GADDIFI TOPPLED!!!!!TRIPOLI CELEBRATING!!!!!!!!

Al Jazeera 23 August 2011 - Gadaffi broadcasts again (audio only) as the rebels storm his compound:

Muammar Gaddafi's compound has been over-run, most of Tripoli is controlled by rebel forces and his whereabouts are still unknown.

However, the Libyan leader remains defiant.

In an audio address, just hours after rebels stormed into his Bab Al Aziziya compound after several hours of heavy gunfire and intense battles, he called on residents of Tripoli to cleanse the city of what he calls "rats".

This is a link to the Libya El Hurra organisation which sends aid to Libya. There are some videos on there showing the work of the charity etc. http://libyaelhurra.org/

Libya El Hurra Charity (LHC) was established within the first week of the Libyan crisis, to provide humanitarian aid and relief to internally displaced, refugees, and vulnerable populations such as women and children. LHC has been, and remains committed to not only providing aid, but also to promoting international awareness of the plight of the Libyan people and displaced persons.
LHC was founded by Mr. Hassan Tatanaki who is the acting Chairman of the Board (until elections), and is proud to be represented by the Libyan people, university professors, students, authors, intellectuals, scientists, and business owners of all ages whom have united in support of a common goal: a democratic and prosperous Libya.

he called on residents of Tripoli to cleanse the city of what he calls "rats".


Yes, well, they are doing their best, and it would speed things up if he surrendered...good news that humanitarian aid is on its way now.

bb1 wrote:he called on residents of Tripoli to cleanse the city of what he calls "rats".


Yes, well, they are doing their best, and it would speed things up if he surrendered...good news that humanitarian aid is on its way now.

In Arabic 'rats' and 'dogs' are the ultimate insults, so my son tells me, like throwing one's shoe at someone or stamping on a picture of your enemy. LL

I am just looking at the huge ammo dump the new government's soldiers have found in Tripoli - I hate to think what would have happened if a NATO bomb had landed on that.

bb1 wrote:I am just looking at the huge ammo dump the new government's soldiers have found in Tripoli - I hate to think what would have happened if a NATO bomb had landed on that.

Ther big question is what else is there lying around? I just hope they did manage to find all the mustard gas and sarin stuff. NATO said, as I remember, they had located the dumps, but even then there could be such items in Sirte, which looks like it's going to be the scene of the Last Stand of the Gadaffi troops - there are apparently, negotiations with the tribes, one of which is Gadaffi's own, for them to surrender to the rebels. I wonder whether the carrot of $1 million just might make his tribe hand him over, if he is there? It's a lot of money .... LL

Reuters:

Gaddafi wanted to create "inferno" on Lampedusa-Italy
Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:03am GMT

Gaddafi ordered migrants on dangerous voyage to Italy. Over 50,000 migrants arrived on Lampedusa this year.

ROME Aug 26 (Reuters) - Italy has proof that Muammar Gaddafi planned to turn its tiny island of Lampedusa into an "inferno" by sending thousands of desperate African migrants there by boat, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.

Libya has long been a popular gathering point from where thousands of African migrants have set sail to cross into Europe via Lampedusa off the southern coast of Sicily.

A deal between Gaddafi and Italy to send migrants back before they entered Italian waters curbed the flow of migrants -- until the Libyan uprising earlier this year brought down strict border controls and drew a fresh wave of migrants.

Italy, once Gaddafi's biggest ally in Europe, turned into a target of his rage after the former colonial power endorsed the Libyan rebel movement and joined a NATO campaign to oust the veteran leader, Frattini said.

"We have terrible messages (in our possession) and they will be made public soon," Frattini said in an interview with Avvenire, the Italian bishops' newspaper.

"We have proof of orders given by Gaddafi's government to transform Lampedusa into an inferno: 'Put thousands of desperate people on boats and throw the island into chaos.' We have proof and we can't ignore it."

Italy also has "messages" showing that Libyan authorities ordered civilian clothes be put on the bodies of soldiers, so as to pin blame for their deaths on NATO, he said.

