U.S. Tomahawk Cruise Missiles Hit Targets in Libya

More than 112 Tomahawk cruise missiles struck over 20 targets inside Libya today in the opening phase of an international military operation the Pentagon said was aimed at stopping attacks led by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and enforcing a U.N.-backed no-fly zone.

President Obama, speaking from Brazil shortly after he authorized the missile attacks, said they were part of a "limited military action" to protect the Libyan people.

"I want the American people to know that the use of force is not our first choice and it's not a choice I make lightly," Obama said. "But we cannot stand idly by when a tyrant tells his people that there will be no mercy."

The first air strikes, in what is being called Operation Odyssey Dawn, were launched from a mix of U.S. surface ships and one British submarine in the Mediterranean Sea at 2 p.m. ET, Vice Adm. William E. Gortney told reporters at a Pentagon briefing.

They targeted Libyan air defense missile sites, early warning radar and key communications facilities around Tripoli, Misratah, and Surt, but no areas east of that or near Benghazi. Because of darkness over Libya, Gortney said it was too early to determine the strikes' effectiveness.

Gortney said no U.S. troops were on the ground in Libya and that no U.S. aircraft participated in the initial attacks.

Libyan television reported that 48 people were killed and more than 150 wounded in the barrage, but there was no independent confirmation of the numbers.

Earlier today, as pro-Gadhafi forces battled towards the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, 20 French warplanes flew over the region in a show of force. And one jet fired on and destroyed an unidentified Libyan military vehicle, French Defense officials said.

At one point a fighter jet resembling a Libyan MiG 27 was shot down over the city, according to news reports from inside Libya.

Meanwhile, world leaders met in Paris to discuss the nature and scope of the international military intervention to make Gadhafi respect a U.N. Security Council resolution that authorized "all necessary measures" to protect Libyan civilians.

"We have every reason to fear that left unchecked, Gadhafi would commit unspeakable atrocities," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told reporters following the meeting in Paris. "Further delay will only put more civilians at risk. So let me be very clear on the position of the United States: We will support an international coalition as it takes all necessary measures to enforce" the U.N. resolution.

But Pentagon officials cautioned that despite the initial military actions, an enforced no-fly zone over Libya was not yet in effect and will take time to establish.

"At this point we are creating the conditions to be able to set up a no fly zone, and once we have established and confirmed that the conditions are right then we will move forward into one of the next phases of the campaign," Gortney told reporters.

No U.S. aircraft will be involved in air strikes over Libya tonight, he said. "Our mission right now is to shape the battle space in such a way that our partners may take the lead in…execution."

As the campaign evolves, officials said, U.S. support aircraft would provide airborne surveillance, refueling and radar-jamming capabilities, and several F-16s may participate in patrols over no-fly zones above Tripoli and Benghazi.

Gadhafi Defiant

In an audio statement broadcast on Libyan state TV, Gadhafi called the attacks a "crusade" against the Libyan people and called on Arab countries and African allies to come to his government's aid.

"We ask others to stand by us," he said, according to a translation of his remarks heard on Al Jazeera. "We must now open the weapons depot and arms to all Libyans."

Gadhafi warned the international coalition Friday not to interfere in Libyan affairs, calling the U.N. resolution "invalid" and appealing directly to world leaders, including President Obama, in a letter.

"Libya is not yours. Libya is for the Libyans," he said in the letter. "If you had found them taking over American cities with armed force, tell me what you would do."

Why did America attack Libya?

That too at a time when the world is praying for the nuclear crisis to end. Still America is talking about destroying oil refineries. Aren't they concerned about what they are doing to the environment? What happened in Japan was uncontrollable but why a war now?


Answer 1 :
Very important to note. "Human Right" & "Democracy" are not covers for imperialism. This is another idiotic act after Iraq. A complete naked and undisguised invasion of another sovereign nation. Don't mistake the Libyan "terrorists" for "civil rebels", it is coup d'etat instead of civil revolution.

Western countries claim the people there are civilians and they are under attack, even the UN used "responsibility to protect" to justify their invasion. Western media kept telling their ppl these are civilians under attack and they even compare the situation to recently-liberated Egypt. However, did you see Egyptians went out there and waving guns around?

Mark my words, this is another act of Western imperialism. These egocentric countries always think they are THE God, and they can do whatever they want. It is barbaric if you ask me.


