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(Reuters) - Russia believes that Muammar Gaddafi should have been treated as a prisoner of war according to the Geneva Conventions and should not have been killed, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday, calling for an investigation into his death. "We have to lean on facts and international laws. They say that in a course of armed conflicts international humanitarian rules written in Geneva conventions are enforced," Lavrov said in a radio interview. Gaddafi died in unclear but bloody circumstances shortly after the fugitive former strongman was captured by transitional government forces on Thursday, two months after he was...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama hailed Muammar Gaddafi's death on Thursday as a warning to authoritarian leaders across the Middle East that iron-fisted rule "inevitably comes to an end," and as vindication for his cautious strategy toward Libya. Obama joined U.S. politicians and ordinary Americans in welcoming the demise of Gaddafi, who was for decades regarded as a nemesis of American presidents, and also claimed some of the credit for the Libyan strongman's downfall. ... "This marks the end of a long and painful chapter for the people of Libya who now have the opportunity to determine their own...

Not the first time that the left’s anti-war legal heroes have morphed from civil libertarians when Bush was in office to war-power expansionists once they went to work for The One. Remember when Harold Koh convinced Obama that he didn’t need to bother with congressional authorization after all if he wanted to wage war in Libya? Good times. The latest converts to the church of It’s Okay When We Do It: OLC lawyers David Barron and Martin Lederman, who, it turns out, co-authored the legal memo last summer arguing that the killing of Awlaki was legal, notwithstanding the fact that...

For Barack Obama, "leading from behind" has never looked so ... decisive. With Libyan rebels celebrating in downtown Tripoli, and Muammar el-Qaddafi apparently in hiding, the president's supporters are claiming vindication for a much-criticized approach to regime change in the Arab world. Obama's strategy amounted to staying resolutely behind the scenes throughout the five-month NATO air operation. To wit: Don't say the United States is openly engaged in ousting Qaddafi. Don't even concede the United States is going to war. Take cover behind a political imprimatur for action from the Arab League and United Nations, and let Europe lead the...

Sen. John McCain said that as Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi faces an "inevitable" end, the U.S. should concern itself with helping contain weapons from Qaddafi's arsenal. "We've got to secure these weapons depots," the Arizona Republican said on CBS' "The Early Show" Tuesday. "that have huge, huge numbers of weapons, and apparently mustard gas and other weapons of mass destruction."

Part 1, Article 1: “Islam is the Religion of the State, and the principal source of legislation is Islamic Jurisprudence (Sharia).”

The Pentagon says attacks by armed Predator unmanned planes have risen to 1.4 a day. Washington (CNN) -- As the rebels in Libya push closer to ending the regime of embattled Col. Moammar Gadhafi, U.S. warplanes have been increasing their attacks on government positions as part of the NATO campaign. New numbers released by the Pentagon on Monday show that the number of U.S. air attacks on Libyan air defenses, ground forces and other targets has nearly doubled over the past 12 days, compared with air attacks in the first 132 days of the NATO mission. There was an average...

The cost of U.S. military intervention in Libya has cost American taxpayers an estimated $896 million through July 31, the Pentagon said today. The price tag includes the amounts for daily military operations, munitions used in the operation and humanitarian assistance for the Libyan people. The U.S. has also promised $25 million in non-lethal aid to the Libyan Transitional National Council, half of which the Defense Department has already on MRE’s (military lingo for Meals, Ready to Eat). The military delivered 120,000 Halal MRE’s to Benghazi in May and a second shipment that included medical supplies, boots, tents, uniforms, and...

Moammar Kadafi’s fall from power would be a vindication of the Obama administration’s strategy in Libya after the president endured months of criticism for “leading from behind” and letting European allies take a more upfront role in fighting Kadafi’s forces, a former adviser to Obama said. “The administration is entirely vindicated,’’ said Bruce Riedel, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution who has advised three presidents on the Middle East and south Asia. “They said from the beginning that the primary actor here needed to be the Libyans and they weren’t going to put boots on the ground.’’ After briefly...

VINEYARD HAVEN, Mass. (AP) -- Following a day of dramatic developments in Libya, President Barack Obama said Sunday night that the situation there had reached a "tipping point" and that control of the capital was "slipping from the grasp of a tyrant." He called on Moammar Gadhafi to accept reality and relinquish power.