Since the uprising started, tens of thousands of migrants have arrived in Lampedusa, almost overwhelming the tiny island which was unprepared for the sudden deluge.

Chaos on the island turned into a massive headache for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's conservative government, which came to power in 2008 pledging to stop illegal immigration.

Italy has taken in as many as 50,000 migrants since the start of the year, Frattini told Italian radio.

The orders to put migrants on boats to Italy were given by Gaddafi himself, Libya's ambassador to Italy, Hafed Gaddur, who defected to the rebel side in February, told Italian radio.

Hundreds of people have drowned attempting the dangerous crossing from North Africa to Lampedusa since the fighting started in Libya in February.

(Reporting by Deepa Babington; Editing by Jon Hemming)

Reuters:

AU ready to recognise Libya's rebels - SAfrica source
Fri Aug 26, 2011 8:43am GMT

* African Union also wants both sides to be part of transition
* AU backing would boost standing of rebel group
* AU members have longtime ties to Gaddafi

By Wendell Roelf

CAPE TOWN, Aug 26 (Reuters) - The African Union could recognise rebels who ousted Muammar Gaddafi as Libya's legitimate government as early as Friday, although the AU may also want some from Gaddafi's side involved in a transition, a senior South African government source said.

AU backing of Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC), which has declared itself the sole legitimate representative of the Libyan people, would bolster a group already recognised by more than 40 countries as the governing body of Libya.

"There is a strong likelihood that the African Union will recognise the NTC today but call for inclusion of the Gaddafi regime in the interim transitional government," the South African government source says.

The AU's Peace and Security Council was due to meet in Ethiopia on Friday to discuss Libya. Gaddafi was one of the main driving forces behind the creation of the AU, which consists of 54 African countries.

"The reality is that the AU cannot ignore the NTC as a major player in Libya today and its stance will have to recognise that," the source, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.

The AU has proposed a road map for a change in leadership in Libya that has been mostly overlooked by Western powers -- a snub that analysts said has angered many African states with long ties to Gaddafi.

Libyan rebels announced a move to govern the country from Tripoli as they battled pockets of loyalists in their hunt for fugitive strongman Gaddafi, who taunted them from his hiding place.

Western powers have demanded Gaddafi's surrender and worked to help the opposition start developing the trappings of government and bureaucracy lacking in the oil-rich state after 42 years of an eccentric personality cult.

The United States and South Africa have struck a deal to allow the release of $1.5 billion in frozen funds for humanitarian aid and other civilian needs, U.N. diplomats said.

President Jacob Zuma spearheaded an AU mediation effort in Libya but two personal visits to Libya by the South African leader this year failed to produce meaningful results.

Zimbabwe, one of the few states strongly in Gaddafi's camp and seen as a possible asylum destination for him, threatened on Friday to deport the Libyan ambassador in Harare after he declared his support for the NTC.

(Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Additional reporting by Cris Chinaka in Harare;

Al Jazeera: link as video not on youtube: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/08/2011826573517261.html

Rebels seek to rout Gaddafi forces
Battles rage in Tripoli as hospitals struggle to treat the growing number of wounded.
Last Modified: 26 Aug 2011 12:45

Fighting between rebels and supporters of Mummar Gaddafi is continuing to rage in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, triggering a humanitarian crisis with hospitals struggling to cope, supplies running out and rubbish piling up on the battle-scarred streets.

Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Tripoli on Friday morning, described the situation as "volatile and fluid", adding that "it's difficult to give a good overview".

"It's quite a hard place to get around because of the checkpoints and because of flash points," he said.

"Overall, the last 24 hours have been a little more peaceful than the previous 24 hours. In most of the city things seem to be improving.

"But there are these flash points, like Abu Salim, where there are Gaddafi loyalists and where there have been opposition forces going there to ... clear those Gaddafi loyalists and there have been some heavy gun battles."

Hospitals under siege

On Friday, the putrefying bodies of around 80 people were found in a hospital, apparently the unlucky victims of fighting that prevented the wounded from being treated, reported AFP news agency.

