Libya rebels tighten Tripoli grip

22 August 2011 Last updated at 10:01 ET

Libyan rebels have tightened their grip on Tripoli, after they launched an overnight assault on the capital from several directions.

Rebel commanders say they have taken control of about 80% of the city, including state TV headquarters.

Fighting is still raging around Col Muammar Gaddafi’s compound, but it is unclear whether he is still in Tripoli.

World leaders have urged Col Gaddafi to step down, and Egypt has recognised the rebels as the legitimate government.

The rebels were met by jubilant crowds in central Green Square, which was previously the scene of nightly pro-Gaddafi demonstrations.

But where in the city they met stiff resistance.

A rebel spokesman said his forces came under fire from tanks emerging from the Gaddafi compound at Bab al-Azizia early on Monday, and witnesses say there has been sustained gunfire in the area throughout the day.

Rebel leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil, head of the National Transitional Council (NTC), told a news conference on Monday afternoon that areas around the Gaddafi compound were not yet under rebel control.

He added that he had no idea where the colonel was, saying: “We have no knowledge of Gaddafi being there, or whether he is still in or outside Libya.”

Mr Abdul Jalil reiterated earlier claims that the rebels have captured Col Gaddafi’s son, Saif al-Islam.

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Rebels enter Green Square

Jubilant rebel fighters pushed their way into the heart of Tripoli on Sunday.

BBC team attacked

BBC reporter Rupert Wingfield-Hayes was accompanying rebels into central Tripoli when pro-Gaddafi forces attacked his convoy.

Flags torn down

The BBC’s Tripoli correspondent, Rana Jawad, who has been unable to report openly since March, says people in her neighbourhood in eastern Tripoli were woken by the imam at the local mosque singing the national anthem of the pre-Gaddafi monarchy.

She says there is a sense that the end is near, and that the rebels have achieved what they wanted.

In Green Square – which is to return to its pre-Gaddafi name of Martyrs’ Square – rebel supporters tore down the green flags of the Libyan government and trampled on portraits of Colonel Gaddafi.

“The momentum against the Gaddafi regime has reached a tipping point. Tripoli is slipping from the grasp of a tyrant,” said US President Barack Obama in a statement.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron said it was clear that “the end is near for Gaddafi”.

Mr Cameron said the Libyan leader had “committed appalling crimes against the people of Libya and he must go now to avoid any further suffering for his own people”.

The International Criminal Court in The Hague is negotiating the transfer of Saif al-Islam on charges of war crimes. The court is also seeking the arrest of Col Gaddafi and the head of the Libyan intelligence service, Abdullah al-Sanussi.

Another of Col Gaddafi’s sons, Muhammad, was speaking on the phone to al-Jazeera TV when he said the rebels were surrounding his home. Gunfire was heard before the line cut off.

TV footage showed Libyans kneeling and kissing the ground in gratitude for what some called a “blessed day”.

The NTC announced earlier that it would move its centre of operations to Tripoli from Benghazi, which has been in rebel hands since the early days of the uprising.

France says Mr Abdul Jalil is expected to travel to Paris next week for a meeting of the international “contact group” of countries involved in stabilising Libya.

‘Armed gangs’

A diplomatic source told the AFP news agency that Col Gaddafi could still be in Bab al-Azizia. He has not been seen in public since May, although he has broadcast audio messages from undisclosed locations.

In an audio message broadcast late on Sunday, the Libyan leader urged residents to “save Tripoli” from the rebels.

“How come allow Tripoli, the capital, to be under occupation once again?” he asked. “The traitors are paving the way for the occupation forces to be deployed in Tripoli.”

Libyan Information Minister Moussa Ibrahim told CNN that the Gaddafi government still had 65,000 loyal soldiers under its command.

However, some forces have surrendered to the rebels, including the special battalion charged with securing Tripoli.

Mr Abdul Jalil said early on Monday: “I warn , there are still pockets of resistance in and around Tripoli.”

He told al-Jazeera television that he would resign if the rebels resorted to vengeance and score-settling.

A Tripoli resident who did not want to be named told the BBC World Service that rebel fighters were “breaking into people’s houses, stealing everything”.

“This will be a disaster for Libya and Nato,” he said.

Mr Ibrahim said fighting in the city since noon (10:00 GMT) on Sunday had left 1,300 people dead and 5,000 wounded. There is no confirmation of the figures.

The Libyan information minister accused Nato of backing “armed gangs” with air power. He added that the Gaddafi government was prepared to negotiate directly with the NTC.

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