From Maria Golovnina and Patrick Worsnip, Reuters:  The United Nations authorized military strikes to curb Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, hours after he threatened to storm the rebel bastion of Benghazi overnight, showing "no mercy, no pity. "

"We will come. House by house, room by room," Gaddafi said in a radio address to the eastern city late on Thursday. …

The U.N. Security Council, meeting in emergency session, passed a resolution endorsing a no-fly zone to halt government troops now around 100 km (60 miles) from Benghazi. It also authorized "all necessary measures" — code for military action — to protect civilians against Gaddafi’s forces. …

Residents said the Libyan air force unleashed three air raids on the city of 670,000 on Thursday and there has been fierce fighting along the Mediterranean coastal highway. …

Ten of the Council’s 15 member states voted in favor of the resolution, with Russia, China and Germany among the five that abstained. There were no votes against the resolution, which was co-sponsored by France, Britain, Lebanon and the United States. …

An Italian government source told Reuters Italy was ready to make its military bases available for enforcement of the no-fly zone. The airbase at Sigonella in Sicily, which provides logistical support for the United States Sixth Fleet, is one of the closest NATO bases to Libya.

Former British foreign minister David Owen saw the vote as reflecting a serious division in NATO and the EU, with Germany abstaining and clearly unhappy about military action.  (photo: Jessica Rinaldi/Reuters)

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