Muammar Gaddafi's snipers are scattered across Tripoli, the Libyan capital.
Even areas that are under opposition control are not yet fully secure.
While Gaddafi's forces have withdrawn from most areas, sleeper cells have not.
Bab al Azaziyah - the site of Gaddafi's compound - is a front line still being held by the government.
And rebels knew that this would be their biggest challenge once they entered the capital.
Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr reports from Tripoli.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Libyan opposition drive for victory
Intent on reaching Tripoli, opposition fighters have been making way from Misrata in a long fast moving columns of hundreds of men.
Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons reports en route to Tripoli with the opposition fighters.
Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons reports en route to Tripoli with the opposition fighters.
BREAKING NEWS: 'captured' Saif al Islam walking in
Saif al Islam -son of Muammar Gaddafi- who rebels said they had captured, visited the Tripoli hotel where foreign journalists are staying to declare that the government was winning the battle against the rebels. He appeared with cheering supporters in Tripoli, giving a boost to forces loyal to the veteran leader trying to fight off insurgents who say they control most of the capital.
He then took journalists to his father's Bab al-Aziziyah stronghold. Footage showed Saif pumping his fists in the air, smiling, waving and shaking hands with supporters, as well as holding his arms aloft with each hand making the V for victory sign.
"We broke the back of the rebels. It was a trap. We gave them a hard time, so we are winning" Saif said.
Saif's arrest had been reported both by rebels and the International Criminal Court in The Hague and his appearance before the foreign media raised questions as to the rebels credibility.
He then took journalists to his father's Bab al-Aziziyah stronghold. Footage showed Saif pumping his fists in the air, smiling, waving and shaking hands with supporters, as well as holding his arms aloft with each hand making the V for victory sign.
"We broke the back of the rebels. It was a trap. We gave them a hard time, so we are winning" Saif said.
Saif's arrest had been reported both by rebels and the International Criminal Court in The Hague and his appearance before the foreign media raised questions as to the rebels credibility.
Defiant Saif al-Islam refutes capture claims - It is not over yet!
Also, just to add, Croatian National Radio broadcast news this morning that there were scenes of wide spread looting, pillage and arson in some parts of Tripoli ...
(by Al Jazeera English)
Gaddafi's influential son re-emerges on streets of Tripoli, disproving opposition claims that he had been captured.
Saif al-Islam, son of Muammar Gaddafi, who was reported to have been captured by Libyan opposition forces on Sunday, has made a public appearance in Tripoli.
"I am here to refute the lies," Saif al-Islam said on Monday, referring to reports of his arrest. He travelled to the Rixos Hotel late in the night and spoke to foreign journalists staying there.
"We broke the back of the rebels. It was a trap. We gave them a hard time, so we are winning," he said.
Television footage showed him pumping his fists in the air, smiling, waving and shaking hands with supporters, as well as holding his arms aloft with each hand making the "V" for victory sign.
Gaddafi's son told journalists that Tripoli, which has been largely overrun in the past 24 hours by rebel forces seeking to topple his father, was in fact in government hands.
Asked whether his father was safe, Saif said: "Of course."
He said he did not care about an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague seeking him and his father for crimes against humanity.
Earlier, armed pro-Gaddafi security men guarding the hotel took a small group of journalists to Gaddafi's Bab al-Azizyah compound, where they had a meeting with Saif al-Islam.
They returned to the hotel accompanied by Saif al-Islam, who then spoke to journalists in the lobby before taking some of them back to the compound a short distance away for a brief visit.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the ICC prosecutor, had earlier said the 39-year-old was arrested and in detention.
Waheed Burshan, an NTC member told Al Jazeera, "We had confirmation Saif al-Islam was arrested, but we have no idea how he escaped."
Meanwhile, rebel forces said they had arrested Saadi Gaddafi, the beleaguered Libyan leader's third son. The claim was made even as the whereabouts of other relatives and senior officials remained unknown.
Eldest son 'escapes'
Gaddafi's eldest son, Mohammad, who was also detained by rebels on Sunday night is reported to have escaped.