Doctors at the hospital in Abu Salim said snipers loyal to Gaddafi kept new patients and health care workers away from the facility until Thursday.

A lack of supplies, nurses and surgeons has contributed to the difficulties in dealing with the injured.

"It is a disaster," said medical-student-turned-nurse Mohammed Yunis.

"There is no more medicine in the hospital, no more medical personnel. They all left for fear of the snipers."

Yunis said numerous bodies had already been removed from the hospital.

"There have been hundreds of deaths (in Tripoli) in recent days," he said, visibly shaken.

Flushing out snipers

Meanwhile, rebel fighters swept through houses and side streets to flush out snipers and were emerging with dozens of prisoners as gunfights were going on, the Reuters news agency reported.

Local residents, some with children, were in cars trying to get out of the Abu Salim neighbourhood, where support for Gaddafi has traditionally been strong, the report stated.

Rebels fight for Gaddafi-held neighbourhoods in Tripoli

Residents have been told to stay inside for their own safety, Al Jazeera correspondents reported.

Fighting also raged in several other key areas, including the Tripoli neighbourhoods of Ghargour and Bab al-Aziziya, as well as Tripoli International Airport.

Elsewhere in the country, British warplanes struck a large bunker in Gaddafi's hometown of Sirte, as NATO turned its attention to loyalist forces battling advancing Libyan rebels in the area, according to the Associated Press news agency.

In London, Liam Fox, the defence secretary, said some elements of the Gaddafi regime were in Sirte "where they are still continuing to wage war on the people of Libya".

He said NATO would continue to strike at the Gaddafi's forces' military capability.

"The regime needs to recognize that the game is up," Fox said.

The rebels have offered a reward to anyone who kills or captures the 69-year-old Gaddafi, whose whereabouts and those of his powerful sons remain unknown.

Despite the ongoing clashes, Sean Foley, a scholar at the Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation in Malaysia, said the rebels had overcome hurdles in six months to remove a "well-entrenched" regime.

"This is an opposition force that only six months ago didn't exist," he told Al Jazeera.

"Over the last six months it has built an impressive array of allies around the world, and it's fought a war on the ground against a well-entrenched, well-financed and well-thought out opposition and government.

"This opposition and government-in-waiting has been extremely impressive. It seems to be only a matter of time before they finish what they need to do."

Al Jazeera Live Blog:

2 hours 19 min ago
The Abu Salim trauma hospital in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, has been cut off to most of the outside world due to fighting in the area.

Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons managed to reach the hospital this week, where he found bodies with gunshot wounds lying in and outside of the building.

He sent this report on the status of a hospital that is severely understaffed and cut off from medical supplies, with a warning that some of the images in the video may be disturbing.

Al Jazeera Live Blog:

7 min 3 sec ago

Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi killed more than 150 prisoners in a "mass murder" as they fled the rebel takeover of Tripoli, a rebel military chief told AFP on Friday.

"There were instances of revenge in the last few hours before the fall of the regime," said Abdel Nagib Mlegta, head of operations for the takeover of the capital.

"In Bab al-Aziziya there was a mass murder. They killed more than 150 prisoners. The guards did it before running away. They threw hand grenades at them," he said, referring to Gaddafi's fortified headquarters.

1 hour 3 min ago

Rebels fighting forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi claimed that they were in full control of Tripoli's airport on Friday, although they said three aircrafts had been damaged.

Hassam Shaidi, a rebel commander at the airport, said: "The airport is under control by thwar [Arabic word for rebels] now. Everything around airport is controlled by thwar."

1 hour 13 min ago

A minister in Libya's National Transitional Council said on Friday rebel forces were surrounding an area of Tripoli where Muammar Gaddafi and his entourage were hiding and were monitoring their presence before attempting to capture them.

"The area where he is now is under siege," Justice Minister Mohammed al-Alagi told Reuters. "The rebels are monitoring the area and they are dealing with it."

Alagi, a lawyer who said he had come to Tripoli to establish the new "legal authority" declined to specify where Gaddafi was.

Other rebel officials have said they believe the fallen strongman has taken refuge in the Abu Salim area in the south of the capital -- an area that saw clashes in recent days.

