UN pulls international staff out of Tripoli

UNITED NATONS: The UN pulled its staff out of Tripoli on Sunday as the security situation in the Libyan capital deteriorated after air strikes apparently killed several members of Moamer Qadhafi's family.

‘The 12 United Nations international staff in Tripoli have temporarily left the capital and are in Tunisia,’ said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky in New York.

The Italian embassy and the residences of the Italian and British ambassadors were torched hours after it emerged that Qadhafi's son Seif al-Arab and three of his grandchildren had been killed in a NATO air strike.

No one was in the buildings at the time but smoke could still be seen rising from them on Sunday afternoon.

There was also an ‘incursion’ into a UN building in Tripoli, Stephanie Bunker, the spokesperson for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told AFP.

After news spread about the strikes, several people forced their way into the unoccupied compound and took some vehicles, Bunker said, adding that all the UN staff were ‘safe and accounted for.’

Nesirky said the UN would continue to review its security situation.

‘We hope to be able to return to Tripoli as soon as the situation allows; in the meantime, the redeployed staff will cover western Libya from Tunisia,’ he said.

UN national staff remain in the country, and international UN staff remain in Benghazi, the main rebel-held city in eastern Libya, Nesirky added.

The establishment of the UN humanitarian presence in Tripoli was agreed by emergency relief coordinator Valerie Amos in a deal struck with the Libyan government on April 17.

The accord will ‘enable us to move around and see exactly what is happening for ourselves,’ Amos said at the time.

Rome and London both confirmed their missions had been targeted, and British Foreign Secretary William Hague announced the expulsion of the Libyan ambassador in response.

In London, Hague said: ‘I condemn the attacks on the British embassy premises in Tripoli as well as the diplomatic missions of other countries.’

‘The Vienna Convention requires the Qadhafi regime to protect diplomatic missions in Tripoli. By failing to do so that regime has once again breached its international responsibilities and obligations,’ Hague said

‘I take the failure to protect such premises very seriously indeed.’

The Italian foreign minister denounced what it called ‘grave and vile actions.’

Britain had recalled its envoy to Tripoli at the start of the conflict in February, and Italy shut down its mission in March.

Earlier Sunday, Italy boosted security checks, a day after Qadhafi threatened retaliation over the Rome government's decision to join the NATO-led air strikes.

Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said Qadhafi's threat to ‘bring the battle to Italy’ should not be under-estimated, but Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said the threats had ‘nothing credible’ about them.

British Prime Minister David Cameron called NATO's targeting policy ‘in line’ with the UN resolution authorizing the Libya campaign with the declared aim of protecting civilians.