Libyan rebels win U.S. recogntion

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration formally recognized a rebel group as Libya’s government, giving the forces struggling to overthrow Moammar Gadhafi’s regime for the last five months a dramatic diplomatic boost and potentially access to billions of dollars in badly needed cash.

Setting aside fears that Islamic radicals may emerge among the insurgents, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced Friday in Istanbul, Turkey, that the United States would join more than 30 other nations in extending diplomatic recognition to the Transitional National Council, which is based in Benghazi and controls eastern Libya.

Gadhafi’s four-decade-old regime, which controls much of western Libya, “no longer” has legitimacy to govern the country, Clinton said. As a result, she added, Washington will deal with the council as the legal government “until an interim authority is in place.”

Clinton acknowledged to reporters that administration deliberations have been lengthy, but she insisted the time had been necessary.

“We really acted in warp time in diplomatic terms, but we took our time to make sure … based on the best possible assessments,” she said.

Habib Ben Ali, media liaison for the rebel council, called the announcement “a terrific development for us – a real political victory.” U.S. diplomatic recognition is “the icing on the cake,” he added.

In a radio broadcast, Gadhafi poured scorn on the decision, and insisted he is not giving up power or leaving the country.

“I don’t care which countries recognize the rebels’ transitional council,” he said, according to the Associated Press. “Tell NATO and other countries to pick up the white flag and ask our forgiveness.”

North Atlantic Treaty Organization warplanes, backed by U.S. intelligence and other support, have been bombing Gadhafi’s military forces and other ground targets since March 19 under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians. But the poorly trained and lightly armed rebels appear stalled on several fronts, and have yet to dislodge Gadhafi’s regime.

The move comes at a time when Western and Arab governments are increasingly eager to wind down the war. Pressure is building in several European countries for an end to a conflict that was originally expected to last fewer than 90 days.

In one sign of the eagerness to end the war, Turkish officials said at the Istanbul meeting that they, like the French and some other governments, were prepared to consider the possibility of an internal exile for Gadhafi, rather than his departure from the country.