US after Libya' oil: American legislator

Libyan fighters pray in front of an anti-aircraft gun near an oil refinery in Ras Lanuf, March 8, 2011

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/195463.html

US Congressman Dennis Kucinich has blamed the Obama administration for pursuing control over Libya's vast oil reserves by participating in a military campaign in the North African country.

"Was the United States, through participation in the overthrow of the [Libyan] regime, furthering the aims of international oil corporations in pursuit of control over one of the world's largest oil resources?" Kucinich said in a statement on his website on Tuesday.

"Did the United States at the inception of the war against Libya align itself with elements of al-Qaeda, while elsewhere continuing to use the threat of al-Qaeda as a reason for US military intervention, presence and occupation?" he added.

Kucinich pointed out that the five-month-old military intervention in Libya sets a dangerous precedent for unilateral attacks on sovereign nations.

He also urged the International Criminal Court to investigate potential war crimes by military leaders on all sides of the conflict.

"Resources which should be spent creating jobs in America are going to perpetuate war abroad," Kucinich said, adding, "Resources which should be used to build bridges in America continue to be used to bomb bridges elsewhere."

In March, Kucinich suggested President Barack Obama's authorizing of airstrikes on Libya were "an impeachable offense" and sponsored a July measure to defund the military effort in the North African state.

Libya has been the scene of intense fighting between regime troops and fighters since a revolution seeking to topple Gaddafi began in mid-February.

NATO has conducted thousands of airstrikes over Libya since March to implement a UN Security Council resolution that called for “the protection of civilians.”

However, scores of civilians have been killed during the NATO airstrikes.