Britain said on Saturday it was hoping to send a diplomatic taskforce to Libya soon to make contact with opposition leaders and had readied a battalion of troops to aid humanitarian and evacuation efforts if needed. Government sources told Reuters a team of experts including foreign office officials would travel to Benghazi in the east of the country in due course to see what anti-Gaddafi forces required.
The taskforce is being sent on a fact-finding mission and to see how Britain could help in a logistical way, the sources said. It is understood the rebels will not be given arms as there is an international arms embargo in place. Asked when the team would go a source said: "we are not discussing any timings." The Foreign Office declined official comment. The Ministry of Defence said The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, is on stand-by to go to Libya and has been ready to deploy rapidly at 24 hours' notice for the past 10 days. A spokeswoman said the 200-odd troops would only provide humanitarian assistance and would not engage in combat or intervene militarily in any way. "There is no suggestion they would be involved in any combat mission or ground offensive," she said.
Britain on Friday extended a freeze on assets to a further 20 members of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's entourage and impounded around 100 million pounds ($163 million) of Libyan currency. The asset freeze was imposed last week and initially applied only to Gaddafi and his immediate family. It now extends to 26 people. British authorities seized the cargo of 100 million pounds of Libyan currency from a ship that returned to its waters on Wednesday after it was unable to dock in the Libyan capital of Tripoli because of security concerns.
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