The European Union's foreign policy high representative Catherine Ashton on Sunday sent a technical fact-finding mission to Libya, the first international mission of its kind to the country since the violence erupted recently.

The team was led by Agostino Miozzo, managing director in the European External Action Service (EEAS) for Crisis Response and Operational Coordination. Its aim is to assess humanitarian and evacuation efforts on the ground in Libya to make an appraisal of what may be needed in terms of additional support.

"I have decided to dispatch this high level mission to provide me with first-hand, real-time information to feed into the discussions leading up to Friday's extraordinary European Council when I will update heads of state and government on the situation, " Ashton said.

"I would like to thank Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini and the Italian government for helping the EEAS in facilitating this important mission," Ashton added.

Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council convened an extraordinary meeting of the European Council on Friday to discuss latest events and set guidelines for the European Union's action in Libya and Southern Mediterranean.