Former Czech president Vaclav Havel called Monday for military intervention in Libya, as the situation in the country appeared to be approaching civil war, DPA reported.
For a long time the international community had looked at Muammar Gaddafi as some sort of curious jester, when in fact the Libyan leader is a "crazy criminal", Havel told the Czech daily Hospodarske Noviny.
If the fighting continues in Libya, the west should arm anti- government protestors, close the air space over Libya or conduct airborne attacks on Gaddafi and his forces, Havel said.
The international community had intervened too late in Yugoslavia in the 1990s and that mistake should not be repeated, the former dissident and playwright argued.