyssey Dawn, 124 Missiles Launched Through Day 2, 3 Maps & 7 Videos
While the attacks on Libya’s integrated air and missile defense system have been successful, thousands of anti-aircraft artillery emplacements and portable missile launchers still pose threats to coalition air crews, the director of the Joint Staff said yesterday. The U.S. has asserted that Gaddafi continues to violate the cease fire,
On the second day of Operation Odyssey Dawn, Navy Vice Adm. William E. Gortney said the coalition cruise missile strikes against selected air defense systems and facilities were successful, and that coalition ships and submarines launched 124 Tomahawk missiles against these targets.
Navy Vice Adm. William E. Gortney, director of the Joint Staff, updates reporters on Operation Odyssey Dawn at the Pentagon, March 20, 2011
. DOD photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Jerry Morrison
“We judge these strikes to have been very effective in degrading the regime’s air defense capability, to include their ability to launch many of their SA-5s – their long range missiles – their SA-3s and SA-2s,” Gortney said during a Pentagon news conference.
Moammar Gadhafi’s regime has not launched aircraft, and the coalition has not detected any radar emissions from the air defense sites targeted, the admiral said.
“There has been a significant decrease in the use of all Libyan air surveillance radars,” he added. “These seem to be limited to the areas around Tripoli and Sert.”
Air Force B-2 bombers also attacked Libyan airfields, flattening the hardened shelters Libyan fighter-bombers use, Gortney said. Coalition tactical fighters also hit Gadhafi’s ground forces on the outskirts of Benghazi, where 15 U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps, French and British aircraft participated in the action about 10 miles south of the opposition stronghold. “We judge these also to have been highly successful at halting the regime ground movement in this region,” Gortney said.
Libya’s fixed surface-to-air missile threat and early warning radars are gone. The threat that remains comes from mobile surface-to-air missiles — SA-6 and SA-8 systems – as well as thousands of shoulder-fired SA-7 missile launchers, the admiral told reporters.
The coalition has not directly targeted anti-aircraft artillery, Gortney said, because many are near homes and there are thousands of these guns.
The coalition has grown and will continue to increase, Gortney said, noting that it includes the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Italy, Qatar, Belgium, Norway and Denmark. More nations will directly participate in the coalition, he said, and other nations will provide overflight rights, basing and logistics. Gortney said those nations will make their announcements at their own times.
The United States leads the coalition effort now, but that will change, the admiral said.
“Our intent is to be a part of the coalition throughout, and transfer the command to a coalition command,” he said. The United States would shift to more of a support function that would include aerial tankers; electronic warfare aircraft; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft; and logistics.
A cruise missile blasted Moammar Gadhafi’s residential compound in an attack that carried as much symbolism as military effect, and fighter jets destroyed a line of tanks moving on the rebel capital. The U.S. said the international assault would hit any government forces attacking the opposition, according to the Associated Press.
Allied airstrikes have pounded Libya for a second night, destroying a building just yards from Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s private residence.
Eyewitness Mohammed Salem describes seeing the attack
Credit: Sky News
Marines from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit launched five airstrikes against Libya on day two of Operation Odyssey Dawn.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Stout launches a Tomahawk missile to support Operation Odyssey Dawn in the Mediterranean Sea, March 19, 2011. This was one of approximately 110 cruise missiles fired from U.S. and British ships and submarines that targeted about 20 radar and anti-aircraft sites along Libya’s Mediterranean coast.
U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jeramy Spivey
Gaddafi has condemned attack on his forces. The UN has imposed a no-fly zone on Libya and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi have been hit in an airstrike.
But the Libyan leader remains defiant and has called the air attacks by French, US and British forces a “cold war” on Islam. He says his regime has “opened the depots” and distributed weapons among the populace .
Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher reports
President Barack Obama says the U.S. military will offer its unique capabilities at the front end of Operation Odyssey Dawn, the international effort to protect the citizens of Libya.
As seen through night-vision lenses aboard amphibious transport dock USS Ponce, the guided missile destroyer USS Barry fires Tomahawk cruise missiles to support Operation Odyssey Dawn in the Mediterrean Sea, March 19, 2011. This was one of about 110 cruise missiles fired from U.S. and British ships and submarines that targeted about 20 radar and anti-aircraft sites along Libya’s Mediterranean coast.
