20110308
reuters

TRIPOLI/RAS LANUF, Libya (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has made it clear Washington believes any decision to impose a no-fly zone over Libya is a matter for the United Nations and should not be a U.S.-led initiative.

On Tuesday, Muammar Gaddafi's tanks and warplanes pounded rebel positions in Zawiyah, the closest rebel-held city to the capital, Tripoli.

Rising casualties and threats of hunger and a refugee crisis have increased pressure on foreign governments to act, but many were fearful of moving from sanctions alone to military action.

"We want to see the international community support it (a no-fly zone)," Clinton told Sky News. "I think it's very important that this not be a U.S.-led effort."

She said the United Nations should make the decision on Libya, not the United States.

"We've called for Colonel Gaddafi to leave," she added. "When a leader turns against his own people, that is the end."

U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron agreed the "common objective" was an end to violence and the departure of Gaddafi, the White House said.

In a phone call, the two leaders "agreed to press forward with planning, including at NATO, on the full spectrum of possible responses, including surveillance, humanitarian assistance, enforcement of the arms embargo, and a no-fly zone".