Rebels in Tripoli

Rebels seized control of the symbolic center of Tripoli, Green Square, early Monday as hundreds of jubilant supporters greeted fighters with volleys of celebratory gunfire.

Libyan senior rebel leader Mahmud Jibril said pockets of resistance from loyalists remained in the city. Libyan state television was still broadcasting into the early hours, showing recorded footage from within the compound of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

Heavy fighting was reported from the compound, although there were no details of the whereabouts of Gadhafi himself. Rebels said his forces still controled around 20 percent of Tripoli.

Gadhafi repeated an audio message late Sunday for Libyans to "save Tripoli" and compared the city to Baghdad during the Iraq War.

Claims that the capital had been overrun were earlier dismissed by Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim.

In a written statement, US President Barack Obama said the regime was close to "collapsing" and that it was time for Gadhafi to leave. "Gadhafi needs to acknowledge the reality that he no longer controls Libya. He needs to relinquish power once and for all."

Regime condemns NATO

Blaming NATO for the rebel advances on the city, Ibrahim appeared on television to appeal for a ceasefire. He claimed NATO was providing support to armed gangs who were intent on revenge and settling tribal scores.

"All they want is to destroy this beautiful, peaceful city," he said.

The Libyan government claimed 1,300 people had been killed in fighting between midday local time and 11:15 p.m. on Sunday, figures that were dismissed by rebels.

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said late Sunday that the regime was "clearly crumbling," adding that the military alliance was ready to work with the rebel National Transitional Council.

Libyan rebels said two of Gadhafi's sons, including heir apparent Seif al-Islam, were apprehended in a village near western Tripoli. The arrest of Seif al-Islam was confirmed by a spokeswoman for the International Criminal Court early Monday.

Similar scenes of jubilation to those in Tripoli have been witnessed in Benghazi, the rebels' stronghold city in the east of the country.

From land and sea

Thousands of fighters were reported to have advanced to within 20 kilometers west of the city earlier Sunday, news agency Reuters reported, with another group approaching by boat from the port city of Misrata to the east.

Fighting inside the capital late on Saturday, combined with the rebel advances in the outskirts of the city, appeared to signal the decisive phase of the six-month conflict.

The coordinated revolt that began late that evening is believed to have been planned weeks in advance.

Author: Richard Connor (dpa, Reuters)
Editor: Martin Kuebler