EU ready to evacuate Libya, but divided over Kadhafi

BRUSSELS: European governments readied to evacuate thousands of citizens from Libya Monday as oil-rich Tripoli warned of a "fight to the last bullet," but cracks remained on how to handle Moamer Kadhafi.

As British Prime Minister David Cameron made a surprise visit to Egypt, whose veteran leader Hosni Mubarak was toppled in the second Arab uprising this year after Tunisia, a deadly crackdown in Libya only emboldened protesters who stormed the state broadcaster and torched police stations in Tripoli.

With the revolutionary challenge to diehard leader Kadhafi's 41-year rule reaching fever pitch, his son Saif al-Islam warned that "rivers of blood will run through Libya" in a blunt threat to enter "civil war."

Portugal Monday sent a military plane to Tripoli to evacuate its nationals and those of other EU countries.

The C-130 Hercules aircraft was expected to be in the Libyan capital within "three or four hours," said Antonia Braga, minister with responsibility for Portuguese communities.

And in Brussels, Portuguese Foreign Minsiter Luis Amado said a second plane was on standby to evacuate some 50 Portuguese nationals from the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.

As Italy and Bulgaria meanwhile joined China in warning against all travel to Libya while Spanish Foreign Minister Trinidad Jimenez said counterparts from around the 27-state EU were envisaging pulling people out, particularly from the eastern opposition stronghold of Benghazi.

"We are extremely concerned, we are coordinating the possible evacuation of EU citizens coming from Libya especially from Benghazi," Jimenez said.

British energy giant BP said it was preparing to evacuate staff from Libya, as did Italian industrial giant Finmeccanica.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said Britain "will assess the need for evacuation as things progress," stressing the immediate priority was to secure "proper protection" and help those "trying to leave the country."

London summoned the Libyan ambassador and called for investigations that would see those behind the crackdown "held to account," he underlined, having already telephoned Kadafi's son on Sunday.

Having worked feverishly under the previous Labour government to cement diplomatic and commercial ties with Kadafi's regime, Britain stepped up the pressure as Brent oil prices soared above 105 dollars per barrel on Monday, striking levels last seen before the 2008 global financial crisis.

The shift in emphasis followed the spread of unrest from the flashpoint second Libyan city of Benghazi, where an NGO claimed 60 deaths just on Sunday in repression blamed for hundreds of killings.

French European Affairs Minister Laurent Wauquiez was more cautious, saying that "for the moment, there are no direct threats" to some 750 French citizens in Libya.

However, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, whose country is a key EU entry gate for thousands of illegal immigrants from north Africa, said the threat of an "Islamic Arab Emirate at the borders of Europe" in Libya was now a matter of "serious concern."

He said Europe should not "export" its democratic values, but said he was "extremely concerned about the self-proclamation of the so-called Islamic Emirate of Benghazi."

Not all EU states, though, were on the same page going into talks initially focused on re-drawing aid conditions for the region.

Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg said Europeans should not "get involved too much" with the anti-regime movement in Libya.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi also said Saturday he would not "bother" his close friend Kadhafi, 68.

While an autocratic regime in Bahrain has also responded to pro-democracy protests with deadly force, Morocco reported deaths during demonstrations and Yemen faced its own revolt, the Libyan flashpoint remained the most pressing.

"We cannot accept that elite snipers shoot at people," said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn.

Europe's criticism has already angered Tripoli, which warned that it could suspend cooperation in the fight against illegal immigration.

Accused of backing autocrats as a bulwark against Islamic extremists, EU ministers are looking at how best to leverage and direct new European Investment Bank and other aid funding, while re-booting a long-stalled project for a north-south Mediterranean Union.

EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton was also scheduled to fly to Egypt on Monday.