A Libyan mourner fires shots in the air at a cemetery on August 12 during the funeral of five rebels killed in the battle for the control of the oil-rich town of Brega. Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Rebels said Saturday that they were gaining traction in a series of offensives in several parts of Libya controlled by ruler Moammar Gadhafi -- claims that the Libyan government swiftly disputed. Heavy gunfire was heard in al-Zawiya, located about 33 miles west of Tripoli, where rebels had arrived. Rebels entered the city center and managed to cut off the road to Tripoli, they...

Libyan rebels carry the coffin of assassinated Army Chief Abdel Fatah Younis on July 29 in Benghazi, Libya. Even as it prepares to hand over the Libyan embassy in Washington to the rebel government, the State Department is warning the Transitional National Council to get its act together. An administration official told CNN the United States has warned the TNC that this is a "do-or-die moment" for the organization to carry out a credible and thorough investigation of the killing of its military commander, Abdel Fatah Younis. Last week's mysterious assassination has raised concerns that it might have been carried...

The UK is to expel all employees of the Libyan Embassy, Sky sources have said, in a move likely to increase Muammar Gaddafi's isolation. There are eight staff members who work at the embassy in Knightsbridge, west London, Sky understands. Foreign editor Tim Marshall said the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) would replace the Gaddafi workers. "This is the official British confirmation and when all the existing Gaddafi staff are out, the NTC representatives in London will come in, and they will be officially recognised as representing the state of Libya," he said. More to follow...

<p>With their Libya bombing campaign dragging on unresolved, France and Britain have been forced to accept ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi may stay there if he quits power, despite calls for international justice.</p> <p>Britain denied the joint position was a climb-down after it had repeatedly called for him to quit the country, while France last week was the first to openly suggest he could stay under a negotiated settlement.</p>

Gaddafi insists he will neither step down nor flee the country he has led for four decades. With the Nato-led air campaign against Gaddafi's forces entering its fifth month and the fighting in a stalemate, the international community is seeking exit strategies. French President Nicolas Sarkozy met in Paris on Wednesday with three rebel leaders from the western port city of Misurata who are seeking aid and arms to move toward Tripoli. Sarkozy announced no specific measures in response. Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said France wants to keep "a very close link" with the rebels "to see how we can...

Libyan rebel leaders met with France's President Nicolas Sarkozy here on Wednesday and asked him to support their plans to mount a military offensive on Tripoli aimed at toppling Col. Moammar Gadhafi. The delegation of rebel chiefs, which included senior officers from the port city of Misrata and a member of Libya's National Transitional Council, the main opposition group to Col. Gadhafi, said they needed more weapons and logistical assistance to oust the North African autocrat. "With a little help from some friends, we will be in Tripoli very soon, within days," NTC member Souleiman Fortia told reporters after the...

World leaders on Friday told a UN special envoy to negotiate a peace deal with Col Gaddafi that could see Libyan leader stay in the country after stepping down. Abdul Elah al-Khatib, the special envoy, was asked by the Turkish foreign minister, host of a one-day summit attended by Nato and other leaders, to present a peace deal in the next two weeks. It would have to be negotiated first not only with Col Gaddafi but with the rebel leadership in Benghazi. Nato also increased the military and diplomatic pressure on the Gaddafi regime in careful mix of carrot and...

Four of the Senate’s top voices on foreign policy voiced their support Friday for the Obama administration’s move to formally recognize rebel leaders as the legitimate governing authority of Libya. “We welcome the Administration’s decision to recognize the Transitional National Council (TNC) as the legitimate governing authority of Libya,” said Republican Sens. John McCain (Ariz.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.) in a statement.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Rebel leaders won recognition as the legitimate government of Libya from the United States and other world powers on Friday in a major boost to the rebels' faltering campaign to oust Muammar Gaddafi. Recognition of the rebels, announced by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a meeting in Turkey of the international contact group on Libya, is an important diplomatic step which could unlock billions of dollars in frozen Libyan funds.

Outside Qawalish, Libyan rebels took cover on Wednesday during a rocket attack by loyalists of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi. QAWALISH, Libya — Military forces loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi counterattacked and briefly recaptured this front-line town from opposition forces on Wednesday, but they were beaten back by a large rebel force late in the day. Though the battle was fluid and its outcome perhaps not final, by evening the fighting appeared to be confined to exchanges of rocket and mortar fire from a mile away or more and some skirmishing beyond the town’s eastern edge. Armed rebels roamed the abandoned town...

