Obama: Libya's future 'in the hands of its people

As rebels celebrated in Tripoli, President Barack Obama declared that Moammar Gadhafi's long rule is over. "The future of Libya is in the hands of its people," he said.

Speaking Monday from a rented vacation home on Martha's Vineyard, Obama heralded U.S. and international military efforts that helped bring about the outcome. But with Gadhafi's precise whereabouts unknown, Obama cautioned that uncertainty and threats remained.

He urged Gadhafi to surrender and end the bloodshed, and the opposition to seek a just transition into an uncertain future.

"The rights of all Libyans must be respected," he said. "True justice will not come from reprisals and violence; it will come from reconciliation and a Libya that allows its citizens to determine their own destiny."

The crumbling of Gadhafi's 42-year rule was being described by some analysts as vindication of Obama's much-criticized decision to limit U.S. involvement in Libya and let NATO take control after the U.S. led the initial air campaign in March.

Obama stopped well short of declaring a military or political victory, leaving it to a spokesman to credit U.S. strategy and "the president's robust leadership" with producing "a lot of favorable results." But the president highlighted NATO's success after months of doubts about whether the alliance would be able to prevail.

"NATO has once more proven that it is the most capable alliance in the world and that its strength comes from both its firepower and the power of our democratic ideals," Obama said.

And with his re-election campaign under way and a war-weary public focused on jobs, Obama was quick to note that it all happened "without putting a single U.S. troop on the ground," a policy that aides said Obama would maintain.

It has come at a cost, though: The Pentagon says that as of July 31, the U.S. had spent about $820 million, including the daily military operations, munitions and humanitarian assistance.

Obama's comments Monday were his first since a weekend push by the rebels into the Libyan capital, and since he arrived on this island retreat off the coast of Massachusetts on Thursday for a 10-day stay.