U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Nathanael Miller
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ADM Mike Mullen discusses the situation in Libya and the U.S. military’s role in Operation Odyssey Dawn
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Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ADM Mike Mullen says initial airstrikes on Libya’s ground-based air defense systems were a success. The coalition attacks yesterday have put in place the conditions needed to establish a no-fly zone over Libya, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” today, according to a report by Jim Garamone of the American Forces Press Service
“Effectively, the no-fly zone has been put in place,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said. “We have halted [Moammar Gadhafi's forces] in the vicinity of Benghazi, which is where he most recently was on the march, and it is hard to say what’ll happen in the next few days and weeks.”
Mullen spoke of Operation Odyssey Dawn and support of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973. The resolution calls for a coalition to stop Gadhafi from killing his own people and to establish a no-fly zone over Libya.
Vice Admiral Bill Gortney, who is the director of the Joint Staff says on this map, “you can see the rough locations of the military targets struck. You will notice that most of them are on or near the coast, a fact which made their destruction vital to the enforcement of a no-fly zone since so much of the air activity we have seen and so much of the regime’s military efforts have been in this part of the country. These strikes were carefully coordinated with our coalition partners. The targets themselves were selected based on our collective assessment that these sites either pose a direct threat to the coalition pilots or through use by the regime pose a direct threat to the people of Libya.”
“Operations yesterday went very well, certainly in putting in place the no-fly zone,” Mullen said. Gadhafi has not had any aircraft flying for the last couple of days, and the Tomahawk barrage on the integrated air and missile defense system effectively shut the system down.” B-2 bomber attacks also hit Libyan airfields.
The coalition has combat air patrols up over the opposition stronghold of Benghazi in the eastern part of the country, the chairman said, and the combat air patrol will push west toward the capital of Tripoli in the future.
Mullen said the operation is focused on ensuring Gadhafi can’t continue to execute his own people. “We don’t see any indications of any sort of large-scale massacre at this time,” he added.
The coalition has taken pains to avoid causing civilian casualties, Mullen said, but Gadhafi has placed people near the radars and anti-aircraft missile sites to serve as a human shield between them and coalition attacks. “True to form, what Gadhafi has done is put in place human shields in some cases, or just said we’ve caused civilian casualties. I just haven’t seen that,” the chairman said.
The following map shows the coalition no fly ozone.
Forces loyal to Gadhafi are near Benghazi, and some of the attacks yesterday were on those forces. Mullen said he expects those attacks will increase in the hours and days to come to prevent them from attacking innocent civilians.
Ghadafi has a stockpile of mustard gas, but coalition intelligence shows he is not moving to deploy that capability, the chairman said.
American leaders are in charge of Operation Odyssey Dawn right now, but the command will shift to another coalition country in the days ahead, Mullen said. “The United States will continue to support with unique capabilities which include [electronic] jamming support, … tanker support for the aircraft, those kinds of things,” he said.
U.S. Africa Command chief Army Gen. Carter F. Ham briefed President Barack Obama on Operation Odyssey Dawn. Obama, on a visit to South America, held a secure conference call that also included Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and National Security Advisor Tom Donilon.
According to a readout of the session released by the White House, “the president offered his thanks and admiration to General Ham and asked that he communicate that to all of the men and women of the U.S. armed forces who are carrying out this operation.”
Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, American Forces Press Service, reports, initial operations in Libya have been very effective, with French, British and U.S. air strikes crippling Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi’s capabilities. He cited the U.S. military’s top-ranking officer.
Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that after one day of operations, the coalition already has taken out most of Gadhafi’s air defenses and airfields, and that the no-fly zone in Libya has been established.
“We’ve worked hard to plan this in a relatively short period of time,” Mullen said. “I would say that the no-fly zone is effectively in place.”
Gadhafi’s forces are stretched thin between the Libyan oil towns and major cities of Tripoli and Benghazi, Mullen said, noting that U.S. fighter jets have delivered major blows to forces in those towns and now are working to attack Gadhafi’s supply lines.
“We’ve got combat air patrols and aircraft over Benghazi, and we’ll have them there on a 24/7 basis,” the admiral explained. “[Gadhafi's forces haven't] flown any aircraft in the past two days. He’s pretty well stretched now, and we will endeavor to sever his logistics support here in the next day or so.
“We’re in a situation now where what we do will depend to some degree on what he does,” Mullen added. “We’ve focused mainly on his air defense capabilities and airfields, [but] this will allow us to get other capabilities where we can jam his communications and those kinds of things.”
