Civilian deaths pile pressure on Libya campaign

By Kiran Stacey and Helen Warrell
Published: June 19 2011 20:34 | Last updated: June 19 2011 20:34

David Cameron is facing renewed pressure over the Libya campaign after Nato troops were accused of killing civilians in Tripoli and a cabinet minister admitted that the cost of the war could be much more than previously predicted.
Nato has launched a probe into Libyan government claims that it bombed a residential district of the Libyan capital in the early hours of Sunday.
Khaled Kaim, Libya’s deputy foreign minister, said the incident represented a “deliberate targeting of civilian houses”, but Nato insisted its raid was aimed at a missile site.
A Nato spokesman said: “Nato regrets any loss of civilian lives and is doing all it can to protect the people of Libya from the violence waged by the Gaddafi regime. This campaign has conducted over 4,400 strike sorties. Every mission is planned and executed with precision and care with a high record of accuracy.
“We take all reports of civilian casualties very seriously and we will continue to look into the facts related to this event. Nato would be sorry if the review . . . did indicate that it was caused by a Nato weapon.”
Libyan officials said nine people were killed but the figure has not been confirmed.
The incident occurs at a sensitive time for the prime minister, who rebuked a top navy official last week after he had said the government would find it difficult to fund a drawn-out conflict.
Danny Alexander, the chief secretary to the Treasury, added to worries about costs when he said on Sunday that UK spending on Libya could escalate to more than £100m.
Speaking on Sky News, Mr Alexander said the campaign was costing “tens of millions, potentially into the hundreds of millions”.
The extra funds will come from Treasury reserves. Ministers insist they will not have an impact on other public spending.
But Mr Alexander’s admission contradicts what George Osborne, the chancellor, said in March, when the mission began. He said at the time: “The Ministry of Defence’s initial view is that [the Libya operations] will be in the order of tens of millions of pounds, not hundreds of millions.”

Treasury officials insisted on Sunday it was still too early to give any robust estimates on the exact cost.read more.