Gaddafi son spotted in Bani Walid as heavy fighting continues

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Free Libyan forces have taken key parts of the southern desert town of Sabha, a bastion of support for Muammar Gaddafi and other senior regime fugitives, the new rebel government in Tripoli announced on Monday.

Confirmation of the capture of Sabha’s citadel and airport marks a significant military advance, though the fate of the rest of the town was unclear. But there was no sign of an end to heavy fighting in Bani Walid, 100 miles south of Tripoli, where Saif al-Islam al-Gaddafi, the deposed leader’s son, was said to have been spotted.

Saif al-Islam, wanted along with his father for crimes against humanity, has been rumoured to be in the area before, but this was the first sighting to be claimed by officials of the National Transitional Council, now recognised internationally as Libya’s government.

Fighting continued around Bani Walid on Monday amid signs that the rebels remain disorganised and disoriented in the face of a determined enemy that dominates the high ground. The situation is complicated by the fact that the town is home to Libya’s largest tribe, the Warfalla, who were hitherto loyal to Gaddafi.

NTC officials have made confident predictions about the eventual outcome of the fighting, promising victory within a few days, but there are worries about civilian casualties.

“Our fighters are at the gates of Bani Walid,” said the NTC’s military spokesman, Ahmed Bani, who warned that the “forces of the dictator” were trying to destroy the town before it was captured. “Everyone who has been implicated in crimes in Bani Walid will be punished according to the law,” he said.

Rebels in Misrata believe a senior Gaddafi figure – possibly another son, Mutasim – is hiding in the coastal city of Sirte, which is also holding out after five days of heavy fighting in which 44 rebels have died.

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I wonder where the sympathies of these authors lie:

Free Libyan forces have taken key parts of the southern desert town of Sabha,

Free Libyan forces, this must be the first time Islamic radicals have been called free since our MSM and Larry King called Al Qaeda and the Taliban maniacs killing our troops “Freedom Fighters”.