40 years ago April 14, 1986: Europe asks US not to hit Libya

The US Sixth Fleet, within striking range of Libya, waited for commands, as America’s European allies renewed their opposition to a military attack on the North African country. They urged Washington to exercise restraint in retaliating against the alleged Libyan involvement in last week’s bombing of a West Berlin nightclub in which a US serviceman was killed. The British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, turned down a US request for the use of an air base in Britain to launch an operation against Libya. Thatcher is reported to have told President Ronald Reagan’s special envoy, General W Walters, the US ambassador to the UN, currently on a lightning tour of Western Europe, that Britain would not allow the use of planes stationed in the country in an attack against Libya Coalition forming in J&K foiled Internal dimensions within the Jammu and Kashmir Congress-I have foiled a bid by 14 MLAs of the former National Conference-K, who have now formed a separate group, to form a coalition government in the state. The Arab League said it would support Libya in the event of another military strike by the US. “The Arab League reaffirms the solidarity of Arab states (with Libya) in the face of all threats of aggression directed against its security… For the second time in less than a month, Libya is the target of major threats from the United States, which thus violates international custom and law and exposes the security of the region to grave dangers,” it said in a communique. President Zia-ul-Haq has been accused by Benazir Bhutto of ordering her assassination following a demonstration of massive public support for her when she returned from exile. Bhutto claims a bizarre break-in by a former Pakistan Army major, Abdul Qayyum, at a Lahore house where he believed she was staying at the time, was “nothing less than an assassination attempt”.