Libyan rebels surround Gadhafi compound

By Ashish Kumar Sen

The Washington Times

Libyan rebels surrounded Col. Moammar Gadhafi’s military compound in the heart of Tripoli on Monday and clashed with the regime forces still loyal to the dictator, a day after the fall of the capital.

Tripoli residents told The Washington Times in phone interviews that the rebels had reached outside the Bab al-Aziziyah compound early Monday.

The rebels, who were in control of around 80 percent of Tripoli, are trying to eliminate pockets of resistance from the regime’s forces.

The military barracks at Bab al-Aziziyah serve as a compound for Col. Gadhafi, his family and the inner circle of his once-powerful regime.

The rebels had anticipated a tough fight at Bab al-Aziziyah.

Hana, a resident of Tripoli who only gave her first name, said the clashes took place around 6 a.m. The rebels were waiting for reinforcements to come from Zawiyah, a city 30 miles west of Tripoli, before launching a bigger offensive.

Another pocket of resistance is in the area around the Rixos Hotel, where foreign journalists have been kept and from where the regime’s spokesman Moussa Ibrahim delivered regular denunciations of NATO and the rebels until the resistance stormed the capital on Sunday.

“There are some pro-Gadhafi fighters in some neighborhoods, but not in the center of Tripoli,” said Hana.

The rebels took control of government buildings, banks and schools on Monday.

Mohamed, a rebel spokesman who only gave his first name, said the rebels had been planning their strategy to take over Tripoli for some weeks.

“Our first priority is to secure the city. We don’t want any looting or for people to try and seek revenge against members of the regime,” he said.

Mohamed said all captured regime fighters would be treated as prisoners of war.

Residents of the city were gathering in Green Square, a central plaza that they have renamed Martyrs’ Square.

On Sunday rebel sources said they had detained two of Col. Gadhafi’s sons.

One, Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, is wanted by International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherlands on charges of crimes against humanity. Similar warrants were issued in June for Col. Gadhafi and Abdullah Senussi, his brother-in-law and intelligence chief.

Rebels were unaware of the whereabouts of both Col. Gadhafi and Mr. Senussi.

Fadi El Abdallah, a court spokesman for ICC, told The Times that authorities are talking to the rebel provisional governmentg about surrendering Seif al-Islam to face trial.

In the rebels’ de facto capital Benghazi, some residents said they would rather Seif al-Islam be tried for his crimes in a Libyan court.

However, Hana, the Tripoli resident, said:

“We only care that he be tried. Our political prisoners never had this kind of justice. They never had trials and never went to court because Gadhafi was the judge. We need to show him that we are not like him.”