White House Planning Military Strike Over Libya Terrorist Attack?

The Associated Press reports that the Obama administration is considering a military strike on Libya over the 9/11 terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi. The report has not been confirmed by the White House.

From the AP:

Administration officials say the White House has put special operations strike forces on standby and moved drones into the skies above Africa, ready to hit militant targets from Libya to Mali, if U.S. investigators can find the al-Qaida-linked group responsible for the death of the U.S. ambassador in Libya.

But the officials say the administration also is weighing whether the short-term payoff of being able to claim retribution against al-Qaida is worth the risk that such strikes would be ineffective and rile governments in the region.

Details were provided by three current and one former administration official, as well as an analyst who was approached by the White House for help. All four spoke only on condition of anonymity.

The Department of Justice said the White House continues to "monitor the situation closely" and the agency is "ready" to respond if a strike is ordered by the president. However, a DoD spokesman stopped short of confirming that a strike is imminent or is being planned.

"The investigation is on-going and we have nothing new right now. As [Pentagon spokesman] George Little has briefed recently, the DoD continues to monitor the situation closely and we are ready to respond with additional military measures when directed by the president," Department of Defense spokesman Robert Firman told Politico.