BBC news 2011-08-23
BBC News with Iain Purdon
Libyan rebels are still fighting troops loyal to Colonel Gaddafi for control of Tripoli. The rebels say they've taken over most of the capital but are facing stiff resistance in some areas. Matthew Price is in Tripoli.
Tripoli today is a tale of two cities. In one, jubilant opposition supporters believe they are finally witnessing the end of Colonel Gaddafi. Gunmen control the streets of their neighbourhoods. Pro-Gaddafi forces are nowhere to be seen. The other Tripoli is one of anxiety, of fear, of heavy weapons and explosions. The battle for this city is not over. From Colonel Gaddafi's compound, smoke can be seen rising as the two sides fight for control there. And here, around the hotel where foreign journalists have stayed ever since this uprising began, Gaddafi's supporters control the streets. The premature celebrations of last night seem not to have been repeated during the day. Instead, many stay indoors, wondering how long the fight for Tripoli will last.
Colonel Gaddafi's whereabouts remain unknown. The head of the rebel National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, says the real moment of victory will come when the Libyan leader is captured. From Benghazi, Paul Wood reports.
In the early hours of the morning, jubilant crowds in Benghazi celebrated the passing of Colonel Gaddafi's rule with volleys of automatic fire. But later in the day, here in the birthplace of the revolution, there was a more sober warning of the dangers posed by the victory unfolding in the capital. The leader of the National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, said he was worried there could be revenge attacks. If military commanders ignored him and carried out reprisals, he said, he would resign - a threat which gives a glimpse of the tensions within a movement now on the brink of forming a new government.
President Obama has praised the Libyan people for what he called their extraordinary sacrifice in defying the Gaddafi regime and fighting to overthrow it.
"Your courage and character have been unbreakable in the face of the tyrant. An ocean divides us, but we are joined in the basic human longing for freedom, for justice and for dignity. Your revolution is your own, and your sacrifices have been extraordinary. Now the Libya that you deserve is within your reach. Going forward, we will stay in close coordination with the TNC to support that outcome."
In other reaction, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that all United Nations members have a duty to comply with the International Criminal Court, which has issued arrest warrants against Colonel Gaddafi, his son Saif al-Islam and his intelligence chief.
The International Organisation for Migration says it has sent a ship to Tripoli to evacuate migrants. It can carry 300 passengers and is expected to arrive on Tuesday.
World News from the BBC
The UN chief Ban Ki-moon says it's troubling that President Assad of Syria has not kept his word about halting military operations to crush anti-government protests. The Syrian president made the pledge in a phone conversation with Mr Ban last week. The UN Human Rights Council is currently holding an emergency session on Syria that's expected to order a full investigation into government violence against protesters.
New York prosecutors have asked judges to drop sexual assault charges made against the former head of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn. This follows a meeting between the district attorney and the hotel worker who made the allegations. Caroline Hepker is in New York.
The 62-year-old Mr Strauss-Kahn was accused of the sexual encounter in a five-star hotel in Manhattan a few months ago. And initially the case was thought to be extremely strong, but it later, over the weeks, seemed to fall apart as there were serious questions over the credibility of the woman, over the alleged victim and the story that she gave to the prosecutors and also in later media appearances over the weeks about exactly what happened and when.
The United Nations says at least 600 people are now known to have died and 1,000 wounded in ethnic clashes in South Sudan. The violence erupted on Thursday in Jonglei state. There have been worries about stability in South Sudan, which has been independent for just over one month.
The governor of Puerto Rico says Hurricane Irene has brought high winds and torrential rain to the Caribbean island, cutting electricity to about 800,000 people. Forecasters say Irene, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, is generating winds of up to 130km/h as it approaches the north coast of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, which share the island of Hispaniola. They say it could pick up strength.
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