G-8 summit moved to Camp David
WASHINGTON, March 5 (UPI) -- The Group of Eight summit planned for Chicago in May has been moved to President Obama's Camp David retreat in Maryland, the White House said Monday.
The NATO summit, scheduled immediately following the G-8, will still be held in Chicago, officials said in the surprise announcement from the White House.
"In May, the United States looks forward to hosting the G-8 and NATO Summits. To facilitate a free-flowing discussion with our close G-8 partners, the president is inviting his fellow G-8 leaders to Camp David on May 18-19 for the G-8 summit, which will address a broad range of economic, political and security issues," the White House statement said.
"The president will then welcome NATO allies and partners to his hometown of Chicago for the NATO Summit on May 20-21, which will be the premier opportunity this year for the president to continue his efforts to strengthen NATO in order to ensure that the Atlantic Alliance remains the most successful alliance in history, while charting the way forward in Afghanistan."
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel had lobbied Obama to host both summits.
McCain calls for Syrian airstrikes
WASHINGTON, March 5 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. John McCain says the United States must launch airstrikes against Syrian forces to put an end to the butchering of civilians.
McCain, in a speech Monday on the Senate floor, said "time is running out" in Syria. "[President Bashar] Assad's forces are on the march. Providing military assistance to the Free Syrian Army and other opposition groups is necessary, but at this late hour, that alone will not be sufficient to stop the slaughter and save innocent lives," he said.
"The only realistic way to do so is with foreign air power."
McCain said airstrikes on Assad's forces would help key population centers in Syria, especially in the north.
"Despite a year's worth of diplomacy backed by sanctions, Assad and his top lieutenants show no signs of giving up and taking the path into foreign exile. To the contrary, they appear to accelerating their fight to the finish. And they are doing so with the shameless support of foreign governments, especially in Russia, China and Iran," he said.
U.S. sanctions Syrian state-run media
WASHINGTON, March 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. government says Syria's state-owned TV channels and radio stations are subject to sanctions.
The U.S.Treasury Department Monday identified the Syrian General Organization of Radio and TV as a state-run agency subordinate to Syria's Ministry of Information. It is responsible for operating Syria's state-owned television channels, two terrestrial and one satellite, as well as the government radio stations.
"The General Organization of Radio and TV has served as an arm of the Syrian regime as it mounts increasingly barbaric attacks on its own population and seeks both to mask and legitimize its violence," The Treasury Department said in a statement. "Treasury is sending a clear signal that it stands with the Syrian people. Any individuals or institutions supporting its abhorrent behavior will be targeted and cut off from the international financial system."
U.S. citizens are prohibited from engaging in transactions with the Syrian government and any assets the Syria government may have subject to U.S. jurisdiction are frozen, the Treasury Department said.
Santorum: Romney's money won't win Ohio
MIAMISBURG, Ohio, March 5 (UPI) -- Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum, on the campaign trail in Ohio Monday, said it doesn't matter he can't spend as much as rival Mitt Romney.
Santorum said his conservative message has been consistent, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Santorum told hundreds of supporters and students at a Christian school in Miamisburg, a suburb of Dayton. "I come to the people of Ohio as a candidate who shouldn't be here, who shouldn't be here, if you looked at any political expert and you looked at the money that's been spent and the airtime that's been given, but we're here for a reason -- because I'm experienced, I'm principled, I'm values, energy, enthusiasm and grit."
Santorum said if he had the same resources as Romney, he would be running away with the race, the Times said.
"This race isn't going to be won or lost in the fall on money," he said, "this race is going to be won or lost on someone who can capture the imagination of the American people, someone who can go out and articulate that vision for where our country must go if we're going to be free and safe and prosperous."
Romney, meanwhile, spoke at a town hall event in Youngstown to a crowd of 500, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported.
Libyan mob attacks war cemetery
BENGHAZI, Libya, March 5 (UPI) -- A mob of angry Libyans desecrated the gravestones of World War II soldiers at the Benghazi War Cemetery, officials said.
The incident happened last month after a group of American soldiers burned several Korans in Afghanistan, Postmedia News reported Monday.
Video footage shows a mob smashing headstones at the war cemetery, saying, "They are dogs."
A total of 1,214 Commonwealth troops who died in the North African desert battles of World War II are buried at the war cemetery in Benghazi.
Libya's transitional government has condemned the attacks and vowed to find the perpetrators.
On Monday, Australian officials said they were "appalled and disgusted" by the incident.
