After losing ground to government forces in recent days Libyan rebels are regrouping to launch a counter-attack near the eastern city of Brega. Meanwhile, a top official from Muammar Gaddafi’s inner-circle defected to the west.

Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa arrived in London Wednesday. British officials said they were hopeful Koussa could offer intelligence on the regime stressing that he is not being offered immunity. Koussa is believed to have played a role in the bombing of a Pan Am airliner over Scotland in 1988.

In another significant development, President Barack Obama authorized the use of covert operations in Libya, a move that encouraged the opposition, but left others concerned that the action went beyond the terms of the U.N. resolution to protect civilians. A Vatican official reports that airstrikes on Tripoli have resulted in at least 40 civilian deaths. The rebels report “massacres” are taking place in Misrata, which is still under siege by Gaddafi’s troops.