Libya's National Transitional Council Claims Muammar Qaddafi Killed During His Capture; U.S. Officials Trying to Confirm

October 20, 2011
FoxNews.com

DEVELOPING: Libyan strongman Muammar Qaddafi is dead, according to a spokesman for the National Transitional Council.

Qaddafi died of wounds suffered during his capture near his hometown of Sirte on Thursday, Reuters and Sky News reported. U.S. officials say they are working to confirm the NTC's claim.

"Qaddafi is dead. He is absolutely dead ... he was shot in both legs and in the head. The body will be arriving in Misrata soon," media spokesman Abdullah Berrassali told Sky News.

A witness of the attack told the Associated Press Television News that he struck Qaddafi with his shoes after he was shot.

Information Minister Mahmoud Shammam said he has confirmed that Qaddafi was dead from fighters who said they saw the body. He said he expects the prime minister to confirm the death soon, noting that past reports emerged "before making 100 percent confirmation."

"Our people in Sirte saw the body ... Mustafa Abdul-Jalil will confirm it soon," he told The Associated Press. "Revolutionaries say Qaddafi was in a convoy and that they attacked the convoy."

Col. Roland Lavoie, spokesman for NATO's operational headquarters in Naples, Italy, said the alliance's aircraft Thursday morning struck two vehicles of pro-Qaddafi forces "which were part of a larger group maneuvering in the vicinity of Sirte."

"These armed vehicles were conducting military operations and presented a clear threat to civilians," Lavoie said in a statement.

A commander of the new regime forces told AFP one of Qaddafi's sons, Mutassim Ghadafi, was also killed Thursday.

"We found him dead. We put his body and that of [former defense minister] Abu Bakr Yunis in an ambulance to take them to Misrata," Mohamed Leith said.

Celebratory gunfire and cries of "Allahu Akbar" or "God is Great" rang out across Tripoli as the reports spread. Cars honked their horns and people hugged each other. In Sirte, the ecstatic former rebels celebrated the city's fall after weeks of bloody siege by firing endless rounds into the sky, pumping their guns, knives and even a meat cleaver in the air and singing the national anthem.

Despite the fall of Tripoli on Aug. 21, Qaddafi loyalists mounted fierce resistance in several areas, including Sirte, preventing Libya's new leaders from declaring full victory in the eight-month civil war. Earlier this week, revolutionary fighters gained control of one stronghold, Bani Walid, and by Tuesday said they had squeezed Qaddafi forces in Sirte into a residential area of about 700 square yards but were still coming under heavy fire from surrounding buildings.

Reporters at the scene watched as the final assault began around 8 a.m. and ended about 90 minutes later. Just before the battle, about five carloads of Qaddafi loyalists tried to flee the enclave down the coastal highway that leads out of the city. But they were met by gunfire from the revolutionaries, who killed at least 20 of them.

Sirte -- Qaddafi's hometown and the last bastion of his supporters -- was the last holdout against NTC forces. The town's capture, which both military officials and new regime political sources said was expected later Thursday, would pave the way for the NTC to officially take control of Libya and move its headquarters away from its Benghazi stronghold in the east to the capital, Tripoli.

White House officials are monitoring the developing reports, but are unable to confirm the status of the former Libyan leader.

Libyan fighters captured Sirte Thursday, two months after the fall of Tripoli.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said her department was still attempting to confirm the reports.

"[We] can't confirm Qaddafi's capture or death but if it's true, it's a big sigh of relief," Clinton told FOX News White House correspondent Wendell Goler, who is traveling with her in Pakistan. "One more obstacle removed but we still have a steep climb ahead."

U.S. Senator John McCain, R-AZ, said the death of Qaddafi "marks an end to the first phase" of the Libyan revolution.

"While some final fighting continues, the Libyan people have liberated their country," the statement read. "Now the Libyan people can focus all of their immense talents on strengthening their national unity, rebuilding their country and economy, proceeding with their democratic transition, and safeguarding the dignity and human rights of all Libyans. The United States, along with our European allies and Arab partners, must now deepen our support for the Libyan people, as they work to make the next phase of their democratic revolution as successful as the fight to free their country."

The Associated Press contributed to this report