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dialogue with rebels, key terms in a “roadmap” to peace proposed by African Union mediators in the country.
Leading a high-ranking AU delegation, South African President Jacob Zuma met Gaddafi for several hours at the Libyan leader’s Bab al-Aziziyah compound with four other African leaders.
“We have completed our mission with the brother leader, and the brother leader’s delegation has accepted the roadmap as presented by us,” said Zuma.
“We also in this communique are making a call on NATO to cease the bombings to allow and to give a ceasefire a chance,” he added.
The delegation arrived in Libya’s capital city of Tripoli earlier Sunday and will travel west to the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, 1 000 km east of Tripoli.
The AU early Sunday urged an immediate end to all hostilities in the war-torn Libya and made a proposal to set up a transition period for adopting reforms.
The statement also called for humanitarian aid and dialogue between the Libyan government and the opposition parties.
Algeria and Cuba on Sunday called on all concerned parties in Libya to end clashes and launch peace talks as soon as possible.
At a joint news conference in Algiers with his Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, Algerian Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci said they hoped the “fighting in Libya would end and dialogue would be launched soon.”
“Cuba has earlier condemned foreign intervention in Libya,” said Parrilla, who is on a three-day visit to Algeria, adding his country is “concerned about the killing of innocent civilians there.”
Also on Sunday, NATO’s air force stepped up its attacks against Libyan government forces. The coalition said dozens of armored vehicles on the outskirts of the eastern town of Ajdabiyah and near Misrata were destroyed.
Since NATO took command of Western military operations in Libya from the United States on March 31, its warplanes have made over 1500 sorties, including 643 intended as strike missions as of April 10.
A senior Libyan official accused NATO of only enforcing UN resolutions on the government forces. He also said the government forces shot down two US – made Chinook helicopters used by the rebels in the eastern part of the country.
The International Red Cross expressed in Geneva concerns about several thousand foreign migrants stranded in Misrata, living under tarpaulins and shelters. The International Committee of the Red Cross entered the city by sea for a day to evaluate medical conditions and aid needs, an ICRC spokeswoman said. – Xinhua.