"Now they hide their heavy arms in populated areas, where before many targets were easier to get to," Rasmussen said. "To avoid civilian casualties, we need very sophisticated equipment. So, we need a few more precision fighter ground-attack aircraft for air-to-ground missions."
With the conflict at a deadly impasse, Britain and France have been pressuring NATO to step up airstrikes.
In a joint op-ed that will appear Friday in three European newspapers, U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron wrote about their vision of Libya's "pathway to peace."
"We are convinced that better times lie ahead for the people of LIbya," they wrote. They likened the fighting in Misrata to a "medieval siege."
The White House released text of the opinion piece, which called on the Libyan troops to return to their barracks.
"Our duty and our mandate under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 is to protect civilians, and we are doing that. It is not to remove (Gadhafi) by force. But it is impossible to imagine a future for Libya with (Gadhafi) in power," the three wrote. "The International Criminal Court is rightly investigating the crimes committed against civilians and the grievous violations of international law. It is unthinkable that someone who has tried to massacre his own people can play a part in their future government."
Gadhafi's daughter, Ayesha, speaking to a cheering crowd in Tripoli, said the United States tried to kill her and other children in 1986.
"In 1911, Italy attacked my country and killed my (great-) grandfather," she said. "Now in 2011, they're trying to kill my father."
