Gaddafi believed to be in Bani Walid

Ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is believed to be in the desert town of Bani Walid about 150km south-east of Tripoli, says a top military commander of Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC).

Abdel Majid Mlegta, coordinator of the Tripoli military operations room, told Reuters “someone we trust” had said Gaddafi had gone to Bani Walid with a son, Saif al-Islam, and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senoussi three days after the capital fell to rebel forces last week.  

“They wanted to set up an operations room there and conduct aggressive operations against us,” he said. “We have talked to notables from Bani Walid to arrest him and hand him over. They haven’t responded. We are assessing our position.”  

The commander said Ali al-Ahwal, Gaddafi’s coordinator for tribes, was also in Bani Walid, a bastion of the powerful Warfalla tribe, Libya’s biggest.  

“In four days we will come with up a solution. We are capable of ending the crisis but military action is out of the question right now,” Mlegta said.  

“We cannot attack this tribe because many of our brigades in Benghazi and Zintan are from Bani Walid. The sons of Bani Walid hold the key to the solution.”  

NTC fighters said earlier this week that they were 30km from Bani Walid. The NTC has given pro-Gaddafi forces in the coastal city of Sirte, the deposed leader’s hometown, until Saturday to surrender or face attack.