<p>Colonels and commanders who defected from Libya's military attended a ceremony in June to proclaim support for the revolution.</p> <p>RUJBAN, Libya — For months now, military leaders in the rebel capital, Benghazi, have boldly predicted lightning advances by their fighters and an imminent rout of the forces loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in Tripoli that would finally snuff out his brutal four-decade rule.</p>

President Obama dismissed criticism of his Libya policy last week, saying, “A lot of this fuss is politics.” Regardless of action on Senate Joint Resolution 20, the McCain-Kerry plan to authorize the limited use of force in Libya, the more important issue is Mr. Obama’s unwillingness to own up to his decisions in his role as commander in chief. Mr. Obama took the country to war in Libya, and he should admit it. The fuss goes beyond politics, beyond whether Mr. Obama’s policies are in the U.S. national interest and even beyond whether American military action has been effective. The...

Washington (CNSNews.com) – President Barack Obama told reporters he does not have to answer the question of whether the War Powers Resolution is constitutional.

New Libyan rebel recruits train near Benghazi. France today admitted arming rebels in partsof the country, in apparent defiance of the UN mandate Nato is reviewing the conduct of its military campaign in Libya after France admitted arming rebel fighters in apparent defiance of the UN mandate. The revelation surprised officials in Nato's headquarters in Brussels and raised awkward questions about whether the French had broken international law – UN resolution 1973 specifically allows Nato nations to protect civilians in Libya, but appears to stop short of permitting the provision of weapons. Nato has consistently said it would not arm...

<p>Mourners carry coffins during funeral for nine clerics allegedly killed in a Nato airstrike in Tripoli on 14 May.</p> <p>Over 100 days of war and counting. The news from David Cameron's high-altitude attempt to pick winners in Libya's civil war is gloomy for those who believed, back on day one, that a quick win in the north African desert was going to rehabilitate the damaged doctrine of "liberal interventionism".</p>

<p>A smoke plume rises into the sky over Tripoli, Libya, June 7, 2011 following a NATO airstrike.</p> <p>TRIPOLI - The strain of having to run a regime besieged by almost hourly airstrikes and a local rebellion is taking not only a physical toll on senior officials here, but a psychological one as well.</p>

Today there were two important votes in the House of Representatives regarding Libya. In the first, a super-majority in the House rejected a measure to continue the US role in Libya. Yet when it came to crunch time, a bill to defund President Obama's military action in Libya failed. The vote was specifically to "limit the use of funds appropriated to the Department of Defense for United States Armed Forces in support of North Atlantic Treaty Organization Operation Unified Protector with respect to Libya, unless otherwise specifically authorized by law." 89 Republicans voted no (along with 149 Democrats). They voted...

Garrett: Bill Limiting Military Action in Libya is Unconstitutional WASHINGTON, June 24, 2011 - Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Chairman of the Constitution Caucus, today voted against H.R. 2278, which would limit the use of funds appropriated to the Department to Defense for the United States armed forces in support of NATO’s military efforts in Libya. “While I in no way support President Obama’s unauthorized, unconstitutional war in Libya, I could not vote for Rep. Rooney’s bill limiting the use of funds,” said Garrett after the vote. “As Chairman of the Constitution Caucus, I have serious questions related to the constitutionality...

WASHINGTON—New U.S. intelligence shows Col. Moammar Gadhafi is "seriously considering" fleeing Tripoli for a more secure location outside the capital, according to U.S. officials, raising the prospect that the Libyan leader's hold on power is increasingly fragile.

LTC West on Libya and Obama's folly.

The White House bypassed the administration’s own written guidelines for resolving major legal disputes when it overruled the Justice Department’s advice that the president seek congressional approval for U.S. military operations in Libya, according to some legal scholars. The disclosure over the weekend that President Barack Obama rejected the advice of senior Justice Department legal advisers — including Attorney General Eric Holder — has drawn sharp congressional criticism in recent days, ranging from House Speaker John Boehner to liberal Democrats such as Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York. It is also provoking debate among legal scholars, some of whom told...

