Abu Dhabi: Donors pledged more than $1.3 billion to help support Libya's main opposition group on Thursday as countries backing NATO's military mission there met to prepare for the post-Muammar Gaddafi era.
Italy and France offered a combined $1.02 billion to Libya's Transitional National Council while Kuwait and Qatar promised a combined $280 million to a fund set up to provide transparent assistance to the opposition.
The pledges came as council members appealed for urgent infusions of cash to keep from going broke. The council is trying to establish an alternative government to take over after Gadhafi.
Preparing for Libya's next phase will require a decision on what fate -- exile, prosecution or some third option -- should befall the leader and his family, the parameters for a ceasefire between rebels and remaining Gadhafi loyalists, and the creation of a viable political process that will ensure the democratic spirations of the Libyan people, according to US officials.
Libya's main opposition group appealed on Thursday for urgent infusions of cash from foreign nations to help support the rebellion and said a meeting of 30 countries backing NATO's military mission over the country would be a "total failure" if financial assistance was not forthcoming. The Transitional National Council lamented that the world still does not understand the needs of the Libyan people after months of violence.
The total pledged at the gathering in the United Arab Emirates, while significant, fell short of the $3 billion the opposition group says it needs to survive for just the next four months.
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