Libya spokesman decries plan to probe war crimes

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Two towns in eastern Libyan were bombed Thursday, witnesses said, despite the government’s accusations hours earlier that reports of attacks on protesters and military facilities are false.

Two bombs were dropped on military camps in Ajdabiya, a tribal leader said. Another bomb fell in al-Brega between the oil facility and the airport, but there were no injuries or damage, witnesses said.

The government spokesman said that assertions of military attacks on demonstrators are wrong.

“We need tribal intervention, social intervention to help us convince these people to come to the negotiating table,” Musa Ibrahim told CNN’s “AC360.”

“This is an armed rebellion, with people going around attacking police stations, army offices, getting a hold of guns and attacking,” he said.

He said the government had supported peaceful protests, but reiterated accusations that al Qaeda supporters have hijacked the movement and are triggering chaos.

“We have captured dozens of these people, we have figures, we have interviews, we are willing and prepared to take these people and show them on international media,” the spokesman said.

The government spokesman also slammed plans to investigate the nation’s ruler on alleged war crimes and said the decision was based on reports without any fact-finding mission into the country.

The International Criminal Court will anounce Thursday an overview of the alleged war crimes since the protests started last month.

“Following a preliminary examination of available information, the prosecutor has reached the conclusion that an investigation is warranted,” the ICC said in a statement.

More than 1,000 people are reported to have been killed and many more injured during protests demanding the ouster of Moammar Gadhafi, according to the United Nations. Libya’s ambassador to the United States has estimated that the death toll was about 2,000.

Plans to investigate Gadhafi are not objective, Ibrahim said.

“The international community’s reaction toward what is happening in Libya has not been very honest and transparent,”

he said.

“The Security Council, for example, based its agreement against Libya on reports without any fact-finding mission, without visiting Libya, without allowing Libya to defend itself.”

Libya is not a signatory to the Rome Statute and does not recognize the authority of the international court. But the United Nations Security Council referred the matter to the court, essentially giving it “jurisdiction” over the situation in Libya.

The clashes in Libya have escalated, with an attack happening as Gadhafi addressed his supporters on Wednesday. In his trademark rambling speech carried live on state television, the ruler said al Qaeda is to blame for its efforts to tear the country apart.

As his speech was under way, aircraft dropped two bombs near the town of al-Brega, which has key oil and natural gas facilities.

Later, a military aircraft dropped a third bomb. People on the ground threw whatever they could at the aircraft then fled.

Fighting also raged on the ground, as Gadhafi’s forces tried to take control of a university in al-Breg, witnesses said.

Earlier Wednesday, military aircraft bombed military camps on the outskirts of the town of Ajdabiya, a tribal leader said.

While CNN has staff in some cities, the network cannot independently confirm reports for many areas in Libya. CNN has gathered information through telephone interviews with witnesses.

But numerous witnesses have described indiscriminate killings and attacks.

News of the bombings could support calls for the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent such attacks. The United States has said all options are on the table and is weighing a possible military role, but top officials warn that the issue is controversial.

Arab League officials have also rejected foreign military intervention in Libya.

“We perceive what happened and what is happening is an internal affair that is decided by the people and their governments,” the Arab League said in a statement.

Gadhafi spoke with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday about a proposal to bring an international mediation team to Libya, Venezuela’s information minister said.

Gadhafi has ruled the north African nation for nearly 42 years.

Government forces and opponents have clashed for a third week following protests in neighboring Egypt and Tunisia that ousted those countries’ leaders.

Nations have evacuated scores of citizens out of the country as the clashes rage on.

The Netherlands defense ministry said Thursday that three Dutch navy personnel were captured by armed men loyal to Gadhafi during an evacuation operation on Sunday.

The capital city of Tripoli remains under Gadhafi’s control, though opposition forces have taken control of the eastern city of Benghazi and a number of other cities.

The U.N. refugee agency reported that nearly 150,000 people had crossed Libya’s borders into Egypt and Tunisia, and thousands more were arriving hourly at the borders.

CNN’s Ben Wedeman, Salma Abdelaziz, Arwa Damon, Nic Robertson, Ivan Watson, Eve Bower, Jim Boulden, Frederik Pleitgen, Richard Roth, Jack Maddox, Whitney Hurst and Antonia Mortensen contributed to this report