He rose to the presidency insisting that process matters. On Libya, he's shown contempt for it. Barack Obama appealed to some voters in 2008 because he seemed to understand that process matters. His predecessor, George W. Bush, felt tremendous pressure to prevent another terrorist attack. Anyone in his position would've been tempted to go Jack Bauer, breaking normal protocol and even laws in service of keeping us safer. Upon reflection, however, America learned that those protocols and laws were there for a reason. That in their absence the hubris of leaders is unleashed. That innocent people get tortured, average Americans...

President Obama overruled top Defense and Justice Dept. lawyers in his interpretation of legal authority to continue the U.S.’s role in the war in Libya, the New York Times reported late Friday citing sources familiar with the deliberations. Obama chose to adopt the advice of senior members of his own legal team over top lawyers at the Pentagon and the Justice Dept., arguing that U.S. involvement in the NATO operation fell short of “hostilities,” which would have resulted in Obama having to seek congressional approval to continue American participation in the conflict.

Charlie Savage has the amazing story that President Obama “rejected the views of top lawyers at the Pentagon and the Justice Department when he decided that he had the legal authority to continue American military participation in the air war in Libya without Congressional authorization.” The Acting head of the Office of Legal Counsel, Caroline Krass, and the General Counsel of the Department of Defense, Jeh Johnson, advised the President that military activities in Libya constituted “hostilities” under the War Powers Resolution and thus Section 5(b) of the WPR required him to terminate or scale back the mission after May...

U.S. Democratic Congressman Dennis Kucinich showed his nasty and perhaps sexist side in his treatment of CNN Anchor Brooke Baldwin just moments ago on CNN Live. While fielding questions about his lawsuit against the Obama Administration for the U.S. military involvement in Libya, Brooke asked him an essentially rhetorical question of why he calls it a "war" when, at present, the U.S. doesn't have a large set of ground soldiers there. "That's a silly question," Kucinich angrily responded, and which completely lost any chance of this blogger's positive mention of Kucinich in this matter. "If it looks like a war,...

In its statement, NATO said that "a column of military vehicles, including tanks," were spotted Thursday around al-Brega where Gadhafi forces "had recently been operating." During what it called "a particularly complex and fluid battle scenario," leaders in the military alliance ordered a strike after determining these vehicles posed "a threat to civilians."

WASHINGTON — President Obama rejected the views of top lawyers at the Pentagon and the Justice Department when he decided that he had the legal authority to continue American military participation in the air war in Libya without Congressional authorization, according to officials familiar with internal administration deliberations. Jeh C. Johnson, the Pentagon general counsel, and Caroline D. Krass, the acting head of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, had told the White House that they believed that the United States military’s activities in the NATO-led air war amounted to “hostilities.” Under the War Powers Resolution, that would have...

On March 21, 2011, Obama cited the WPR which requires him to notify Congresa 48 hours before beginning military operations. That same day Obama said that the military strikes against Libya would be "limited in their nature, duration and scope." During the past almost 90 days, Obama has given updates on these "limited" strikes. Now that 90 days draws near, Carney says that since the strikes have been "limited" that basically the 90 day rule doesn't apply. He apparently wants to use a WPA provision which allows for the president to deploy U.S. forces and engage in military strikes for...

Does Obama's War Powers Act position deny combat Pay,etc to our Military in the fight?

SNIP Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who has introduced a resolution similar to the House measure, said he was amazed that the administration did not believe U.S. forces were facing "hostilities" in Libya, saying generals have told lawmakers otherwise in classified briefings. "The way the administration handled this entire affair left people on both sides of the aisle very perplexed," said Corker, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Adding to the congressional pressure on Obama, a bipartisan group of 10 lawmakers on Wednesday sued the president for taking military action against Libya without war authorization from Congress. The lawmakers...

The White House is telling Congress that President Obama has the legal authority to continue American participation in the NATO-led air war in Libya, even though lawmakers have not authorized it. In a broader package of materials the Obama administration is sending to Congress on Wednesday defending its Libya policy, the White House, for the first time, offers lawmakers and the public an argument for why Mr. Obama has not been violating the War Powers Resolution since May 20. On that day, the Vietnam-era law’s 60-day deadline for terminating unauthorized hostilities appeared to pass. But the White House argued that...

