Libya rebels fight on in Tripoli

25 August 2011 Last updated at 13:57 ET

Heavy fighting has continued in parts of the Libyan capital Tripoli, which is now almost entirely in the hands of rebel fighters.

Rebels are also trying to reach Colonel Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte but have been pushed back by loyalist fighters.

The BBC has seen evidence of alleged torture and summary killings blamed on Col Gaddafi’s forces.

In an audio message, Col Gaddafi called on Libyans to “fight and destroy” the rebels.

The message was broadcast by a pro-regime TV station and addressed to the people of Sirte, which is the rebels’ next target. It was unclear when it was recorded.

“Libya is for the Libyan people and not for the agents, not for imperialism, not for France, not for Sarkozy, not for Italy,” said Col Gaddafi. “Tripoli is for , not for those who rely on Nato”.

He urged the th of Tripoli to fight “street by street, alleyway by alleyway, house by house” and said women too could fight “from inside their homes”.

Col Gaddafi’s whereabouts are unknown, though rebels have said they think he is still in or around Tripoli.

The rebels have announced an amnesty for anyone within his “inner circle” who captures or kills him and a $1.7m reward for his capture “dead or alive”.

Handcuffed bodies

Fighting erupted again in Tripoli on Thursday after a relatively quiet night.

There were gunfights in the Abu Salim district, close to a notorious prison, and near the Corinthia Hotel about 1.5km (a mile) from Martyrs Square – formerly Green Square – where most foreign journalists are based.

Sporadic gunfire was heard at Col Gaddafi’s sprawling Bab al-Aziziya compound, which had been overrun by rebels on Tuesday.

The rebels have been breaking into the complex tunnel system underneath the compound, searching for Col Gaddafi and his forces. The bodies of several Gaddafi fighters have been found inside.

The Red Cross is urging all sides to respect the rules of war

The BBC’s Rupert Wingfield-Hayes vid a hospital in the Mitiga district of Tripoli which had received the bodies of 17 rebel fighters.

Doctors said the men had been held at a school being used as temporary prison in Tripoli where they were tortured and then shot dead as the Gaddafi forces retreated.

Dr Hoez Zaitan, a British medic working at the hospital, said they had examined the bodies for possible evidence for a war crimes tribunal.

“About half of the 17 bodies had bullet wounds to the back of the head,” he said. “Many of them had disfiguring injuries to the limbs and to the legs and hands that couldn’t quite be explained.”

The BBC’s Paul Danahar in central Tripoli saw the bodies of two pro-Gaddafi soldiers who had their hands tied behind their backs.

A Red Cross spokesman told the BBC both sides are believed to be holding hundreds of prisoners. Robin Waudo urged all parties to the conflict to abide by the rules of war

On Thursday, the rebel fighters began advancing on Col Gaddafi’s hometown – about halfway between Tripoli and the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.

But Sirte is still under loyalist control and the rebels have met fierce resistance and were said to be blocked in the town of Bin Jawad.

Rebels told the BBC that tribal leaders in Sirte had tried to negotiate a surrender but that this was rejected by the pro-regime fighters.

In other developments:

• The Arab League has said it gives its full backing to the National Transitional Council (NTC) as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people
• The International Monetary Fund says it will recognise the NTC as Libya’s leaders when there is “a clear, broad-based, international recognition”
• UK Defence Minister Liam Fox has confirmed that Nato is providing intelligence and reconnaissance assistance to rebels hunting Col Gaddafi
• A ship that can carry 200 people is due to leave Tripoli’s port carrying some of the foreign nationals in Libya

‘Urgent help’

Diplomatic efforts are continuing to arrange the release of some of Libya’s assets which were frozen under UN sanctions.

The rebels’ NTC has said it urgently needs $5bn (£3bn) to avert a humanitarian crisis in Libyan and avoid further destabilisation.

The UN has already released some $500m in assets which were frozen under sanctions, and is expected to vote this week on a resolution to release another $1bn.

Mahmoud Jibril, the head of the NTC is in Italy seeking foreign help in accessing Libya’s frozen funds. He said they needed “urgent help”.

“Our priorities cannot be carried out by the government without having the necessary money immediately,” Mr Jibril said after talks in Rome with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

“Our people did not receive their salaries for months so we are telling our friends that the biggest de-stabilising element would be the failure of the NTC not to deliver the necessary services and pay the salaries of the people which were not paid now for almost four months.”

Mr Berlusconi has promised to release more than 350m euros of Libyan assets frozen in Italian banks.

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