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Rebels push toward Gadhafi’s hometown
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo
Abdul Basr, 45, center, chats with his neighbor as he sits in front of his damaged pizzeria on Tripoli Street in Misrata, Libya, on Friday.
Associated Press
TRIPOLI, Libya
Rebel fighters pushed closer to Moammar Gadhafi’s hometown on Friday, despite the extension of a deadline for the town’s surrender and negotiations with tribal leaders aimed at avoiding bloodshed.
With the capital of Tripoli firmly in their hands, the rebels are in no rush to assault the loyalist-held town of Sirte, rebel officials said, hoping the town would surrender without an attack. But the rebels also are moving their forces into position in case an assault is needed.
“Military action will be the last option, because after the fall of the capital, we are not in a hurry,” said Khaled Zintani, a spokesman for the rebels in the remote mountain town of Zintan.
Tribal elders in Sirte had asked that a delegation from Zintan be sent to Sirte to help with negotiations, he said, because of a long history of bad blood with rebels from towns closer to Sirte.
Despite the extension of a Sirte surrender deadline to next Saturday, rebel forces have not stopped advancing, said another rebel spokesman, Abdel-Hafiz Ghoga. Rebel brigades have pushed to the town of Wadi Hawarah, just 30 miles from Sirte, he said.
“The rebels at the front line are very eager to move without delay,” he said. “They live in harsh conditions there in the middle of the desert, and in hot weather,” he said.
Gadhafi remains a fugitive, and there have been conflicting reports about his whereabouts.
Gen. Omar al-Hariri, a rebel military commander, suggested Friday that Gadhafi might be either in a suburb of Tripoli or in the town of Bani Walid, 90 miles southeast of Tripoli. But he also acknowledged that the former Libyan leader probably has hideouts elsewhere.