The chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court has said there are reasonable grounds to charge forces loyal to Libya's Col Muammar Gaddafi with crimes against humanity.

In a report, Luis Moreno-Ocampo said charges could include murder, unlawful detention, torture and persecution. Mr Ocampo said shooting at peaceful protesters by security forces had been systematic.

The prosecutor, who was authorised by the UN Security Council to investigate alleged abuses in Libya, noted there were credible estimates of between 500 and 700 people killed in February alone.

He said he plans to submit his first application for arrest warrants in the next few weeks. The warrants will apparently focus on the initial clampdown against protesters, but it does not reveal who he plans to indict.

The report noted that these alleged crimes are said to be committed on the instructions of only a few people at the top, raising the prospect that Col Gaddafi and members of his inner circle may be charged, accroding to BBC.