Gleeful rebels ransacked Gaddafi’s Bab al-Aziziya bastion, seizing weapons and smashing symbols of a government whose demise will transform Libya and send a warning to other Arab autocrats facing popular uprisings.
Gaddafi said his withdrawal from his headquarters in the heart of the capital was a tactical move after it had been hit by 64 NATO air strikes and he vowed “martyrdom” or victory in his fight against the alliance.
Urging Libyans to cleanse the streets of traitors, he said he had secretly toured Tripoli.
“I have been out a bit in Tripoli discreetly, without being seen by people, and … I did not feel that Tripoli was in danger,” Gaddafi said.
He was speaking to pro-Gaddafi media outlets and his whereabouts after leaving the compound remain a mystery, although he appeared to have been in Tripoli, at least until recently.
As night fell on Tuesday after a day in which rebels overran Tripoli, meeting little resistance with few casualties, heavy fighting was reported in a southern desert city, Sabha, that rebels forecast would be Gaddafi loyalists’ last redoubt.
Forces loyal to Gaddafi were shelling the towns of Zuara and Ajelat, west of Tripoli, Al-Arabiya television reported.