Decisive battle

Heavy explosions rocked Tripoli early Wednesday as rebel forces continued their fight to control the Libyan capital a day after laying claim to leader Moammar Gadhafi's compound. NATO aircraft were seen flying overhead.

As rebels poured into Gadhafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound, the leader continued his pledge a fight to the bitter end, calling for "martyrdom or victory."

A Tripoli radio station quoted Gadhafi as saying he had abandoned his compound as a "tactical move after the compound was leveled by 64 NATO airstrikes."

Battle continues

Rebels fired shots in the air on Tuesday in celebration, after entering the regime's compound, according to international media outlets. Some destroyed symbols of Gadhafi's power inside the six-square-kilometer compound, while looting reportedly took place in the compound's armory.

Heavy fighting in the capital was reported throughout the day on Tuesday. Witnesses reported hearing gunfire and occasional explosions, while plumes of smoke rose above the area.

The al-Mansoura district was the focus of fierce clashes between government forces and opposition fighters, two days after the rebels marched into the heart of the city.

Western support

The rebels have been aided in the conflict by a NATO air campaign which, officially, is being carried out to help protect civilians. On Tuesday, a NATO military spokesman rejected the suggestion that the alliance could be directly targeting Gadhafi.

"We do not provide close air support," NATO spokesman Roland Lavoie said in a video conference from his base in Naples.

"We will take out and strike at targets if they pose a threat to the civilian population," the Canadian colonel said. "Despite the noise they could be making today in Tripoli, the Gadhafi regime has passed the tipping point and is going down. For us it's a matter of when."

Asked whether NATO might consider sending in ground troops to fight alongside the rebels during what appears to be the final phase of the conflict, Lavoie said this was out of the question because "being engaged directly alongside combatants would not really be practical."

The Western military alliance also said it was certain that the Libyan rebels would win the battle for Tripoli, despite a resurgence by forces loyal to the Libyan leader.

"For the Gadhafi regime this is the final chapter. The end is near and events are moving fast," Oana Lungescu, NATO's chief spokeswoman, told a press conference in Brussels. "What's clear is that the Gadhafi regime is history, and the sooner he realizes it, the better."

She was speaking a day after the rebels claimed to have taken control of 95 percent of the Libyan capital. Their claim of having captured two of his sons later turned out to have been false.

One of Gadhafi's sons, Seif al-Islam, who - like his father - is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on war crimes charges, turned up at a Tripoli hotel where foreign reporters had been staying early Tuesday, clearly contradicting the rebels' claim.

Still searching

Even after the rebels moved into Gadhafi's compound, the whereabouts of Gadhafi remain unclear. During his hotel appearance, Seif al-Islam claimed his father was still alive and well and in the capital.

"Gadhafi and the entire family is in Tripoli," he told reporters.

NATO appeared skeptical about the claim but suggested this wasn't a crucial issue.

"I'm not sure actually that it really does matter, in the sense that the resolution of this situation will be political," Lavoie told reporters, when asked if NATO knew where Gadhafi was.

"I think everybody recognizes that Gadhafi will likely not be part of that solution. He's not a key player anymore," said Lavoie. "So from that perspective, we do not know, but I don't think it really matters, although I recognize the symbolic value that it could have for his supporters."

Planning for a post-Gadhafi Libya

With the rebels apparently close to victory, the international community is beginning to make plans for supporting a post-war Libya.

A statement released by French President Nicolas Sarkozy's Elysee Palace said he had agreed with his US counterpart, Barack Obama, that they should work together with other members of the international community to help build a "new, democratic and pluralist Libya."

"As a new phase begins, the two presidents express their intention to rally the international community behind the Libyan people and help it to begin the political transition in a spirit of reconciliation and national unity," the statement said.

The White House said in its own statement that the two leaders had agreed to urge the rebels to pursue "a transition to democracy that is just and inclusive for all of the people of Libya."

Germany, which is a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, is seeking a quick UN resolution that would allow the release of Libya's frozen assets.

"In New York, we are working on creating the conditions for the UN Security Council to unblock the country's frozen assets abroad for the benefit of the Libyan people," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told reporters in Berlin.

"The funds, which were frozen under political sanctions against the regime of Colonel Gadhafi, must be used to rebuild Libya for the sake of its people," he added. "In our view such a resolution must be passed as soon as possible."

Author: Chuck Penfold, David Levitz (Reuters, AFP)
Editor: Martin Kuebler