Libya: Muammar Qaddafi Is Dead
Former Libyan dictator Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, on the run since rebel forces toppled his regime over the summer, has reportedly been killed by rebel forces in a battle for control of his hometown, Sirte, east of Tripoli. Al Jazeera has footage of what appears to be Qaddafi’s bloody corpse. It’s not clear how he died, but he seems to have sustained a gunshot wound to the side of the head. There’s been no immediate comment on the news of his death from the Obama administration, but there’s no doubt that Qaddafi’s death will be seen as vindication for Obama’s policy of intervening, albeit in a support role to NATO, in Libya.
UPDATE: The Libyan prime minister has confirmed Qaddafi is dead. “We have been waiting for this moment for a long time. Muammar Qaddafi has been killed,” Mahmoud Jibril told a news conference in the capital Tripoli.
How Obama decided to roll the dice on military action, against the advice of some of his top aides, was the subject of a recent Rolling Stone article by Michael Hastings. Check it out below.
Related
• Inside Obama’s War Room: How he Decided to Intervene in Libya