(Image Source: The New York Times)
 

BY ZACH TOOMBS
 

After seven months and almost 10,000 air strikes, NATO is calling its mission in Libya a mission accomplished. MSNBC reports.

"Well, today marks the end of NATO’s bombing campaign in Libya. The UN Security Council authorized that seven-month mission that helped the Libyan rebels overthrow Muammar Gaddafi’s more than 40-year-long reign."

And, according to CNN, NATO Secretary General Anders Rasmussen is calling the Libya mission a resounding success.

“Basically, he’s been congratulating his own organization, NATO, for a mission that he says has been done extremely well. They’re calling it the most successful mission in NATO’s recent history. They’re proud of the fact that they’ve got what they call a clean axe -- they’re leaving at midnight, local time -- something they’ve not been able to do for instance in Afghanistan and Iraq.”

Although NATO officials have sung praises of the mission, FOX News reports many Libyans are wary that the nation, now led by its National Transitional Council, may not be ready to stand up on its own two feet just yet.

“Now, the NATO chiefs said they’ve fulfilled their mandate now. But the National Transitional Council, which rules this country at the moment, had asked that NATO carry on its mission until December because they feared that Gaddafi loyalists could still create incidents here.”

Ready or not, it appears Libya’s transitional government is on its own. And Monday, within 24 hours of parting ways with NATO, the NTC appointed a new prime minister. The Wall Street Journal reports.

"Abdel-Rahim El Keib won a simple majority of the votes cast by the 54 NTC members, after several other candidates fell out of the running in earlier rounds of voting Monday evening. Mr. El Keib is a veteran anti-Gadhafi dissident who spent about four decades living and working in the U.S."

According to CNN, even as NATO closes the book on Libya, many questions remain, including the issue of whether oil-rich Libya will reimburse NATO allies for their help.