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Obama seeking reform in Libya, official says
Washington (CNN) -- U.S. authorities were keeping a close watch on Libya's
rapidly unfolding political crisis Monday in part to see what possibilities
might exist for meaningful reform, a senior Obama administration official said.
Among other things, Washington was taking a close look at a speech early Monday
by Saif al-Islam Gadhafi -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son -- which
included warnings of a civil war if demonstrations in the North African country
don't stop.
In the speech, Saif Gadhafi also acknowledged changing times regionally and
proposed "radical" reforms -- such as bolstering local governments, relaxing
restrictive laws, raising salaries, extending loans and drafting a
constitution, which doesn't exist now.
Obama officials continued to discuss with their Libyan counterparts the need to
avoid violence against peaceful protesters, the official added.
The State Department, meanwhile, ordered all U.S. embassy family members and
non-emergency personnel to depart Libya. U.S. citizens were urged to defer all
travel to the country.
National security adviser Tom Donilon briefed President Barack Obama on the
situation in Libya on Sunday night, the official said.
Despite the warning from Gadhafi's son, Libya's protesters are showing no signs
of backing down. After Gadhafi's government apparently lost control of the city
of Benghazi, angry protesters said they hoped for a similar turn of events in
the capital, Tripoli.
Tripoli residents said state-run al-Shababiya TV was attacked Sunday evening by
anti-government protesters. CNN, however, could not immediately confirm
reports. The Libyan government maintains tight control on communications and
has not responded to repeated requests from CNN for access to the country.
CNN has interviewed witnesses by phone.
The unrest, spurred largely by high unemployment and demands for freedom, has
left at least 233 people dead in Libya, according to Human Rights Watch, citing
hospital sources.
The growing American pressure on Gadhafi -- a famously mercurial leader -- is
only the latest in a series of twists and turns in the relationship between
Washington and Tripoli over 42 years of rule.
In 1986, Libya was implicated in the fatal bombing at a West Berlin nightclub
that resulted in the death an American service member. President Ronald Reagan
ordered the bombing targets in Libya in response and imposed economic
sanctions. Reagan dubbed Gadhafi the "mad dog of the Middle East."
Two years later, Libya was implicated in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103,
which exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland.
In 1999, Gadhafi tried to thaw his icy relationship with the West, agreeing to
demands to turn over suspects in the Lockerbie bombing. In 2003, he agreed to
eliminate his pursuit and stockpile of weapons of mass destruction.
The moves helped Libya regain diplomatic relations with the United States in
2006.
In 2008, however, Swiss officials jailed one of Gadhafi's sons, prompting the
furious leader to cut off the country's oil supplies, withdraw Libyan money
from Swiss banks and threaten to sever diplomatic ties.
Two years ago, Gadhafi returned to the international spotlight yet again when
Scotland agreed to release convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdel Basset al-Megrahi,
who received a hero's welcome in Libya.
Scottish authorities said al-Megrahi was terminally ill with cancer and, as a
result, was released on compassionate grounds. Skeptics, including several U.S.
senators, contend that al-Megrahi was released as part of a deal fueled by
British business interests in Libya, including oil giant BP.
Libya is one of Europe's key oil suppliers.
CNN's Alan Silverleib, Jill Dougherty and Mike Pearson contributed to this
report.
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http://edition.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/02/21/libya.us.reaction/index.html?hpt=T1
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© 2008 Cable News Network.
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