House members to sue Obama administration over Libya mission From Deirdre Walsh and Brianna Keilar June 15, 2011 11:45 a.m. EDT Washington (CNN) -- A bipartisan group of House members will file a lawsuit Wednesday challenging U.S. participation in the Libya military mission. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama is set to defend U.S. military involvement in Libya to Congress, according to the White House. The administration will provide a report to address a June 3 House resolution that raised questions about the president's goal in Libya, how he hopes to achieve that goal, why he has not sought congressional authorization for...

OTTAWA — Canada’s involvement in Libya could continue well into the future, Defence Minister Peter MacKay hinted Tuesday during a Parliamentary debate aimed at extending this country’s contribution to the NATO mission there by 3 1/2 months. “Canada needs to continue its commitment to Libya until the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 1973 are met and until NATO’s goals, as agreed upon by our allies and partners, are achieved,” he said. “We must ensure that all attacks and threats of attack against civilians have ended.” The comments came as the government also said it would officially recognize rebels fighting...

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, sent President Obama a letter Tuesday afternoon warning him that the operation in Libya will be violating the War Powers Resolution by this Sunday, which marks the 90th day of U.S. military involvement in the country. Boehner wants "a clear explanation of the legal standing under the War Powers Resolution," that Obama is using to justify continuing the operations behind Sunday. The letter is below. June 14, 2011 Dear Mr. President: Five days from now, our country will reach the 90-day mark from the notification to Congress regarding the commencement of the military operation in...

In December, 2007, the Boston Globe published a Q&A with then-candidate Barack Obama in which the subject of Executive War Powers was addressed. "In what circumstances, if any," Charlie Savage asked, "would the president have constitutional authority to bomb Iran without seeking a use-of-force authorization from Congress?" Mr. Obama's answer was unequivocal in its condemnation of unilateral executive action relating to war: "The President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation. . . . In instances of self-defense,...

Libyan kids help refurbish weapons Forces loyal to embattled Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi launched a new attack on the rebel-held city of Misrata on Wednesday, with anti-government forces reporting intense shelling from three sides of the city. Thousands of government troops attacked around 6 a.m. (11 p.m. Tuesday ET), with 13 rebels reported dead by evening. Mohamed Mokhtar, a rebel fighter wounded in Wednesday's fighting, accused government troops of infiltrating rebel lines in cars bearing rebel flags. Dr. Khaled Abu Falgha, a spokesman for Misrata's Hekma hospital, said it was the bloodiest day in a week in the besieged city....

Somewhere, Richard Nixon is smiling. In 1973, he vetoed the War Powers Act, insisting that it was unconstitutional. Congress overrode him, but almost every one of Nixon’s successors has agreed with his assessment of the resolution. It took Pres. Barack Obama, though, to rip the War Powers Act into little pieces and sprinkle it over his Libyan intervention like the confetti in a premature victory parade. The thrust of the War Powers Act is clear enough: Sixty days after reporting the start of a military intervention, the president must secure congressional authorization or a declaration of war, or remove our...

The White House said Monday that it has an obligation to answer lawmakers’ questions about U.S. involvement in NATO’s mission in Libya, but it wasn’t clear if the administration will comply with a House resolution passed Friday that threatens to withhold funding unless President Obama complies with demands for more information. Press secretary Jay Carney said Mr. Obama hasn’t violated the War Powers Resolution, which calls for the commander in chief to obtain congressional approval if U.S. forces are to be committed to action for longer than 60 days. Mr. Carney said the White House has “consulted” with Congress

House Floor Remarks, June 3rd. M. Speaker: Lets be clear: without prior Congressional authorization, under the War Powers Act, the President may only commit armed forces to hostilities for sixty days if there is a direct attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions or its armed forces. There was none, so there is no sixty day clock and the President’s unprovoked attack on Libya – from Day One – constituted an illegal and unconstitutional act of the highest significance. If the President felt there was moral justification to attack Libya, he was constitutionally required to make his case...

House Floor Remarks, June 3rd M. Speaker: Lets be clear: without prior Congressional authorization, under the War Powers Act, the President may only commit armed forces to hostilities for sixty days if there is a direct attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions or its armed forces. There was none, so there is no sixty day clock and the President’s unprovoked attack on Libya – from Day One – constituted an illegal and unconstitutional act of the highest significance. If the President felt there was moral justification to attack Libya, he was constitutionally required to make his case...