In an interview with Al Jazeera after he surrendered, Mohammad expressed his "sadness" at the fighting in Libya. The interview was interrupted by gunfire.
"What's happening in Libya is very upsetting. The killing between brothers, between Muslims, is something that saddens me," he said.
Mohammad was the chairman of Libya's main state-run telecommunications firm, but his role in his father's government was reportedly minimal, far smaller than Saif al-Islam's.
The biggest question is now about Muammar Gaddafi himself, last heard in a brief audio recording on Sunday night. He called on Libya's tribes to March on the capital.
"How can you allow Tripoli to be burned?" he asked.
Three other Gaddafi sons - Hannibal, Mutasim and Khamis - have not been located. Hannibal had little role in politics, but Khamis headed a feared army unit that took a leading role in suppressing protests. Mutasim was an army officer and a security adviser to his father.
The Al-Arabiya news network reported on Monday that Khamis was travelling to central Tripoli with soldiers loyal to him. That report could not be immediately confirmed.
Abdullah al-Senussi, Gaddafi's longtime intelligence chief and brother-in-law, also seems to have eluded the rebels.
He was last seen at Tripoli's Rixos Hotel on Sunday, when he told foreign journalists that "Western intelligence" was "working alongside al-Qaeda to destroy Libya".
There are rumours in Arabic newspapers that Senussi fled Tripoli, either to southern Libya or to the Tunisian town of Djerba, but those reports cannot be substantiated.
Senussi was the third Libyan official charged by the ICC in June. The court accused him of carrying out a campaign of murder, mass arrest and torture.
SOURCE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/spotlight/libya/2011/08/2011822235934828611.html
(by Al Jazeera English)
Gaddafi's influential son re-emerges on streets of Tripoli, disproving opposition claims that he had been captured.
Saif al-Islam, son of Muammar Gaddafi, who was reported to have been captured by Libyan opposition forces on Sunday, has made a public appearance in Tripoli.
"I am here to refute the lies," Saif al-Islam said on Monday, referring to reports of his arrest. He travelled to the Rixos Hotel late in the night and spoke to foreign journalists staying there.
"We broke the back of the rebels. It was a trap. We gave them a hard time, so we are winning," he said.
Television footage showed him pumping his fists in the air, smiling, waving and shaking hands with supporters, as well as holding his arms aloft with each hand making the "V" for victory sign.
Gaddafi's son told journalists that Tripoli, which has been largely overrun in the past 24 hours by rebel forces seeking to topple his father, was in fact in government hands.
Asked whether his father was safe, Saif said: "Of course."
He said he did not care about an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague seeking him and his father for crimes against humanity.
Earlier, armed pro-Gaddafi security men guarding the hotel took a small group of journalists to Gaddafi's Bab al-Azizyah compound, where they had a meeting with Saif al-Islam.
They returned to the hotel accompanied by Saif al-Islam, who then spoke to journalists in the lobby before taking some of them back to the compound a short distance away for a brief visit.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the ICC prosecutor, had earlier said the 39-year-old was arrested and in detention.
Waheed Burshan, an NTC member told Al Jazeera, "We had confirmation Saif al-Islam was arrested, but we have no idea how he escaped."
Meanwhile, rebel forces said they had arrested Saadi Gaddafi, the beleaguered Libyan leader's third son. The claim was made even as the whereabouts of other relatives and senior officials remained unknown.
Eldest son 'escapes'
Gaddafi's eldest son, Mohammad, who was also detained by rebels on Sunday night is reported to have escaped.
In an interview with Al Jazeera after he surrendered, Mohammad expressed his "sadness" at the fighting in Libya. The interview was interrupted by gunfire.
"What's happening in Libya is very upsetting. The killing between brothers, between Muslims, is something that saddens me," he said.
Mohammad was the chairman of Libya's main state-run telecommunications firm, but his role in his father's government was reportedly minimal, far smaller than Saif al-Islam's.
