In Libya, a NATO air strike has killed 12 rebels and wounded five in Misurata. The attack marks the second time this month NATO planes have mistakenly bombed the Libyan opposition. The United States, meanwhile, has ordered the expenditure of some $25 million in surplus government goods to support the rebel forces. On Wednesday, the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Gene Cretz, said the rebels are deserving of U.S. backing.

Gene Cretz: “They are working through the normal bugs that would be part of any, you know, stand-up transitional government that has not had — in a country where you have not had politics for 40 years. So I think, in terms of what he has found so far, he would confirm or affirm that our determination that they were a serious group worthy of support has been borne out.”

Cretz also said he estimates 10,000 to 30,000 people have been killed in Libya’s unrest. More than 1,000 are believed to have died in Misurata alone.