“Allow me to underline our position against any possible military intervention on the situation in Libya,” OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu told the UN Human Rights Council. “To this end, all options should be utilized for the settlement of disputes through peaceful means and without resorting to the use of force,” he said.

An Arab League official also said a draft resolution to be voted on by the Arab League opposes foreign military intervention in Libya. The Arab League’s Deputy Secretary-General, Ahmed bin Heli, said Tuesday that the resolution will also call for the unity of Libya, approve sending aid to the North African nation and back formation of a fact-finding mission.

Clinton is warning that Libya is at risk of collapsing into a “protracted civil war” amid increasingly violent clashes between government forces and those opposed to leader Muammar Qaddafi.

She told Congress on Tuesday that the US must lead an international response to the crisis. She said protective military air cover in Libya is a real possibility, although she acknowledged there would be drawbacks.

Testifying before a separate panel Tuesday, the top US military commander in the Middle East said the military would have to take out Libyan air defenses in order to establish a no-fly zone there.

According to an AP report, more than 140,000 people have fled Libya to Egypt and Tunisia in a growing exodus from Qaddafi’s forces as they kill hundreds and block humanitarian aid to western Libya.

UN refugee agency spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said Tuesday: “The situation is reaching crisis point” at the Libya-Tunisia border where authorities say up to 75,000 people have fled Libya since Feb. 20. That includes 14,000 on Monday, the most to date. Another 15,000 more were expected to cross Tuesday.

Another AP report said residents of the rebel-held city closest to Libya’s capital passed out sweets and cold drinks to fighters Tuesday and celebrated with a victory march after they managed to repel an overnight attack by pro-Qaddafi forces. “Allahu Akbar (God is Great) for our victory,” residents of Zawiyah chanted as they paraded through the city’s main square. Some carried on their shoulders an air force colonel they said had just defected to the rebels’ side.