Rebel fighters have said earlier this week that they thought they had Gaddafi cornered but these reports have turned out to be inaccurate, or at least premature.

2 hours 26 min ago

Amnesty International (AI) said on Friday it had uncovered evidence that forces loyal to deposed Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi killed several detainees being held at two camps in Tripoli.

It said eyewitness testimony from escaped prisoners described how loyalist troops used grenades and gunfire on scores of detainees at one camp this week, while guards at the other shot dead five people being held in solitary confinement.

In a statement, AI said:

"Loyalist forces in Libya must immediately stop such killings of captives, and both sides must commit to ensuring no harm comes to prisoners in their custody

"Even as Colonel Gaddafi is cornered, with an International Criminal Court warrant active for his arrest on charges of crimes against humanity, his troops continue their flagrant disregard for human life and international humanitarian law."

Amnesty noted that it is a war crime for any party to a conflict to kill or torture prisoners.

Just been watching CNN; they were talking about the African Union and whether that group would acknowledge the Libyan NTC. It seems that 20 member countries are prepared to accept the Council, but not a block, led by Jacob Zuma of South Africa. They want a ruling council made up of rebels AND pro-Gadaffi people. One can only assume this is because S Africa's ANC was bankrolled by Libya in its fight to get rid of apartheid, and this arrangement has continued since. Places like Chad, Niger, Mauritania and quite a few other African states have been happy recipients of Libyan (ie Gadaffi) monies, which is why so many mercenaries fighting for Gadaffi were from African nations. So they have tried to block the NTC from getting money and recognition; one can only draw the conclusion that they are trying to stop the new Libyan rulers from stopping the flow of cash to these states. It's quite an interesting take - two days ago a S African minister was insisting they would not give him sanctuary; now they say they won't accept the new government. It makes you wonder about double speak - is he already in S Africa? Zimbabwe? Chad? To me Zuma's attitude stinks of greed and possibly something worse. Lamplighter

Agree, LL, there is something pretty unsavoury about SA's stance, which does not bode well for the country's future.

They are ideally placed to help advise with peace and reconciliation, and help Libya attain democracy - but they are very close to actively backing Gaddafi.

Not good news.

bb1 wrote:Agree, LL, there is something pretty unsavoury about SA's stance, which does not bode well for the country's future.

They are ideally placed to help advise with peace and reconciliation, and help Libya attain democracy - but they are very close to actively backing Gaddafi.

Not good news.

I think the non-African countries, and the Arab states that have backed the NTC since the start of the Uprising, will have sussed out Zuma's reasons for his stance. He may well find that his position has diminished quite a bit because of his decision re Libya. Quite a few countries do not like him; even some African countries, especially Nigeria, who are the chief backers of the NTC, do not like him. An African chap I know used to say that Zuma is no better than Mugabe; that he was an insult to the great Mandela and that all he really wanted was to rule S Africa like Mugabe rules Zimbabwe. I know very little about Africa or it's politics so I cannot really comment. LL

Good morning!

Al Jazeera:

Libyan rebels consolidate control in Tripoli

Rebels push Gaddafi fighters to outskirts of capital, but UN says security a key concern with fears of reprisal attacks.
Last Modified: 27 Aug 2011 05:46

Libya's rebels are consolidating their control on the capital Tripoli, but the United Nations says security remains a key concern, with fears of reprisal attacks in a country now awash with small arms.

A street-by-street rebel onslaught has pushed most of the remnants of Muammar Gaddafi’s army to the southern outskirts of Tripoli, Al Jazeera's correspondents reported, but his forces were still resisting in other areas of the country.

Al Jazeera's Sue Turton, reporting from the capital on Saturday, said the rebels' main focus now in central Tripoli is to clear out any pro-Gaddafi loyalists that may still be hiding.

"There is obviously still tension southeast of the city; down near the airport they are still being bombed by Gaddafi loyalists further out east from the city," she said.

"The rebels are telling us from that eastern position where they are sniping and where they are still sending artillery all the way back to Saba in central Libya [that] there is a route all the way back to that area, which we know is still really held by Gaddafi's troops."