The biggest question is now about Muammar Gaddafi himself, last heard in a brief audio recording on Sunday night. He called on Libya's tribes to March on the capital.
"How can you allow Tripoli to be burned?" he asked.
Three other Gaddafi sons - Hannibal, Mutasim and Khamis - have not been located. Hannibal had little role in politics, but Khamis headed a feared army unit that took a leading role in suppressing protests. Mutasim was an army officer and a security adviser to his father.
The Al-Arabiya news network reported on Monday that Khamis was travelling to central Tripoli with soldiers loyal to him. That report could not be immediately confirmed.
Abdullah al-Senussi, Gaddafi's longtime intelligence chief and brother-in-law, also seems to have eluded the rebels.
He was last seen at Tripoli's Rixos Hotel on Sunday, when he told foreign journalists that "Western intelligence" was "working alongside al-Qaeda to destroy Libya".
There are rumours in Arabic newspapers that Senussi fled Tripoli, either to southern Libya or to the Tunisian town of Djerba, but those reports cannot be substantiated.
Senussi was the third Libyan official charged by the ICC in June. The court accused him of carrying out a campaign of murder, mass arrest and torture.
SOURCE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/spotlight/libya/2011/08/2011822235934828611.html
SAIF AL-ISLAM INTERVIEW - 23.08.2011
Defying reports of his capture, Seif al-Islam arrives at Tripoli hotel to meet journalists, claims his father is safe in Tripoli and that his loyalists control parts of capital. 'We're going to break rebels' backbones,' he says
'NATO not winning': RT reporters threathened by CNN journalists, rebels, snipers
Follow latest updates on http://twitter.com/RT_com and http://www.facebook.com/RTnews
Journalist Mahdi Nazemroaya, who is in the hotel in Tripoli where the foreign press have been obliged to stay during the conflict is afraid for his safety and says he's been threatened.
Rebels say they now control most of Tripoli, and have taken Libyan state TV off air. But some reports also suggest that opposition fighters have been looting private houses. Three of Gaddafi's sons are now thought to be in rebel hands. Opposition leaders say a large number of their fighters have been killed. There are reports rebels are closing in on Gaddafi's compound, but the whereabouts of the Colonel are unknown. Some rumours suggest Gaddafi may be in talks with South Africa about a possible escape route, despite denials from both sides. And NATO insists it will continue combat air patrols until all government forces surrender. Following a night of chaos in the capital, crowds have been seen in Tripoli's central square waving revolutionary flags.
Journalist Mahdi Nazemroaya, who is in the hotel in Tripoli where the foreign press have been obliged to stay during the conflict is afraid for his safety and says he's been threatened.
Rebels say they now control most of Tripoli, and have taken Libyan state TV off air. But some reports also suggest that opposition fighters have been looting private houses. Three of Gaddafi's sons are now thought to be in rebel hands. Opposition leaders say a large number of their fighters have been killed. There are reports rebels are closing in on Gaddafi's compound, but the whereabouts of the Colonel are unknown. Some rumours suggest Gaddafi may be in talks with South Africa about a possible escape route, despite denials from both sides. And NATO insists it will continue combat air patrols until all government forces surrender. Following a night of chaos in the capital, crowds have been seen in Tripoli's central square waving revolutionary flags.
Libyan presenter waves gun and vows to defend station
Uploaded by AlJazeeraEnglish on Aug 21, 2011 A video posted on a social media website shows a presenter from the state-run al-Libiyah television channel waving a gun and saying the channel's staff are prepared to die in defence of the station.
Report from the advance on Tripoli
What happens next remains to be seen.
UPDATE 11:54 PM
Here's a report and video from Sky News which has a reporter embedded with the rebels: Sky's special correspondent Alex Crawford, accompanying the rebels, said the opposition fighters were greeted with scenes of jubilation as they made their way through the outskirts of the capital.
As they entered the city, their cars gridlocked the roads, she said, and hundreds of people came out onto the streets to greet them.
The rebels responded with celebratory gunfire, she said.
