With operation "Dawn of the Sea Pride", the freeing of Tripoli and therefore the whole of Libya from the Al
Qadaffy...dictator of Libya since 1969. From 1972, when he relinquished the title of prime minister, he has been accorded the honorifics
Guide of the First of September Great Revolution of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriyaor
Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution. With the death of Omar Bongo of Gabon on 8 June 2009, he became the longest serving of all current non-royal national leaders. He is also the longest-serving ruler of Libya since Tripoli became an Ottoman province in 1551. When Chairman Mao was all the rage and millions of people were flashing his Little Red Book, Qadaffy came out with his own Little Green Book, which didn't do as well. Qadaffy's instability has been an inspiration to the Arab world and to Africa, which he would like to rule...
regime ongoing and on the way to succeeding, the beleaguered Libyan leader, pressed as he is from all sides, has urged his supporters, half-heartedly, many believe, to "march by the millions" and to quash the six months-long uprising that has turned full circle in favour of the rebels.
Strong kabooms rocked Tripoli amid fighting between rebels and regime supporters early Sunday morning, with blasts from NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
air strikes heard in the heart of the Libyan capital as early as 4.00 a.m. (CET). Warplanes flew overhead, targeting once again Al Qathafi's residential compound at Ban Al-Azziziyah and other, at the time, identifiable sites.
There was sustained gunfire in the city and festivities in several quarters have been reported between cut-throats and Al Qadaffy forces, among them some of his supporters whom he armed to try and help him to hold on to power, which he has done for almost 42 years.
Al Qadaffy's appeal came as rebels closed in on Tripoli, claiming that the leader's regime was on its last legs.
Al Qadaffy's choice of words was anything but dignified as he tried to push his supporters to help him out of his misery. He said: "We have to put an end to this masquerade. You must march by the millions to free the destroyed towns" controlled by rebels he labeled as "traitors" and "rats."
In his umpteenth audio message carried on state television
... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
, without giving a clue where he was calling from, he went on to say: "These scum enter mosques to cry 'God is great.' They are dirty. They are defiling the mosques."
Most Libyans keep on asking why, if he is so brave, does the Libyan leader not get out of his hole to face the bad turbans. If he has a battle to fight, he should do it himself, by example and get into the front to lead his remaining forces. Analysts believe that Al Qathafi's actions are cowardly. They keep on asking: "How could he pretend the people of Libya, ever so peaceful fight his own wars?
Earlier, cries of "Allahu Akbar" could be heard from mosques in the city's eastern sectors.
Al Qadaffy also accused French President Nicolas Sarkozy
...23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. Sarkozy is married to singer-songwriter Carla Bruni, who has a really nice birthday suit...
, whose country has been in the forefront to lead NATO-coordinated air strikes on the his military assets, of recruiting the rebels as "agents" to steal Libya's vast oil wealth.
Referring to the French President he said that to win the upcoming elections, he wants to be able to say to his people: 'Here, I'm offering you Libyan oil' and this is going to be achieved with the help of traitors. But the Libyan people will not allow La Belle France to take its oil or leave Libya to the hands of traitors, he said.
As blasts and gunfire rocked Tripoli after the break of the dawn-to-dusk fast of Ramadan fighting ensued in the eastern neighbourhoods of Souk JJomaa, Arada and Tajura.
Through its front man Moussa Ibrahim, who was recently appointed information secretary, the government insisted it was in charge of the city. He said the situation was under control, adding that pro-regime volunteers had repelled bad turban attacks in several neighbourhoods. He dismissed mounting speculation that the regime was on the brink as a "media attack."
However,
denial ain't just a river in Egypt...
Al Qathafi's speech appears to have done little to assure his supporters that he would still be there, at the helm in a few days from now. It was left to Moussa Ibrahim to try and rally the Al Qathafi supporters as he was driven around streets in Tripoli trying to urge people to make a stand. On the other hand, the rebels gave little notice of the Libyan leader's threats.
Meanwhile,
...back at the cheese factory, all the pieces finally fell together in Fluffy's mind...
as celebrations broke out in the early morning hours and residents of Benghazi feted at Freedom Sqaure what they understand to be the imminent collapse of the Al Qathafi regime after the important recent gains and also entry into Tripoli, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, who heads the rebels' National Transitional Council, claimed that victory was within reach.
Speaking to news hounds as a flurry of rumours suggested that Al Qathafi was preparing to flee Libya, he said: "We have contacts with people from the inner circle of Al Qathafi. All evidence shows that the end is very near, with God's grace," he said.
He also predicted a "catastrophic" end for Al Qathafi and his inner circle.
Jubilant scenes of celebrations could also be seen in other cities recently captured by the bad turbans, such as Zawiyah, Zliten, Gharyan, Sabratha, Brega and other smaller towns.