The UN Security Council has condemned the Libyan authorities for using force against protesters, calling for those responsible to be held to account.
In a statement, the council demanded an immediate end to the violence and said Libya’s rulers had to “address the legitimate demands of the population”.
Nearly 300 people have been killed so far, according to Human Rights Watch.
Earlier, Col Muammar Gaddafi urged his supporters to attack the “cockroaches” and “rats” protesting against his rule.
Anyone who took up arms against Libya would be executed, he warned.
Interior Minister Abdel Fattah Younes al-Abidi later resigned and called on the armed forces to “join and heed the people’s demands”.