"We are now just a very short distance from the centre, with more and more people coming onto the streets.
"They (the rebels) had been expecting much more resistance but there has been very little."
"There is absolutely no question in their minds that they have beaten Gaddafi and it is just a question of how he will go," she added.
The quick advance came after the fighters captured the base of the Khamis Brigade, 16 miles west of the capital.
It is said to be one of the best-trained and equipped units in the Libyan military and is commanded by Col Gaddafi's 27-year-old son Khamis.
Aside from the main rebel movement from the west of the city, fighting also broke out in the city's Mitiga airbase, while the suburb of Tajoura reportedly also fell under rebel control.
Gunfire was also heard near the hotel where foreign media are staying.
As the rebel movement came closer to the capital, Col Gaddafi broadcast a message on state television calling on Libyan people to come from all regions and liberate Tripoli.
He said he was "afraid Tripoli will burn" but that he will remain in the city until the end.
The Libyan government also earlier appealed for an immediate ceasefire and an end to Nato's "aggression".
Spokesman for Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's regime, Moussa Ibrahim, told reporters the rebels were nothing without Nato and they would never be able to take Libya. Maybe. But Gadhafi is now gone.
Let's go to the videotape.
UPDATE 11:54 PM
Here's a report and video from Sky News which has a reporter embedded with the rebels: Sky's special correspondent Alex Crawford, accompanying the rebels, said the opposition fighters were greeted with scenes of jubilation as they made their way through the outskirts of the capital.
As they entered the city, their cars gridlocked the roads, she said, and hundreds of people came out onto the streets to greet them.
The rebels responded with celebratory gunfire, she said.
"We are now just a very short distance from the centre, with more and more people coming onto the streets.
"They (the rebels) had been expecting much more resistance but there has been very little."
"There is absolutely no question in their minds that they have beaten Gaddafi and it is just a question of how he will go," she added.
The quick advance came after the fighters captured the base of the Khamis Brigade, 16 miles west of the capital.
It is said to be one of the best-trained and equipped units in the Libyan military and is commanded by Col Gaddafi's 27-year-old son Khamis.
Aside from the main rebel movement from the west of the city, fighting also broke out in the city's Mitiga airbase, while the suburb of Tajoura reportedly also fell under rebel control.
Gunfire was also heard near the hotel where foreign media are staying.
As the rebel movement came closer to the capital, Col Gaddafi broadcast a message on state television calling on Libyan people to come from all regions and liberate Tripoli.
He said he was "afraid Tripoli will burn" but that he will remain in the city until the end.
The Libyan government also earlier appealed for an immediate ceasefire and an end to Nato's "aggression".
Spokesman for Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's regime, Moussa Ibrahim, told reporters the rebels were nothing without Nato and they would never be able to take Libya. Maybe. But Gadhafi is now gone.
Let's go to the videotape.
Libyan citizens celebrate their liberation from tyranny in Tripoli's Green Square: August 21st, 11
The citizens of Tripoli celebrate the end of Gaddafi's blood soaked 41 year rule, in the centre of their capital.
Strong rumours abound of the arrest of the madman Saif Gaddafi, but the tyrant himself has gone to ground.
Strong rumours abound of the arrest of the madman Saif Gaddafi, but the tyrant himself has gone to ground.
BREAKING: Tripoli Falling To Rebels - Gadhafi's Son Reported Arrested
Of course, Gadhafi himself is still promising a fight:
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, a son of Libya's ruler Moammar Gadhafi and a top official in the regime, has been captured by opposition forces, a rebel official said Sunday night.
Ali Said, general secretary of the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council, said that the arrest had taken place in Tripoli. The head of the same rebel group also confirmed the capture in an Al Jazeera interview. There was no immediate reaction from Libyan government officials to the report.
A day earlier, Saif al-Islam -- who had emerged as a leading spokesman for the regime since the unrest began in February -- had laughed off reports of rebels taking Tripoli and claimed that they were losing every battle.
