Ferry Sails for Malta; Arrives Safely

Updated 3:50 p.m. est

The U.S.-commissioned ferry that had been docked for more than 2 1/2 days in Tripoli finally departed Libya today headed for Malta. It arrived in Malta shortly before 3 p.m est.

Meanwhile, White House spokesman Jay Carney said in addition to the ferry from Tripoli, a charter flight carrying Americans, including the last of embassy staff, also departed Libya today destined for Turkey. The U.S. embassy in Tripoli is now closed.

"It's been shuttered," Carney said of the embassy.

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The people aboard are said to be relieved and were happy to get a hot meal overnight, according to a reporter from MSNBC who spoke to a passenger aboard the ferry.

"The ferry carrying American and international citizens from Libya to Malta is finally underway. The trip will take roughly eight hours," State Departments spokesman P.J. Crowley said on Twitter.

"More than 300 passengers are on board the U.S.-chartered ferry from Libya to Malta. Additional passengers were added before departure," Crowley wrote in a separate Tweet.

Most of the U.S. citizens and others remained on the ferry since Wednesday, waiting for choppy seas to settle before they set sail for Malta

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Aboard the Maria Dolores ferry as of yesterday were 40 U.S. citizens who work for the U.S. government and their families, 127 private U.S. citizens and 118 citizens from other nations. There are also U.S. security and State Department personnel on the ferry, and other forces nearby.

Special Forces Muster on Malta

Elite troops, including U.S. Delta Force and Navy SEALS, are positioned on the island of Malta to help protect fleeing Americans and others escaping the chaos in Libya, if needed, knowledgeable sources confirmed.

Food, water and emergency supplies are also being stockpiled on Malta, a strategic port of call for the U.S. Navy in the Mediterranean, a source said.

The U.S. special forces on Malta are equipped with chemical warfare suits, a source said. "Those guys like to travel light and they hate carrying those things around," said a source familiar with the deployment.

Earlier today, The Wall Street Journal and others reported the U.S. fears Gadhafi never destroyed his stash of  chemical weapons, like mustard gas. Gadhafi has not used chemical weapons on the protesters so far, but because of his hair-trigger personality and threats to fight to the death, it is a contingency the Western powers are taking into consideration.

Special forces from European nations are also believed to be in the region, a diplomatic source said.

Malta has been a primary destination for Americans and others seeking refuge from strongman Moammar Gadhafi and his armed goons who have wreaked havoc in Tripoli and elsewhere in Libya. A State Department-sponsored ferry is also waiting at a dock in Tripoli to take Americans and others to Malta once a patch of bad weather that has caused high seas passes.

Defecting Libyan fighter jets and helicopter pilots landed their aircraft on Malta earlier this week, seeking political asylum.