Libyan Prime Minister al-Baghdadi Ali al-Mahmoudi on Tuesday denounced NATO’s bombardment of his country as a breach of the UN Charter, the state-run JANA news agency reported.

The Libyan official expressed his condemnation when briefing UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou over the phone on the devastating consequences of the bombing campaign, according to the report.

The air strikes carried out by the alliance have obviously exceeded the scope of the UN mandate and constitute a violation of international law and the UN Charter, al-Mahmoudi said, calling NATO’s action a “serious and sustained” infringement and “an aggression against the Libyan people.”

The Libyan prime minister also held a phone conversation with Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov on Tuesday night, JANA said, without disclosing any details.

The phone diplomacy came after a turbulent night that saw Tripoli rocked by a series of blasts. A government building that had been previously targeted was destroyed, and a communications towers used for mobile phone services was toppled.

The UN Security Council passed a resolution in mid-March giving the green light to all necessary measures to protect Libyan civilians. But the intervening parties have apparently turned the intervention into a mission to help the rebels overthrow the Libyan government, which is still recognized by the UN.

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U.S. President Barack Obama arrives to deliver remarks on immigration reform at Chamizal National Memorial Park in El Paso, Texas, May 10, 2011.  (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

HOUSTON, May 10 (Xinhua) — U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday renewed his call for comprehensive immigration reform, saying the country’s immigration system needs genuine, comprehensive reform.

Obama made the remarks in El Paso, Texas, in his first visit to the southern U.S. border as president, to highlight his efforts to secure the frontier with Mexico and to call for a route to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.

“We define ourselves as a nation of immigrants — a nation that welcomes those willing to embrace America’s precepts,” he said.

“It doesn’t matter where you come from. What matter is that you believe in the ideals on which we were founded, that you believe all of us are equal … In embracing America, you can became American. That is what makes this country great,” he said.

Comprehensive immigration reform has sparked furious debate in the United States in recent years. Both Democrats and Republicans are seeking to use the issue to their own advantage in the 2012 elections.

Republicans have indicated an unwillingness to consider broader changes, including a route to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, until the U.S.-Mexican border is secured.

In El Paso, Obama called on the Congress to reject “the usual Washington games” and enact a comprehensive overhaul of the immigration system.

Obama said he had satisfied demands from the conservatives to step up security along the U.S.-Mexico border and to increase deportation of illegal immigrants.

He called on the Congress to reform the immigration system in a manner that would allow skilled immigrants to participate in American society while ending what he called an underground economy that relies on illegal immigrant workers.

Obama had vowed to reform the country’s immigration system during his presidential campaign in 2008, which helped him win critical support from an important and still growing constituency – - Hispanic voters.

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