British military officers will be sent to Libya to advise rebels fighting Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's forces, the UK government has said.
Foreign Secretary William Hague said the group would be deployed to the opposition stronghold of Benghazi.
The contingent would be drawn from experienced British military officers, the foreign secretary said.
Pro-Gaddafi forces have been pounding Misrata for days and hundreds of people are thought to have been killed.