Security key concern

With the pockets of resistance remaining, security was still a concern in the country, and the International Red Cross warned that the security situation was making it difficult to bring in emergency supplies to the capital.


The United Nations, the African Union, the Arab League and the European Union have also expressed concern, and urged all sides in Libya to avoid reprisals, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said on Friday.

"Colonel Gaddafi must avoid further bloodshed by relinquishing power and calling on those forces that continue to fight to lay down their arms and protect civilians," she said.

"Under UN leadership, we agreed to call on all parties to respect international humanitarian and international human rights obligations. There should be no reprisals."

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, also called on the international community to work together to restore order in Libya and for the fighting to end.

Following a UN meeting in New York, Ban said there was a "urgent need to put an end to the conflict and restore order and stability".

Key supply route 'seized'

Meanwhile, the search for Gaddafi continued, days after the rebels offered a reward to anyone who kills or captures the 69-year-old.

Reports from Egypt said a convoy of armoured cars had crossed from Libya into Algeria. It was not immediately clear who was in the vehicles, but sources said they were high-ranking officials.

Amid the search, the fighting continued, with rebels reportedly taking control of the main border crossing with Tunisia after battling Gaddafi loyalists there, Tunisia's official news agency reported. The Ras Ajdir crossing is the primary crossing between the two countries and would allow them to more easily bring supplies into Libya.

"This is incredibly important not because it shows that they are managing to get rid of what is left of Gaddafi troops in that area, but more importantly it opens a supply route now totally across from the west into Tripoli," Al Jazeera's Turton reported.

Elsewhere, British warplanes struck a large bunker in Gaddafi's hometown of Sirte on Friday, as NATO turned its attention to loyalist forces battling advancing Libyan rebels in the area.

Hospitals under siege

The nearly week-long fighting in Tripoli has triggered a humanitarian crisis, with hospitals struggling to cope with the flood of wounded as supplies run scarce.

"Many of the residents in Tripoli have now run out of water, they need electricity to pump the water around the city and the electricity pumps have been hit," Al Jazeera's Turton reported on Saturday.

The putrefying bodies of around 80 people were found in a hospital a day earlier, apparently the unlucky victims of fighting that prevented the wounded from being treated, reported AFP news agency.

Tripoli hospitals struggle to cope with injuries

Doctors at the hospital in Abu Salim said snipers loyal to Gaddafi kept new patients and health care workers away from the facility.

A lack of supplies, nurses and surgeons has contributed to the difficulties in dealing with the injured.

"It is a disaster," said medical-student-turned-nurse Mohammed Yunis.

"There is no more medicine in the hospital, no more medical personnel. They all left for fear of the snipers."

Yunis said numerous bodies had already been removed from the hospital.

"There have been hundreds of deaths (in Tripoli) in recent days," he said, visibly shaken.

The city is suffering from widespread shortage of water, food medical supplies, and fuel.

CNN's Dan Rivers with ex-prisoners return to Libya's fearsome Abu Salim prison
26 Aug 2011

Ex-prisoners return to Libya's fearsome Abu Salim prison to tell CNN's Dan Rivers about life under Gaddafi's oppression.

Inside one of Gaddafi's luxurious compounds

Al Jazeera:

Libyan rebels seize key border with Tunisia

Rebels defeat Gaddafi loyalists at a border crossing with Tunisia, as UN says security remains major concern in capital.
27 Aug 2011 08:26

Libyan rebels have defeated Muammar Gaddafi loyalists at a border crossing with Tunisia, seizing control of a key check post that could open much-need supply routes into the country.

Rebel forces raised their flag late on Friday on the Ras Ajdir border post, the primary crossing between Libya and Tunisia, in a win that will allow them to bring in supplies and aid to the capital, Tripoli.

A Tunisian official said loyalists fled as more than 100 rebels arrived. "There were not any real clashes; the loyalists took off and the rebels' flag was raised at the border post," the AFP news agency quoted the official as saying.

