The State Department is warning all US citizens to leave Libya immediately:

Why? I did a little checking and it looks like Libya is about to undergo another coup attempt in order to wipe out the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists groups, especially in Benghazi:

NY TIMES – The United States has another large problem on its hands right now in Libya. Khalifa Hifter, a former Libyan general who is now an American citizen, is mounting what could be a de facto coup, with far-reaching consequences for Libya and the United States.

…

When the indigenous 2011 rebellion broke out and NATO intervened, General Hifter returned to Libya expecting to command the rebel forces, but lost out to Abdul Fattah Younes, Colonel Qaddafi’s former interior minister. Mr. Younes was later assassinated, with suspicion falling on an Islamist militia then emerging in Benghazi.

This month, General Hifter re-emerged as the leader of an assault, backed by jet fighters and artillery, on Islamist camps in Benghazi; simultaneously, his partisans terminated a session of Parliament in Libya’s capital, Tripoli. He claims to have been planning this maneuver by shuttling among Libyan military figures in Libya’s major cities — a scenario reminiscent of Colonel Qaddafi’s preparations for his own 1969 coup.

General Hifter calls his program Operation Karama — Arabic for “dignity.” In interviews, he styles himself a fierce patriot with a “civic duty” to deliver Libyans from the Muslim Brotherhood. He speaks of “cleansing” Libya of Islamists, especially in Benghazi, where he blames them for daily assassinations and kidnappings.

He has not stated an end-goal, but has said he would not refuse a leadership role — if the people should will it. He rules out compromising with Islamists, who, he says, only respond to force.

In recent days, General Hifter has gained backing from key Libyan army and air force units, important militias and senior members of the regional security forces, as well as oblique endorsements from some leaders of the 2011 revolution.

But the United States government has not expressed a judgment. It seems to be avoiding endorsement or rejection of General Hifter, limiting itself to expressions of concern about a situation it calls “extremely fluid” and joining an international call for all parties to refrain from violent acts. Secretary of State John Kerry has asked a senior diplomat, David Satterfield, to go to Libya as an envoy, but has not indicated a direct connection with General Hifter’s action.

Video at link

KEEP READING…http://therightscoop.com/coup-state-depa...ya-immediately/

The US is sending 1,000 Marines in an amphibious assault ship to Libya's coast as a “precautionary” move should the US embassy require evacuation, a US official said. Security concerns also led the US to suggest Americans in Libya "depart immediately."

Adding to tensions, gunmen attacked the Tripoli home of Libya’s new prime minister, Ahmed Maiteeq, on Tuesday. Businessman Maiteeq, 42, and his family escaped harm, according to AFP.

An aide to Maiteeq said "there was an attack with rockets and small arms on the prime minister's house" in Tripoli at 3:00 a.m. (0100 GMT). Maiteeq’s guards opened fire on the attackers, wounding and arresting two of them, the official added.

In reaction to the heightened strife in Libya, the USS Bataan, stocked with several helicopters in addition to the Marines, is to be in the nation’s coastal area “in a matter of days,” an anonymous US defense official said, according to AFP.

The preemptive move is a reaction to increasingly violent militia battles, which could threaten the American embassy’s security, the official said.

Based on escalating security concerns, the US State Department recommended Tuesday that Americans in Libya "depart immediately."

"Due to security concerns, the Department of State has limited staffing at Embassy Tripoli and is only able to offer very limited emergency services to US citizens in Libya," the travel warning said.

The US also has 250 available Marines, seven Osprey combat aircraft, and three refueling aircraft in Sigonella, Italy, AFP reported.

The State Department said last week that its embassy in Tripoli was operating as usual despite offensives launched by a dissident general, Khalifa Haftar, against the Libyan parliament and Islamist factions.

Meanwhile, Mohamed Zahawi, the head of Libya’s Ansar Al-Sharia militant group in Benghazi, warned against any US interference in the nation’s ongoing tumult.

Zahawi accused the US government of backing General Haftar, a "new Gaddafi," and an "agent of American intelligence.”

“We remind America, if they intervene, of their defeats in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia, because they would face in Libya something much worse," he said in a statement on Tuesday. "It was America who urged Haftar to turn the country towards war and bloodshed."

http://rt.com/news/161832-marines-warship-libya-coast/

Yeah. The Obama admin finally found there were some military resources in the area.