Stop NATO’s gangsterism: US lawmaker

Press TV – August 23, 2011

A US lawmaker says NATO chiefs must be held responsible under the international law for the deaths of Libyan civilians to avoid the victory of a ‘new international gangsterism.’

“If members of the Gaddafi regime are to be held accountable, NATO’s top commanders must also be held accountable through the International Criminal Court for all civilian deaths resulting from bombing,” Democratic Representative Dennis Kucinich was quoted by AFP as saying on Tuesday.

Kucinich denounced NATO for exceeding the UN Security Council resolution which mandated a no-fly zone over Libya to protect civilians, stating that the real aim of attacks were “regime change.”

If NATO commanders do not stand justice, we will see the victory of “a new international gangsterism,” the lawmaker said.

Kucinich has expressed opposition to the involvement of NATO and the United States in the Libya conflict.

UN Security Council members including Russia, China, Brazil, India and South Africa have also criticized the Western military alliance, saying NATO has gone beyond the UN mandate.

Colonel Roland Lavoie, a NATO spokesman for Libya’s Operation Unified Protector said on Tuesday that the alliance will continue to carry out its bombing campaign to the end of the ongoing conflict in the North African country.

“We will take out and strike at targets if they pose a threat to the civilian population,” Lavoie said at a news conference in Naples, Italy.

Since NATO took command of airstrikes on March 31, its warplanes have carried out 19,994 sorties including 7,541 strike sorties, a Reuters report published on August 23 said.