Answer 2 :
you cant say its just oil!! its that ignorant irrational thinking that causes the rest of the world not to like the US. To answer your question the reason I have come to understand as to why the US and UN forces have started this police action (because the US congress has not voted to go to war since WW2) is because a man in charge of his country knew he was going to lose control just like Egypt so he thought by killing off the people protesting in his country they would fear him and he could keep his country under his control; what the UN is trying to do is stop people like Mao Ze-Dong (killed 49-78,000,000 million people) and Jozef Stalin (killed 23,000,000 million people) and of course Adolf Hitler (who killed 12,000,000 million people) from A. taking control of a country B. keeping control C. from killing anyone


Answer 3 : 
The people are sick of the oppression by the autocratic government lead by Moamar Gadhafi. The people have revolted against the government wanting Democracy. The government responded to this with harsh military action and no positive talks with the people on peace, or consensus.

The U.S. as part of the UN has stepped in as its duty to help the oppressed people. The U.S. and UN do not agree with the actions by the Libyan government, so we have stepped in to stop the harsh military oppression of the people.

Turmoil in Libya worsens as West launches attack

The joint forces of several Western nations Saturday launched an attack on Libya, a move that will complicate an already turbulent situation in the North African country.

French warplanes had been taking the lead in the airstrikes, which came after the UN Security Council imposed a no-fly zone over Libya.

At least 64 people were killed and 150 others wounded following the military operation against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, launched by the coalition that included the United States, France, Britain, Canada and Italy.

The western coalition claimed they launched the assault for humanitarian interests. But many analysts and media believed they did it for the sake of their own goals and interests instead of the safety and welfare of the unarmed Libyan civilians as they have claimed.

AN INTERVENTION WITH DIFFERENT GOALS

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has taken a leading role in pushing for international intervention in Libya.

With a record-low popularity and facing a presidential election next year, Sarkozy was eager to take the reins in global crises and show voters that he can take the lead.

Gaddafi, then, offers Sarkozy an opportunity.

About a week ago, the French leader became the first world leader to recognize the Libyan rebel National Libyan Council as "legitimate representative" of Tripoli.

He also took the lead in plans to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya

At the Paris summit Saturday, Sarkozy announced that French planes were already in the air and ready to attack when other participants barely reached an agreement.

After the emergency summit, Sarkozy said France had already taken military actions against Libya.

"For the moment and already, our planes are over the city preventing air attacks," he said at a press conference.

"Our determination is total," the president declared after seeing off important decision-makers from some Arab countries and main Western powers to agree on a military action against Libya.

After the summit, Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme told reporters that France was obviously "heading" the military operation against Libya.

British Prime Minister David Cameron led the campaign for military operation against Libya together with Sarkozy. For a young leader who is dealing with his first major international crisis, this is a good opportunity to prove his leadership and build his stature on the global stage.

Then why did the United States, which showed reluctancy to wade into another Middle East military operation at first, finally decided to intervene?

Analysts believed the rapidly-evolving political situation in Libya is one of the factors that prompted Washington to shift its military and foreign policies.

The United States, which hasn't gotten out of the mire in Iraq and Afghanistan, had feared that its involvement in the military effort would be regarded as a U.S. declaration of war against the whole Muslim world.

But those concerns were soon dispelled as the Arab League voiced support for the idea of a no-fly zone over Libya, and Libyan rebel forces have meanwhile suffered fresh setbacks when the country's pro-government forces entered the opposition stronghold of Benghazi.

Though western powers launched their attack on Libya out of different motives, analysts and observers said they simply shared a common goal: to overthrow the Gaddafi regime and grab the rich oil reserves of Libya.

Russia's Envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, told Russia Today TV channel that certain countries are pushing to get involved in Libya because they are reliant on its oil resources.

"If Libya were just a banana-growing country, there wouldn't be so much interest in its domestic situation, including the humanitarian sphere," Rogozin said.

"The West so far has been playing games for its own consumption. They hold meetings with all sorts of people, trying to invest in their powers, but that has nothing to do with the agenda of stabilizing the situation in that North African country," said the NATO envoy.

Observers and analysts also warned that the joint military operation doesn't necessarily lead to the step-down of Gaddafi. Instead, it could worsen the already turbulent situation of that nation.

Moreover, it could plunge the nation into a state of chaos and anarchy and result in a humanitarian disaster and the empowerment of extremists, they said.

Therefore, if the military efforts against the North African country were to become a protracted campaign, leaders of the Western nations involved in the military operation would all suffer politically, they said.

