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Gaddafi regime crumbling from within, says Hague

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

London, March 31, IRNA -- Foreign Secretary, William Hague, on Thursday proclaimed that the regime of Muammar Gaddafi was crumbling from within after confirming Libyan Foreign Minister, Moussa Koussa, had arrived in Britain, saying he had resigned from his post.

'His resignation shows that Gaddafi's regime, which has already seen significant defections to the opposition, is fragmented, under pressure and crumbling from within, Gaddafi must be asking himself, who will be the next to abandon him,' Hague said.

Speaking at the launch of the Foreign Office's latest annual human rights reports, he said that the foreign minister was one of the most senior members of the regime and that he was encouraging those around him to follow.

Koussa, who has long been banned from entering the United States for his alleged involvement in state terrorism in Libya, arrived from Tunisia on Wednesday night in what was believed to be a military plane.

Hague said that he had been his channel to Gaddafi's regime in recent weeks but that the UK was not offering him diplomatic immunity from international or British justice and was being questioned by Foreign Office officials.

Earlier, former foreign secretary, Jack Straw, suggested that his defection could prove to be a “tipping point” that could lead to the downfall of the Gaddafi regime.

“From a distance, what's clear is that there is unlikely to be any military 'victory' for either side. So it does depend on which side psychologically collapses. I don't think the rebels are going to, and nobody wants them to, so it is about boring your way inside the brain and heart of the regime,” Straw said.

“There is a tipping point with all of these regimes and I think Musa Kusa's apparent defection - certainly his unscheduled visit here - will be a very important factor in just adding to the weight against the Gaddafi regime and tipping the balance against him,” he told the BBC.