During a briefing last month, House Armed Forces Committee member Rep. Mike Turner says that Admiral Samuel Locklear, who commands the NATO Joint Operations Command in Naples, Italy, admitted that NATO is trying to kill Muammar Qaddafi as part of its mission, Foreign Policy's Josh Rogin reports. Despite the White House's insistence that it's goal is not "regime change," Turner said Locklear described his mission this way: 

"The U.N. authorization had three components: blockade, no fly zone, and civil protection. And Admiral Locklear explained that the scope of civil protection was being interpreted to permit the removal of the chain of command of Qaddafi's military, which includes Qaddafi," Turner said. "He said that currently is the mission as NATO has defined."

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at ereeve at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Elspeth Reeve