The 22-member Arab League has called on the United Nations Security Council to impose a no-fly zone over Libya as violence in the country continues.

The decision was announced by Oman’s foreign minister Youssef bin Alawi bin Abdullah at a press conference on 12 March, following a meeting of Arab League ministers in Cairo.

While rejecting “foreign military” intervention in Libya, the Arab League has “officially requested the UN Security Council to impose a no-fly zone against any military action against the Libyan people”, said Amr Moussa, the secretary-general of the Arab League, Qatar’s Al-Jazeera news agency reports.

The current Libyan government has been suspended from the league and a delegation sent by Muammar Qaddafi was not permitted to attend the meeting. The Arab League has said it will establish contact with the newly formed National Libyan Council instead.

Although calls for the no-fly zone have increased, including from the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), it remains unclear if it will be implemented