Among the naval forces in the Mediterranean include Arleigh Burke-class, guided-missile destroyers USS Stout (DDG 55) and USS Barry (DDG 52) and submarines USS Providence (SSN 719), USS Scranton (SSN 756) and USS Florida (SSGN 728) participated in the strike. Other ships in the JTF include USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), USS Ponce (LPD 15), and USS Mount Whitney (LCC/JCC 20).]
Army Gen. Carter F. Ham, commander of U.S. Africa Command, is leading the coalition effort in Libya. Mullen said he expects Ham to hand command off to a coalition commander in the next few days, and that the United States will transition to more of a supporting role in an effort that will involve more nations, including Arab militaries.
“As more and more capabilities from other countries start to show up, I think you’ll see the U.S. move to more of a support role,” the chairman said. “I’m very confident that there will be military capabilities from some Arab nations, that they are actually moving into theater now.
“That’s been the commitment on part of the political leadership in some Arab countries, and I expect that to happen militarily, as well,” he added.
Mullen also fielded questions on ABC’s “This Week with Christiane Amanpour.”
With Arab states joining the coalition effort, Gadhafi is more isolated by the international community than ever before, Mullen said, noting United Nations sanctions and an arms embargo now emplaced on Libya.
Although Gadhafi may be vulnerable, Mullen said, he stressed that the U.S. military objective is not to topple the regime. Rather, he said, it’s to ensure the no-fly zone, protect Libyan civilians and support humanitarian assistance to flow into the country.
“We’re very focused on the limited objective [President Barack Obama] and the international community has given us in terms of providing the no-fly zone so [Gadhafi] cannot attack his own people, to avoid any kind of humanitarian massacre and to provide for the humanitarian support of the Libyan people,” he explained. The international military effort so far has been very successful, he said.
“From a military standpoint, certainly [Gadhafi’s forces] have some capabilities, but they’ve not been very effective,” Mullen said. “He still has, from what I see this morning, some surface-to-air capabilities where he could attack an aircraft, [but] we haven’t seen large scales of that after yesterday.
“He clearly still has the capability to attack his own people,” the chairman continued. “We’re very focused on that, and trying to ensure his military forces don’t do that.”
Coalition military forces launched more air strikes on Libya Sunday during the second day of Operation Odyssey Dawn
Operation Odyssey Dawn is a coalition effort responding to the calls of the Libyan people, Arab nations and the international community as a whole, the undersecretary of defense for policy said today.
In a BBC interview, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy spoke about the operation aimed at protecting the people of Libya from forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi and establishing a no-fly zone over the nation. Jim Garamone of the American Forces Press Service, describes the interview and the military’s action in Libya.
Yesterday’s attacks set the conditions to establish the no-fly zone, she said.
“The first steps of establishing any no-fly zone are taking out the adversary’s air defenses,” she explained. U.S. and British warships fired 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Libyan integrated air and missile defense system, and American B-2 bombers attacked Libyan airfields.
To date, the countries that have announced they are part of the Odyssey Dawn coalition are the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Canada and Qatar. More are expected to announce support in the coming days.
“This is an increasingly broad international coalition that includes not only the United States and European nations, but a number of Arab nations that are stepping up to provide various forms of assistance, whether it is military participation, access, basing, financial support and so forth,” Flournoy said.
The mission does not end with establishing the no-fly zone, she said, noting that U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 calls for the coalition to protect Libyan civilians. Gadhafi’s forces were moving on Benghazi – the opposition strongpoint in eastern Libya. Flournoy said coalition forces will use all assets “to stop Gadhafi’s forces from moving in to those urban areas, to cut supply lines, command and control and so forth.”
“We will do whatever we can to enforce the U.N.’s resolution,” she added.
The undersecretary said directing coalition air power against Gadhafi’s tanks and armored vehicles in the cities will be difficult, but time is not on Gadhafi’s side.
“The will of the international community is quite strong,” she said. “The solidarity across … the region is quite strong. He’s lost his legitimacy by attacking his own people. Time will tell the outcome of this operation.”
Flournoy would not discuss anything beyond the current operation. “It’s too early to speculate about where this is going to end up,” she said. “Gadhafi and his military are going to be under enormous pressure. I think their efforts to turn against their own population will be thwarted. We will have to see how the days play out before we will know exactly how this end game will play out.”
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