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http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/03/21-6
Published on Monday, March 21, 2011 by The Guardian/UK
by Patrick Wintour and Ewen MacAskill in Washington
A breach within Britain's political and military leadership has opened up as David Cameron argued the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, may be a legitimate target while the Chief of the Defence Staff, Sir David Richards, said he was "absolutely not".
A Libyan rebel prays next to his gun on the outskirts of Ajdabiya. (Anja Niedringhaus/AP) The clash fed a growing concern on the third day of the air assault against Gaddafi that the hastily assembled international alliance is struggling to paper over disagreements about its ultimate war aims in Libya, the future role of Nato and the legitimacy of the rebel groups.
There was also cabinet anxiety that the scale of the initial heavy bombardment may strengthen popular support for Gaddafi in Tripoli and be seen in the Middle East as exceeding the UN security council goal of protecting civilians.