Muammar Gaddafi's son and one-time heir apparent Saif al-Islam has been detained in the southern desert, Libya's interim justice minister and other officials have said.

Fighters from the western mountain city of Zintan announced his capture on Saturday as gunfire and car horns marked jubilation across the country at the arrest of the British-educated 39-year-old who a year ago seemed set to follow his father as Libya's leader.
 
Saif al-Islam and three armed companions were taken without a fight during the night, officials said. Gaddafi's son was reportedly not injured, unlike Gaddafi himself, who was killed last month after being captured by fighters in his home town of Sirte.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Raheem al-Keeb officially announced the capture of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi during a news conference on Saturday evening, assuring Libyans and rest of the world he will face a fair trial.

"Because of this historic occasion, I would like to congratulate the men and women of Libya and the rebels of Libya, for their struggle, determination and heroism, which gave way to such victory," al-Keeb said to a cheering audience.

'Proper justice'

The prime minister also said he has confidence in Zintan authorities to take care of Saif al-Islam until he gets "proper justice" and a fair trial.

A man who appeared to be Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, but whose identity was unconfirmed, was flown by Libyan militiamen to the town of Zintan in the northwest of Libya on Saturday, a Reuters news agency correspondent, who was on the plane, said.

The unidentified man wore traditional robes with a scarf pulled over his face. The man's thumb, index finger and another finger were heavily bandaged.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi told Reuters that he was feeling fine. Asked by the correspondent if he was feeling all right, Gaddafi said simply: "Yes."

Saif al-Islam  was flown by his captors to the town of Zintan where a large crowd greeted the airplane [Reuters]

Reluctant to speak at length, Saif al-Islam was asked about bandages on the thumb and two fingers of his right hand.

"Air force, air force," he said. Asked if that meant a NATO air strike, he said: "Yes. One month ago."

Aides to Gaddafi had said his motorcade was caught by a NATO air strike as he tried to flee the pro-Gaddafi stronghold of Bani Walid on October 19, the day before his father was captured.

After the brief exchange with the heavily bearded prisoner, Libyan Reuters journalists who have met Saif al-Islam said they had no doubt that was indeed him, although he repeatedly declined to confirm his identity outright.
 
So large was the crowd that greeted the Soviet-built cargo aircraft that flew in that his captors removed four other prisoners and other people from the plane, leaving Saif al-Islam on board on the tarmac.

The Zintan fighters who claimed to have captured Saif al-Islam said they planned to keep him detained in Zintan until there was an administration to hand him over to.

Abdurrahim El-Keib, the interim prime minister, is scheduled to form a government by Tuesday. The fate of Saif al-Islam, who Libyans want to try at home before possibly handing him over to the ICC, will be an early test of the fledgling government's authority.

Muammar Gaddafi's beating, abuse and ultimate death in the custody of former rebel fighters was an embarrassment to the previous transitional government. Officials in Tripoli said they were determined to handle his son's case in a more orderly manner.

'Tip-off'

Wisam Dughaly, a fighter from the Khaled bin al-Waleed Brigade, said Saif al-Islam was seized in the wilderness near the oil town of Ubari.

"We got a tip he had been staying there for the last month. They couldn't get away because we had a good plan,"  Dughaly told Free Libya television, adding that Saif al-Islam had been using 4x4 vehicle to elude captors.

Dughaly continued: "He was not hurt and will be taken safely for trial so Libyans will be able to prosecute him and get back their money. "We will take him to Zintan for safekeeping to keep him alive until a government is formed and then we will hand him over as soon as possible." 

He added that Saif al-Islam, once seen as a reformer who engineered his father's rapprochement with the West, appeared to have been hiding out in the desert since fleeing the tribal bastion of Bani Walid in October.

The Hague

Acting justice minister Alagy said he was in talks with the ICC over how to deal with Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, either at home or The Hague, in the Netherlands.

He told Al Jazeera: "We Libyans do not oppose the presence of international monitors to monitor the trial procedures that will take place for the symbols of the former regime."

Click here for more of Al Jazeera's special coverage

Other Libyan officials have said a trial in Libya should first address killings, repression and wholesale theft of public funds over the four decades of the elder Gaddafi's personal rule.

After that, the ICC might try him for alleged orders to kill unarmed demonstrators after February's revolt.

Moreno Ocampo, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, said he will travel to Libya next week for talks with the country's transitional government on where Seif al-Islam will be tried.