Military campaign against Libya

The US, Britain and France have attacked Libyan leader  Muammar Gaddafi's forces in what they say is an attempt to enforce a UN-endorsed no-fly zone.

On Saturday night, at least 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles were fired by the US and UK amid air strikes by French planes that were followed by the US bombing of a major Libyan airfield on Sunday. At least three US B-2 bombers took part in the Sunday attack, Libya’s state TV reported, adding that 48 people have already been killed and 150 more injured in the West’s military action against Libya, including the capital, Tripoli.  Meanwhile, a naval blockade against this North African country is being put in place, with more than twenty warships and submarines taking part in the process.

The Western coalition underscores the need to enforce a recently adopted UN Security Council resolution, which okayed the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent pro-Gaddafi forces from staging air strikes against rebels.

In Moscow, Oriental expert Azhdar Kurtov particularly points to Western countries’ unwillingness to adhere to the UNSC no-fly zone resolution.

The document aims to stop Libyan aircraft from targeting rebels’ ground forces, Kurtov explains, lamenting the resolution’s insufficient transparency, which he says was also criticized by some members of the UN Security Council. "In violation of the resolution, the Western coalition is attacking pro-Gaddafi forces both on the ground and in the skies," Kurtov says. "The West, in fact, is giving a helping hand to one of Libya’s conflicting parties," he goes on to say.

By doing so, the West is riding roughshod over international norms, Kurtov pointed out, citing a principle of non-interference in a sovereign state’s internal affairs. The latest developments in North Africa is little more than a violation of Libya’s sovereignty and an attempt to resolve its domestic problems with the help of the use of force and the ouster of Colonel Gaddafi, Kurtov said. Such an approach creates a dangerous precedent which may well see the West’s military action against any other country, whose domestic policy comes to infuriate Western leaders, the Russian expert concluded.

In the meantime, Russia and China have already expressed regret over the Sunday military action, warning against the use of force in international affairs. The Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman urged the UN Security Council to stick to the UN Charter and take steps in line with Libya’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He was echoed by Russian counterpart Alexander Lukashevich who clamored for an immediate halt of the bloodshed in Libya, calling for the political standoff there to be resolved in a peaceful way and by means of negotiations

Most Chinese bash U.S.-led attack against Libya, while others amused at the bashing

On March 17, the United Nations Security Council imposed a no-fly zone over Libya and authorized “all necessary measures” to protect Libyan civilians from military attacks. On March 19, British, French and the U.S. forces initiated Operation “Odyssey Dawn” by firing missiles and launching air strikes at Libya. IFENG, official site of Hongkong-based pro-Beijing Phoenix TV conducted an online poll. Until 3:30 p.m. of March 20, among 181,001 net users polled, over 70 percent object to the Western military action against Libya.

English translation of the poll:

1, Do you support the military action against Libya unleashed by Western countries, including France, Britain and the United States?

A, Yes. Gaddafi has used military forces to attack his own people. The international community must put an end to the manmade disaster. (43,485 votes; 24%)

B, Yes. The Western coalition forces’ action is authorized by the United Nations. (4,530 votes; 2.5%)

C, No. U.S., Britain and France have double standard. They turned a blind eye to protesters in Yemen and Bahrain, and even backed crackdown. (107,253 votes; 59.3%)

D, No. Both Gaddafi and rebels disregard the no-fly zone. French, Britain and the U.S. use humanitarianism as an excuse to hurt civilians. (22,059 votes; 12.2%)

E, That’s hard to say.  (3,636 votes; 2.0%)

2, What do you think is the purpose of the Western countries’ military action against the Libyan government?

A, To protect Libyan rebels and civilians who are now being attacked by Gaddafi. (38,910 votes; 21.5%)

B, To reap profit from oil in Libya in the future. (134,268 votes; 74.2%)

C, To respond to public opinion against Gaddafi at home; they are stuck in the middle and have to attack (Libya). (5,509 votes; 3.0%)

D, Other. (2,282 votes; 1.3%)

Besides, amidst crisis in Libya, France, contrary to its usual stance, becomes the first country to acknowledge the opposition armed forces and took the initiative to launch the air strike. What contributes to French role as a pioneer? 34.8% of netizens polled think it’s the result of factors within France, “France is in the face of the election year. Sarkozy hopes to garner votes by this.” 33.2% showed their understanding, believing that it’s because France is relatively close to Libya and conventionally has its interests in North Africa. The rest 26.4% think it’s all about a country in decline taking advantage of the opportunity to curry favor by claptrap.