Libya

Obama Sends $25 Million To Libyan Rebels

Susan Crabtree | April 27, 2011, 9:01AM

President Barack Obama formally ordered up to $25 million in urgent -- but non-military -- aid for Libyan rebels fighting Muammar Qaddafi as a fears of a open-ended stalemate escalated.

Obama granted the funds to Libya's Transitional National Council in a memo from the President to Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton early Tuesday evening.

Libya

Obama: 'I Refused' To Let A Massacre Happen In Libya

Susan Crabtree | March 28, 2011, 8:47PM

President Barack Obama

President Obama delivered a clear and determined defense of his decision to authorize U.S. military-led air strikes in Libya, stressing that he could not allow an impending massacre in the country to occur but would not use military might to topple Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi from power.

The speech, delivered Monday night, was cloaked in broad statements about American values and U.S. responsibilities to support democratic movements against brutal and repressive regimes.

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Barack Obama

Obama: U.S. Is Not Targeting Qaddafi But Has Tools To Do So

Susan Crabtree | March 21, 2011, 4:30PM

President Barack Obama

Update: President Obama sent a letter to Congressional leaders spelling out his decision to direct strikes against Libyan air defenses over the weekend and citing his Constitutional authority for the military action.

President Obama held out the threat of targeting Libyan Leader Muammar Qaddafi personally Monday but said the U.S. would stop short of doing so -- at least for now.

Instead, Obama stressed the importance of sticking to the mandate of the U.N. resolution passed Thursday, which focuses on preventing Qaddafi from crushing opposition forces in a large-scale massacre.

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Libya

Libyan Ambassador to U.S.: Ceasefire Is Not Enough

Susan Crabtree | March 18, 2011, 12:12PM

The Libyan Ambassador to the United States, who has broken with the ruling regime, is urging the U.S., Britain and France to employ the full extent of a U.N. resolution passed Thursday and use military airstrikes to contain Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi as soon as possible.

A cease-fire in Libya does not go far enough to quell the humanitarian crisis in the country and the brutal policies of the Muammar Qaddafi's regime, Ambassador Ali Aujali, who joined the opposition in the early days of the crisis, told reporters Friday morning at the National Press Club.

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Lindsey Graham

Graham On No-Fly Zone: At Least Be As Bold As The French

Susan Crabtree | March 16, 2011, 1:21PM

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is pouring the pressure on the Obama administration to establish a no-fly zone or deal with the historical consequences.

"One test in foreign policy - at least be as bold as the French," Graham, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a release Wednesday. "Unfortunately, when it comes to Libya we're failing that test."

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