Ocampo said that national governments have the right to try their own citizens for war crimes. He is concerned however, that Gaddafi will be tried for the same charges he faces at the ICC.

"The good news is that Seif al-Islam is arrested, he is alive, and now he will face justice," Ocampo said in an interview Saturday in The Hague.

There was no word of the other official wanted by the ICC, former intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi.

Libya's National Transitional Council has delayed the burial for Muammar Gaddafi in order to arrange a secret location and allow for an investigation into his death, officials say.

On Friday, as videos continued to surface showing the fugitive deposed leader being captured alive by a crowd of NTC fighters, the United Nations' human rights office added its voice to calls for an investigation into how Gaddafi died.

"Taken together, they were very disturbing," Rupert Colville, spokesman for the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said of the images.

Gaddafi's body is being kept in a cold storage site in Misrata, where it was taken after NTC fighters captured and killed him in his hometown Sirte on Thursday. It bears a bullet hole in the head, the Reuters news agency reported.

Mohamed Sayeh, a senior member of the NTC, told the Associated Press news agency that a "third party will come from outside of Libya to go through the paperwork" relating to Gaddafi's death.

Sayeh said Gaddafi would be given a private burial with respect and in accordance with Islamic principles.

Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Tripoli, said NTC officials were discussing behind the scenes how the event would take place and who would represent the Gaddafi family and his tribe.

He said officials were keeping the media at arm’s length in the hope that the location of Gaddafi’s final resting place could be kept secret.

But other details about the country's political road ahead have begun to emerge. The NTC says it will declare the full "liberation" of Libya on Sunday, after initially saying it would take place on Friday, then on Saturday.

Mahmoud Shammam, the NTC's information minister told reporters: "It will be a public announcement, I think in the main square of Benghazi by (NTC chairman) Mustafa Abdel Jalil. It will be on Sunday afternoon at around 14:00 GMT.

The city of Benghazi in Libya's east is regarded as the cradle of the revolution and has been a stronghold for NTC fighters and the base of NATO operations.

The announcement is set to mark what the NTC says will be the beginning of the process of building a democratic system in Libya after a four decade rule by the slain strongman, whose death still divides a nation.

Captured alive

In the hours following Gaddafi's capture, NTC officials and fighters gave differing accounts of what happened, but several videos taken by fighters at the scene showed him being taken alive, though bleeding from the left side of his head.

The UN has raised concerns over the possibility that Gaddafi was executed [EPA]

In the videos, fighters shout, scream and fire their weapons in the air.

Some can be seen punching Gaddafi and pulling his head down by his hair.

Gaddafi, appearing dazed, gestures to them and touches his wound, then displays his bloody hand.

No videos have emerged showing the moment of Gaddafi's death, and it is unclear exactly how he received his mortal wound.

The first video, received by Al Jazeera, showed his lifeless body lying on the pavement.

An international commission of inquiry launched by the UN Human Rights Council is already investigating killings, torture and other crimes in Libya, and Colville, the UN human rights office spokesman, said he expected that panel would look into Gaddafi's death.

"It is a fundamental principle of international law that people accused of serious crimes should if possible be tried," he said. "Summary executions are strictly illegal. It is different if someone is killed in combat."

Jibril claims 'crossfire'

According to some reports from Sirte, Gaddafi and an escort of bodyguards had attempted to break out of the siege of the city, which had lasted for more than a month.

Their convoy was struck by French fighter jets and a US Predator drone, and a wounded Gaddafi took cover in a drainage pipe with his surviving entourage.

NATO said on Friday it had struck 11 vehicles that were among 75 vehicles attempting to force their way out of Sirte, but said it was unaware that Gaddafi was travelling in the convoy.

"The vehicles were carrying a substantial amount of weapons and ammunition posing a significant threat to the local civilian population," NATO said.

Pursuing NTC fighters fired at the group as they fled, then fought and killed some of the men guarding Gaddafi and took him captive, Reuters said, quoting eyewitnesses.

Mahmoud Jibril, the NTC's de facto prime minister, initially said Gaddafi had been killed in a "crossfire" and that it didn't matter what happened to Gaddafi's body "as long as he disappears".

"He was alive up to the last moment, until he arrived at hospital," in the city of Misrata, Jibril said.

Jibril pledged to resign after the fall of Sirte, which the NTC set as the final criterion for declaring the "liberation" of Libya.

Speaking about the way forward, Bays said the first step toward rebuilding Libya would be an official declaration of liberation, expected to take place on Saturday in Benghazi, the eastern city that became the headquarters of the revolt against Gaddafi.

