Clinton to UAE for Libya, Another Defection

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to the United Arab Emirates soon to meet with members of the Libyan Contact Group. Assistant Secretary of State Jeff Feltman is currently in Abu Dhabi in preparation for the Contact Group meeting. Meanwhile the Senate Foreign Relations Committee postponed a planned session to discuss and possibly vote on another resolution about U.S. military involvement in Libya. NATO secretary-general Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on alliance members to contribute more to the Libyan effort.

The labor minister Ali al-Amin Manfur has defected to the rebels and claims that leader Muammar Gadhafi is selling oil on the black market to pay for his military mission. Manfur said, “if the regime falls, Gaddafi should not leave the country. He should remain in Libya to face the music.”