Speaking out against Muammar al-Qaddafi for the first time, President Obama said on Saturday the Libyan leader needs to "leave now," having lost the legitimacy to rule.
In a White House statement on Obama's telephone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Obama took his most direct position yet on the escalating violence in Libya.
"The president stated that when a leader's only means of staying in power is to use mass violence against his own people, he has lost the legitimacy to rule and needs to do what is right for his country by leaving now," it said.
Obama's stance comes after he signed an executive order Friday freezing assets held by Qaddafi and four of his children in the United States. The Treasury Department said the sanctions against Qaddafi, three of his sons and a daughter also apply to the Libyan government.
Violence in Libya continued to spiral out of control Saturday, as the embattled regime passed out guns to civilian supporters, set up checkpoints and sent armed patrols roving the terrorized capital to try to maintain control of Qaddafi's stronghold and quash dissent as rebels consolidate control elsewhere in the North African nation.
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