A newly formed interim government, headed by a new prime minister to replace Mahmoud Jibril, would then lead Libya towards elections, expected to take place in eight months.

The new prime minister would have to balance competing groups and factions in Benghazi, Tripoli and Misrata, as well finding common ground between the political and military bases that steered the revolution through, Bays said.

NATO mission to end

A decision to gradually wind down NATO's mission was expected to be taken at a meeting of ambassadors of the 28 NATO nations in Brussels on Friday, based on recommendations from NATO military commanders.

"Certainly surveillance will continue as we need to continue to monitor the situation," one official said.

NATO officials said the decision would take into account the ability of Libya's interim authorities to maintain security.

On Wednesday, NATO ambassadors put off a decision because of caution by countries such as Britain and France, which have been at the forefront of the military intervention.

"Clearly the operation is coming to its end," French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Friday.

William Hague, the British foreign minister, said on Thursday that Gaddafi's death brought the end of the operation "much closer", but added: "I think we will want to be sure there are no other pockets of pro-Gaddafi forces still able to threaten the civilian population."

Rebels have entered the fortified compound of Muammar Gaddafi in Bab al-Azizya in Tripoli, amid intensified fighting with forces loyal to the Libyan leader.

The rebels "broke through the gates of Bab al-Aiziya [and] some opposition fighters managed to enter the government's stronghold in the Libyan capital," Al Jazeera's correspondent Zeina Khodr said, reporting from Tripoli on Tuesday.

"But others were pinned down at the entrance because of heavy fire and we also couldn't go any further [as] opposition fighters had to take cover from incoming fire," our correspondent said.

Fighting also continued across the capital for a second day, and columns of grey smoke were seen billowing over the Bab al-Azizya area with the sound of gunfire and occasional explosions ringing out.

Opposition forces were concentrating their firepower on Gaddafi's compound, our correspondents reported.

The al-Mansoura district was the focus of fierce clashes between government forces and opposition fighters, two days after the rebels marched into the heart of the city, prompting scenes of jubiliation.

"Gaddafi troops are holed up in a series of pockets where they still seem to have strength, the main one of which is inside that sprawling Gaddafi compound," said Al Jazeera's James Bays, another correspondent reporting from Tripoli.

Gaddafi's forces are reportedly fighting back using heavy weapons including mortars and shells fired in the direction of Green Square, which rebels have renamed Martyrs' Square, casting doubts on opposition claims that much of the city was under their control.

The Libyan leader's whereabouts are unknown.

"The battle is certainly not over. The city is on a knife edge," our correspondent said.

There have been reports of NATO planes flying very low on top of Gaddafi's compound.

Confusion on the ground

Meanwhile, 30 journalists remained holed up in Tripoli's Rixos hotel on Tuesday. The New York Times reported that journalists from the BBC, CNN and other international news organisations were stuck inside the hotel with no electricity and described the hotel as a "prison".

In a dramatic development earlier in the day, Saif al-Islam, the son of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, appeared in al-Mansouraand at the Rixos hotel  to refute claims that he had been captured by opposition forces and rally government loyalists.

"There is confusion among the ranks of opposition fighters on the ground," Al Jazeera's Khodr added. "Some people are asking whether the National Transitional Council has been infiltrated."

The head of Libya's opposition National Transitional Council (NTC) on Monday announced the end of Gaddafi's decades-long rule.

But the re-appearance of Saif, an influential figure who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, has raised fresh questions about the NTC leadership's grip on a fast-changing situation.

Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reporting from Benghazi said: "Now we are seeing accusations, doubts, and confusion.

"It is going to be interesting to see how the NTC explains this debacle and how it seeks to reinforce and strengthen these alliances and enable the rebels to get to Tripoli itself."

The NTC held a joint press conference in Benghazi with Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish foreign minister on Tuesday.

"We stand by NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil ... He established the path for Libya for the future," Davutoglu said.

Caution and confusion

For the latest news, follow our Libya Live Blog

Celebrations followed the rebels push into central Tripoli on Sunday night, when an opposition force took control of the Green Square and claimed victory, but has since given way to caution and confusion.

Snipers scattered across the city continued to wage resistance, while a rebel convoy was ambushed by Gaddafi loyalists using anti-aircraft weapons.

Elsewhere in the country, the US military said that its warplanes had shot down a scud missile fired from Sirte, Gaddafi's hometown, indicating that remnants of Gaddafi's forces were continuing to resist.

