Libyan rebels fighting for Capital (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam...Libyan rebels are battling troops loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi for control of Tripoli, after launching an assault on the capital from several directions.

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

But fighting is still raging in parts of the city, and the rebels have not managed to find the Libyan leader.

World leaders have urged Col Gaddafi to step down. US President Obama said his 42-year rule "was coming to an end".

The rebels, who were greeted by jubilant crowds in central Green Square, have set up checkpoints in parts of the city, and say reinforcements are due to arrive by boat.

But elsewhere in the city they have met stiff resistance.

A rebel spokesman said his forces had come under fire from tanks emerging from Col Gaddafi's compound at Bab al-Azizia in western Tripoli early on Monday.

Witnesses say there has been sustained gunfire in the area throughout the day.

Gaddafi loyalists remain in control of the area further south around the Rixos Hotel, where many Western journalists are based.

And rebels fighting in the west of the city were pushed back late on Monday.

"We are bracing ourselves for another night of intense street fighting," a Tripoli resident told the BBC.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://twitter.com/#!/MianShakeel

 

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