The three-week-long West-dominated air raids against Libya apparently have been caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.

On one hand, the air strikes, without an additional ground invasion, are unlikely to topple down the Gaddafi regime, and on the other hand, the Western powers are reluctant to stop their military actions without achieving their aims.

Some Western countries, including France, Britain and the United States, launched the "Odyssey Dawn" operation against Libya on March 19, and have heavily bombed the government troops' air defense systems, tanks and artillery over the past weeks.

The Western countries said they carried out the operation to better protect Libyan civilians.

However, it turned out to be that the escalating domestic conflicts claimed more civilian lives, and the Libyan government said Western air forces had killed many civilians.

The Western powers currently stop short of sending ground troops to Libya, at least for two reasons. First, a ground invasion may mean heavy casualties of the Western soldiers and cause vehement anti-war sentiment in the countries, a price that the Western leaders are unwilling to pay. Second, a ground invasion would be against the March 17 UN resolution on Libya, which excluded sending ground troops.

The Western countries even haven't decided whether to supply weapons to the opposition troops.

Actually, rifts on the Libya issue among the Western countries emerged from the beginning and have deteriorated.

Germany, a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, unexpectedly abstained from voting for the UN resolution on Libya. Turkey, as a NATO member, publicly expressed its opposition to the air strikes. Even the United States, a protagonist in initiating the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, is hesitating in continuing or ending its air strikes against Libya.

All in all, the West-led air raids in Libya perhaps are zigzagging into a dead alley.

Only new ways, such as peaceful negotiations, can bring peace and stability to the North African country, really protect Libyan civilians, and help find an exit out of the current impasse.