UPDATE 1-EXCLUSIVE-Libya envoy to U.S. backs interim government
(Adds quotes, background)
WASHINGTON Feb 26 (Reuters) - Libya's ambassador to the United States, Ali Aujali, told Reuters on Saturday he supported a caretaker government being formed by former Libyan Justice Minister Mustafa Mohamed Abud Ajleil.
"I am supporting the new temporary government which was formed by ... Mustafa Mohamed Abud Ajleil, the former minister of justice. This government is the government of the whole of Libya," said Aujali, who announced earlier this week that he would no longer represent Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's government.
"We want to support this government as the caretaker government until the liberation of all of Libya, which I hope will happen very soon."
Gaddafi's 41-year grip on power appeared increasingly tenuous on Saturday in the face of a nationwide revolt that follows uprisings that toppled authoritarian rulers in Tunisia and Egypt earlier this year.
The online edition of the Quryna newspaper reported on Saturday that Abud Ajleil had led the formation of an interim government based in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Paul Simao)
