The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has asked judges to issue international arrest warrants for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and two others for crimes against humanity.
Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo says Colonel Gaddafi, his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanussi bore the greatest responsibility for widespread and systematic attacks on civilians.
Mr Moreno-Ocampo says he is nearly ready for a trial, because of the quality and quantity of the testimony he has.
He said that that after reviewing more than 1200 documents and 50 interviews with key insiders and witnesses, his office had evidence showing that Colonel Gaddafi had "personally ordered attacks on unarmed Libyan civilians".
The Libyan goverment has already said it will ignore the announcement, and that it does not recognise the court's jurisdiction.