But this account ran counter to reports from CNN reporters, witnesses and rebel officials on the ground. A NATO spokesman, in fact, said earlier Sunday that Moammar Gadhafi's "regime is crumbling."
But in an audio address broadcast Sunday on Libyan state television, the longtime Libyan ruler remained defiant in urging his countrymen to join him to stop "colonizers" and predicting an imminent "victory.
UPDATE: Per unconfirmed reports from the BBC, Gadhafi has escaped to Algeria.
More as it develops...
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, a son of Libya's ruler Moammar Gadhafi and a top official in the regime, has been captured by opposition forces, a rebel official said Sunday night.
Ali Said, general secretary of the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council, said that the arrest had taken place in Tripoli. The head of the same rebel group also confirmed the capture in an Al Jazeera interview. There was no immediate reaction from Libyan government officials to the report.
A day earlier, Saif al-Islam -- who had emerged as a leading spokesman for the regime since the unrest began in February -- had laughed off reports of rebels taking Tripoli and claimed that they were losing every battle.
But this account ran counter to reports from CNN reporters, witnesses and rebel officials on the ground. A NATO spokesman, in fact, said earlier Sunday that Moammar Gadhafi's "regime is crumbling."
But in an audio address broadcast Sunday on Libyan state television, the longtime Libyan ruler remained defiant in urging his countrymen to join him to stop "colonizers" and predicting an imminent "victory.
UPDATE: Per unconfirmed reports from the BBC, Gadhafi has escaped to Algeria.
More as it develops...
Libyan Rebels Take Control Of Green Square Tripoli
Libyan rebels have taken control of the capital Tripoli's Green Square
Zeina Khodr reports live from Tripoli
Al Jazeera correspondent Zeina Khodr reports live from the Green Square in Tripoli as residents celebrate the opposition fighters' gains against Gaddafi forces in the Libyan capital.
Mohammad Qaddafi live on news and rebels break in firing- GAME OVER
During a live interview with Jazeera news, rebels break in to Mohammad Qaddafi's house, son of the Libyan leader. Gunfire is heard inside the house as Qaddafi's guards battle the rebels. August 21st 2011.
Mohammad Qaddafi was then held in house arrest with his family. On August 22nd 2011 he apparantly escaped with regime loyalists but was reportedly shot dead by rebels.
Mohammad Qaddafi was then held in house arrest with his family. On August 22nd 2011 he apparantly escaped with regime loyalists but was reportedly shot dead by rebels.
Tripoli citizens celebrate the tyrant's fall from power: August 21st, '11
Citizens of Tripoli take to the streets to celebrate the end of Gaddafi's 42 year reign of terror.
Rebels enter Tripoli as Gaddafi urges Libyans to take up arms
[/list]Rebels have reportedly entered Tripoli from the west as fighting in Libya appears to be intensifying. Some estimates put the death toll from this weekend alone in the hundreds - with around a thousand injured. It's also believed that major clashes have seen the rebels capture the capital's Mitiga airbase. Opposition forces also claim to have freed prisoners locked up during the uprising against Gaddafi's regime.
source
source
Patriots of Misurata roll into Zlitan: August 19th, '11
Gaddafi's last stronghold in Misurata province falls to the citizens after weeks of heavy clashes to the east, and south of the town.
A significant number of sub Saharan African mercenary wretches were liquidated during the battle for Zlitan, as was true of the struggle for Misurata.
A significant number of sub Saharan African mercenary wretches were liquidated during the battle for Zlitan, as was true of the struggle for Misurata.
Tripoli citizens arrive to claim ownership of Aisha Gaddafi's residence: August 22nd, '11
Gaddafi's 34 year old daughter had fled the compound by the time the citizens arrived.
The large residence set in a walled compound is now the property of the people of Free Libya.
The large residence set in a walled compound is now the property of the people of Free Libya.
UFO - Going back to London on the M11
I took this video whilst I was driving back to London on the M11, check this out!!
I thought the sky was amazing but when those lights appeared I freaked out.
Wow!!
I thought the sky was amazing but when those lights appeared I freaked out.
Wow!!
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