Rebel fighters in eastern Libya advanced towards the oil terminal of Ras Lanuf after taking the coastal town of Ageila from forces loyal to Gaddafi.

Moussa Ibrahim, the government spokesperson, claimed Gaddafi forces had control of at least 75 per cent of Tripoli. But rebels said Gaddafi supporters only held about 20 per cent of the city.

The tenuous nature of the rebels' grip on Tripoli has dampened rebel hopes of a swift victory and raised concerns that the city of two million people could be the stage for a protracted armed struggle.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has urged his supporters to fight for the country "inch by inch" as opposition forces launched a two-pronged offensive in western Libya that threatens to isolate the capital of Tripoli.

Facing the sternest challenge of his decades-long rule, Gaddafi on Monday called on Libyans to arm themselves to liberate the country from "traitors and from NATO" in a broadcast on state television.

The speech, which was broadcast in audio only with no images, was the first time Gaddafi had spoken in public since rebel fighters launched their biggest offensive in months.

"The Libyan people will remain and the Fateh revolution [which brought Gaddafi to power in 1969] will remain. Move forward, challenge, pick up your weapons, go to the fight for liberating Libya inch by inch from the traitors and from NATO," Gaddafi said.

Meanwhile, Egyptian airport officials say the Libyan interior minister has arrived in Cairo with family members.

The officials say the minister, Nassr al-Mabrouk Abdullah, landed just before noon on Monday at the Cairo international airport, with nine members of his family.

They say he arrived on a special plane from Tunisia and told Egyptian officials that he was "on a tourist visit''.

The airport officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to talk to the media.

Reports have been circulating for hours that the minister had defected from the side of Gaddafi, who is facing a possible breakthrough in a six-month-old rebel campaign to end his four decades in power.

No officials from the Libyan embassy in Cairo were at the airport to greet the minister. Libyan officials were not immediately available for comment.

Fighting continues

Opposition fighters fought for control of the towns of Gharyan and Az-Zawiyah on Sunday, attempting to cut off the southern coastal route from Tunisia that Gaddafi uses for supplies.

Zeina Khodr, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Az-Zawiyah, reported that the rebels had taken control of a bridge along which the highway from Tripoli to Tunisia runs, but that central areas of the city remained contested, with Gaddafi forces employing snipers and mortar fire.

The battle also raged near the gates of the city.

Al Jazeera's Khodr said opposition fighters claimed to have taken 70 per cent of the town, despite the threat of snipers.

Bashir Ahmed Ali, the rebels' battalion commander in Az-Zawiyah, said that his forces had suffered "many casualties" due to sniper fire. He also told the AFP news agency that a tank and four fighters had been lost in a "friendly fire" air strike during the operation to take Az-Zawiyah.

Click here for more of Al Jazeera's special coverage

"The town had previously risen up against Gaddafi, but government forces quelled that uprising.

"Today's victory would be the opposition's most significant in months because they were just 50km from Tripoli, a mere half an hour's drive, if they could hold the territory and stave off a Gaddafi counter offensive," our correspondent said.

Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim rejected the claims: "Az-Zawiyah is completely under our control. A very small group of rebels tried to enter from the south of Az-Zawiyah but they were stopped easily by our armed forces."

Early on Sunday, rebel fighters claimed victory in Gharyan after Gaddafi's soldiers withdrew. Government forces returned several hours later, however, and clashes restarted.

The rebels also claimed to have taken control of the western town of Surman.

Rebel forces launched ground attacks after NATO planes hit targets in these areas.

Clashes were also reported in the eastern oil town of Brega, where the rebels say they now control two-thirds of the town.

Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from Brega on Monday, said that the town showed signs of intensive fighting having taken place, and that the rebels were continuing a push to take the oil terminal and industrial area.

The government denied on Sunday that rebel forces controlled any part of Brega.

Opposition forces hope that by taking complete control of the city, its oil terminal and sea port will allow them to resume oil exports, and will give them a key staging area on the road to Sirte, a Gaddafi stronghold.

Capture of Tawurgha

On the western front, opposition commanders said they had control of the town of Tawurgha on Sunday, as they pushed to cut supply routes to forces loyal to Gaddafi.

In a symbolic show of victory, fighters tore down green flags that had been hoisted atop buildings by Gaddafi supporters who had occupied the area.

"Gaddafi is finished!" shouted a jubilant fighter.

The rebels encountered heavy fighting and sizable pockets of resistance among a maze of buildings and date palms.

Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons, reporting from Tawurgha, said it was a heavily co-ordinated operation with NATO, with six tanks involved.

Opposition forces have launched a two-pronged offensive in western Libya, increasing pressure to isolate Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's stronghold of Tripoli.

Opposition fighters fought for control of the towns of Gharyan and Az-Zawiyah on Sunday, attempting to cut off the southern coastal route from Tunisia that Gaddafi uses for supplies.

Zeina Khodr, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Az-Zawiyah, reported that the rebels had taken control of a bridge along which the highway from Tripoli to Tunisia runs, but that central areas of the city remained contested, with Gaddafi forces employing snipers and mortar fire.

Al Jazeera's Khodr said opposition fighters claim "they have managed to take 70 per cent of the town, despite the threat of snipers still in the area".

Bashir Ahmed Ali, the rebels' battalion commander in Az-Zawiyah, said that his forces had suffered "many casualties" due to sniper fire. He also told the AFP news agency that a tank and four fighters had been lost in a "friendly fire" air strike during the operation to take Az-Zawiyah.

The gains are possible "because the Gaddafi forces' defences were weak and that fighters received help from inside the city. As they expected, residents took up arms and fought alongside them when they arrived," Khodr reported.

"The town had previously risen up against Gaddafi, but government forces quelled that uprising.

"Today's victory would be the opposition's most significant in months because they were just 50 km from Tripoli, a mere half an hour's drive, if they could hold the territory and stave off a Gaddafi counter offensive," our correspondent said.

Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim rejected the claims: "Az-Zawiyah is completely under our control. A very small group of rebels tried to enter from the south of Az-Zawiyah but they were stopped easily by our armed forces."

Early in the day, rebel fighters claimed victory in Gharyan after Gaddafi's soldiers withdrew. Government forces returned several hours later, however, and clashes continued.

The rebels also claimed to have taken control of the western town of Surman.

Rebel forces launched ground attacks after NATO planes hit targets in these areas.

Fighting on eastern frontline

Click here for more of Al Jazeera's special coverage

Rebels also said they gained ground on Saturday in the government-held oil town of Brega.

"We have taken control of residential area number 2, after number 3 yesterday," out of four zones, a military spokesman, Mohammed Zawiwa, told AFP. "The pipe factory has fallen into our hands today."

The rebels' claims of taking over Brega were also denied by government officials.

Opposition forces hope that by taking complete control of the city, its oil terminal and sea port will allow them to resume oil exports.

Capture of Tawurgha

On the western front, opposition commanders said they had control of the town of Tawurgha as they pushed to cut supply routes to forces loyal to Gaddafi.

In a symbolic show of victory, fighters tore down green flags that had been hoisted atop buildings by Gaddafi supporters who had occupied the area.

"Gaddafi is finished!" shouted a jubilant 31-year-old fighter

The rebels encountered heavy fighting and sizable pockets of resistance among a maze of buildings and date palms.

Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons, reporting from Tawurgha, said it was a heavily co-ordinated operation with NATO, with six tanks involved.

"Fighting is going on in the old quarter of the town where Gaddafi forces are still putting up some resistance," he said.

"Opposition fighters have been searching houses one after the other with green flags.

"Many, many Gaddafi forces have been arrested in areas surrounding the town to try to secure the area to stop Grad missiles from being fired on Misrata from here.

"Their other objective is to try to cut the supply line to Gaddafi stronghold of Sirte."

The citizens of Misrata have blamed forces in Tawurgha for many of the attacks on their hometown.

The embattled Libyan leader has clung to power despite five months of NATO air strikes, suffocating economic sanctions and an expanding war with opposition forces.

If genuine, Tuesday's footage would be the first visual proof that Khamis is still alive [Reuters]

Libyan state television has shown what it said was footage of Muammar Gaddafi's son Khamis visiting people wounded in an air attack east of Tripoli.

Rebels had said last week that Khamis had been killed. The government had denied rebel claims that Khamis, commander of one of Gaddafi's most loyal and best-equipped units, had been killed by a NATO air strike near Zlitan.

Libyan TV said the footage was recorded on Tuesday. If genuine, it would be the first visual proof that Khamis was still alive.

Wearing a military uniform and an orange beret and bearing a striking resemblance to Khamis, a man was heard chatting to people the network said were wounded earlier on Tuesday in a NATO air strike on farmhouses near Zlitan.

The government said 85 civilians were killed in the attack. NATO said it hit a legitimate military target and was investigating the incident.

