Libya Update: UK Provides Equipment to Rebels, Koussa Sanctions Lifted by US

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague, in an address to the House of Commons, acknowledged that Britain was providing “non-lethal equipment,” such as telecommunications equipment, to the opposition transitional council.  Hague reiterated that the UK was not providing weapons to the rebels.   Hague further encourages members of Muammar Gadhafi’s regime to follow in Moussa Koussa’s footsteps and defect.  Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury said it had lifted sanctions on Koussa in order to entice more Gadhafi officials to defect.

Update: Kuwait and the Maldives announced that they will recognize the Transitional National Council as the sole representative of the Libyan people. There are also reports that the citizens of Tripoli are becoming increasingly critical of Gadhafi as fuel and food shortages become more prevalent in the capital. AlJazeera reports that Ibrahim Dabbashi, the former Libyan deputy ambassador to the UN who stepped down to join the opposition, has stated that he has “credible information that many people are willing to defect”.