Al Jazeera's Sue Turton, reporting from Tripoli on Saturday, said the capture was an "incredibly important" gain for the rebels.

"It shows that they are managing to get rid of what is left of Gaddafi troops in that area, but more importantly it opens a supply route now totally across from the west into Tripoli," she said.

In the capital, rebels were consolidating their control on Saturday, but the United Nations said security remained a key concern, with fears of reprisal attacks in a country now awash with small arms.

A street-by-street rebel onslaught has pushed most of the remnants of Gaddafi’s army to the southern outskirts of Tripoli, Al Jazeera's correspondents reported, but his forces were still resisting in other areas of the country.

Al Jazeera's Turton said the rebels' main focus now in central Tripoli is to clear out any pro-Gaddafi loyalists that may still be hiding.

"There is obviously still tension southeast of the city; down near the airport they are still being bombed by Gaddafi loyalists further out east from the city," she said.

"The rebels are telling us from that eastern position where they are sniping and where they are still sending artillery all the way back to Saba in central Libya [that] there is a route all the way back to that area, which we know is still really held by Gaddafi's troops."

Elsewhere, British warplanes struck a large bunker in Gaddafi's hometown of Sirte on Friday, as NATO turned its attention to loyalist forces battling advancing Libyan rebels in the area.

Security key concern

With the pockets of resistance remaining, security was still a concern in the country, and the International Red Cross warned that the security situation was making it difficult to bring in emergency supplies to the capital.

The United Nations, the African Union, the Arab League and the European Union have also expressed concern, and urged all sides in Libya to avoid reprisals, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said on Friday.

"Colonel Gaddafi must avoid further bloodshed by relinquishing power and calling on those forces that continue to fight to lay down their arms and protect civilians," she said.

"Under UN leadership, we agreed to call on all parties to respect international humanitarian and international human rights obligations. There should be no reprisals."

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, also called on the international community to work together to restore order in Libya and for the fighting to end.

Following a UN meeting in New York, Ban said there was a "urgent need to put an end to the conflict and restore order and stability".

Meanwhile, the search for Gaddafi continued, days after the rebels offered a reward to anyone who kills or captures the 69-year-old.

Reports from Egypt said a convoy of armoured cars had crossed from Libya into Algeria. It was not immediately clear who was in the vehicles, but sources said they were high-ranking officials.

Al Jazeera:

Tripoli's residents enjoy Gaddafi's luxuries
Published 27 August 2011 06:47
The whereabouts of Gaddafi's family remains unknown, but their abandoned homes in the capital Tripoli are exposing their luxurious lifestyle. An indoor pool in the house of Muammar Gadaffi's daughter Aisha has been taken advantage of by curious rebels and their families. Tripoli residents are taking tours of Gaddafi's compound, which is evidence of the ruler's extravagance available for all to see. Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal reports from Tripoli.

Libyan political prisoners set free
Published 27 August 2011 05:56

With Muammar Gaddafi on the run, many political prisoners who opposed him have been set free by Libyan rebel forces and are returning home. At least 107 political prisoners held in the Abu Salim prison have returned home to the eastern city of Benghazi. Many families are scanning lists of those freed from prison, anxiously looking for the names of their loved ones. Al Jazeera's Scott Heidler reports from Benghazi.

http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16057724


'Mass Killing' Evidence Found In Libya


The story is awful; the video is harrowing, but the world needs to see it.

It's over. He's gorn. Bogged orf to Zimbabwe. Best place for him.

Shit. What a mess of misery.

Good morning!

Assorted videos from Al Jazeera:

Scott Heidler reports live from Benghazi
Published 27 August 2011 14:17 1974
Mustafa Jalil, the chairperson of the National Transitional Council (NTC) held a press conference on Saturday. Al Jazeera's Scott Heidler, reporting from Benghazi, gives a round up of the conference and discusses the challenges facing the NTC in



Libyan rebels claim victory in Bin Jawad
Published 27 August 2011 18:41 2014
Libyan rebels claim to have total control over Bin Jawad. If they are able to hold onto the city, they will have overcome a major obstacle in their advance towards Sirte, Gaddafi's hometown. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reports from Bin Jawad, Libya.