"They bombed the house. You mean you did not expect to be bombed," Khamis could be heard asking a woman lying in a hospital bed.

Earlier, state television showed the charred bodies of at least three children who were allegedly killed by a NATO strike on Monday night in the village of Majar, about 150km east of the capital, Tripoli.

Majar is near Zlitan, where NATO forces have been mounting attacks on troops loyal to Gaddafi.

It also showed wounded women and children being treated in a hospital.

The Libyan government announced three days of mourning for the victims, according to state television.

Mussa Ibrahim, the Libyan government spokesman, said: "After the first three bombs dropped at around 21:00 GMT on Monday, many residents of the area ran to the bombed houses to try to save their loved ones."

"Three more bombs struck. Thirty-three children, 32 women and 20 men from 12 families were killed in the massacre," Mussa told reporters on an organised visit.

NATO said overnight air strikes near Zlitan in western Libya were "legitimate" and that it had no evidence that the bombs killed 85 villagers.

"We do not have evidence of civilian casualties at this stage," Colonel Roland Lavoie, the NATO spokesman for the alliance's Libya campaign, said at a video conference held at its Naples headquarters.

EU Sanctions

The European Union on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on Gaddafi's regime - targeting two "economic entities" linked to human rights abuse, said EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.

An asset freeze and visa ban were extended to "two further entities closely linked to the perpetrators of the serious human rights abuses in Libya, given the gravity of the situation," Ashton explained.

While neither of the two entities have been revealed, a French foreign ministry spokeswoman said earlier that the restrictions would target Al Sharara, which operates in the oil sector, as well as an administrative organisation linked to Gaddafi.

To date, the EU has frozen the funds and financial resources of six port authorities, 49 entities and 39 people. None of the 39, which include Gaddafi and some of his family members, are allowed to enter the EU.  

Criticism rejected

NATO has rejected growing international criticism of its air strike on Libyan television last month, saying it had no evidence the attack caused any casualties.

Spokeswoman Carmen Romero said the alliance had not deliberately targeted journalists. She said the alliance "targeted equipment that had been used to incite attacks against civilians".

Libyan officials said the strike on the eve of Ramadan, on the state television's satellite transmitters killed three journalists and injured 15 others.

International journalists' groups condemned the strikes, saying they violated a UN resolution banning attacks on the media.

On Monday, the UN cultural and educational body also denounced the strike, saying it violated the Geneva Conventions.

Meanwhile, NATO warplanes bombed a Libyan warship docked in Tripoli harbour after reportedly observing that weapons were being taken from it.

NATO said it destroyed several Libyan naval vessels in air strikes in May. Warships hit at that time included a Koni-class frigate and a Combattante class fast-attack ship.

NTC reshuffled

Meanwhile, in the opposition capital of Benghazi in eastern Libya, the National Transitional Council (NTC) sought to display a show of unity a day after dissolving its executive board and asking Mahmoud Jibril, its chairman, to elect a new one.

NTC officials said the head of the council, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, dismissed several top ministers - including those responsible for finance, defence and information - while calling for root and branch reform.

Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from the opposition stronghold of Benghazi, said on Tuersday the reshuffling came not only as a suprise but as a direct result of the murder of Abdel Fattah Younes, the commander of the opposition forces, more than a week ago.

Our correspondent said this was a crucial time for the NTC.

"We are starting to see cracks both politically and militarily and the sacking of the executive committee is a direct consequence of Abdel Fattah Younes' death.

"There has been considerable pressure brought to bear by Younes’ tribe - with 4,000 well armed fighters the Obeidis are one of the largest in the east - and they wanted resignations.

"The 16- man executive committees have been pushed to one side and they will not return in any shape or form.

"There are cracks developing but the NTC is taking steps to show that it is in control and in command and is taking the necessary measures to show they have the strength and the unity to continue the fight against Muammar Gaddafi," Birtley said.

In an interview with Al Jazeera on Monday, Abdul Jalil said: "Administrative mistakes have been noted in the NTC bureau performance in recent period, prompting the NTC to take the decision to dissolve the bureau.

"A newly formed bureau would be entrusted with reviewing  the 'conspiracy' that involved the assassination of General Younes. The members of the executive bureau did not dispose with the assassination issue in a proper manner," he said.

Asked whether they were accusing anyone, Abdul Jalil said, "No member of the opposition fighters would behave that way with the commander of the national army and his colleagues, unless there is a conspiracy."