David Cameron has told Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence officials working on Libyan strategy that, following months of stalemate, the time has come to find a way out of the conflict and back a French proposal to allow Gaddafi to stay in the country as part of a negotiated settlement with rebel forces.
Mr Cameron’s change in stance is borne of concerns that without a decisive breakthrough by the rebels in Benghazi, which is considered unlikely, allied action in Libya could drag on for months.
The problem is compounded by the timing of Ramadan in which Muslims cannot eat or drink during daylight hours. This year Ramadan begins around the start of August, lasts for 30 days and is expected to bring a lull in the fighting on both sides.