Tripoli faces severe water shortage
Published 27 August 2011 19:43 304
Libyans are experiencing a severe water shortage in the capital city of Tripoli. While rumors have circulated that that lack of drinking water is due to sabotage or poisoning by Gaddafi forces, they're not true. The water tanks that fill Tripoli's pipes are empty because there has been no electricity to power reservoir pumps for 45 days. Al Jazeera's James Bays reports from Tripoli, Libya.

Gaddafi 'ready to negotiate' with rebels
Toppled leader is still in Libya and ready to form a transitional government, according to his spokesman.
28 Aug 2011 08:29

Moussa Ibrahim, Muammar Gaddafi's spokesman, has reportedly told the Associated Press news agency that the toppled Libyan leader is ready to negotiate with the rebels to form a transitional government.

Ibrahim called AP headquarters in New York late on Saturday, and told them he was calling from Tripoli, the Libyan capital, and that Gaddafi was still in Libya.

Ibrahim said Gaddafi had appointed one of his sons, al-Saadi, to head the negotiations with the rebel forces, according to AP who said it identified Ibrahim from his voice.

Ibrahim has been the most public face of the Gaddafi government in recent weeks, regularly addressing television cameras and journalists in Tripoli.

The phone call appears to represent a change of policy by Gaddafi who last week referred to the rebels as "thugs" and "rats" and urged loyalists to continue fighting even as his opponents seized control of Tripoli.

A top official in the National Transition Council (NTC) told Reuters news agency that Libya's rebel government will not negotiate with Gaddafi unless he surrenders.

"No negotiation is taking place with Gaddafi," Ali Tarhouni, the NTC official in charge of oil and financial matters said.

Gaddafi's whereabouts remains unknown and rebels have offered a reward for his capture or killing.

Al Jazeera's correspondent James Bays reporting from Tripoli said: "the hunt for him [Gaddafi] goes on and one of the places that is still in the hands of Gaddafi forces is his hometown of Sirte."

Sirte is considered the last remaining bastion of support for the man whose decades-long rule of Libya is effectively over, with the rebel NTC now widely recognised as the country's legitimate government.

On Saturday the Arab League became the latest international body to recognise the NTC as it turned over the country's seat in the regional bloc to the rebel leadership.

Rebels claimed victory in Bin Jawad late on Saturday, advancing in their push towards Sirte.

Reporting from the city, Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland said: "If, in fact, it is proven that the rebels are able to hold the town of Bin Jawad, then certainly they will have removed a major obstacle on the way to Sirte."


Mustafa Abdel Jalil, chairman of the NTC, said at a news conference on Saturday that rebel commanders were negotiating with Gaddafi loyalists in Bin Jawad to try to persuade them to surrender control over the city.

Vital supply route

Elsewhere, Libyan rebels have defeated Gaddafi loyalists in skirmishes over a key border checkpoint with Tunisia, opening up a vital supply route into the war-ravaged country.

Gaining control of the Ras Ajdir crossing allows rebels to channel fresh supplies and aid to Tripoli, amid fears of a developing humanitarian crisis in the capital and elsewhere.

Al Jazeera's Sue Turton, reporting from Tripoli on Saturday, said the capture was an "incredibly important" gain for the rebels.

Tripoli faces severe water shortage

"It shows that they are managing to get rid of what is left of Gaddafi troops in that area, but more importantly it opens a supply route across from the west into Tripoli," she said.

In the capital, rebels were consolidating their control on Saturday, but the United Nations said security remained a key concern, with fears of reprisal attacks in a country now awash with small arms.

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, also called on the international community to work together to restore order in Libya and for the fighting to end.

Following a UN meeting in New York, Ban said there was a "urgent need to put an end to the conflict and restore order and stability".

The nearly week-long fighting in Tripoli has left hospitals struggling to cope with the flood of wounded as supplies run scarce.


"Many of the residents in Tripoli have now run out of water, they need electricity to pump the water around the city and the electricity pumps have been hit," Al Jazeera's Turton reported on Saturday.