British soldiers in Libya are going home

British soldiers involved in the NATO operation in Libya are headed home, the U.K. defence ministry said, following a decision to end the mission next week.

After seven months of an aerial bombing campaign that helped depose longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi, NATO said Friday it is ending its mission in Libya on Monday.

"Our armed forces can be immensely proud that their hard work has assured the liberty of the Libyan people. This is a job well done and we will be sending our crews home from tonight," U.K. Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said Friday. "I have given my personal thanks today to some of the aircrew and support personnel at Gioia del Colle."

Most British military assets have been based at the Gioia del Colle airfield in Italy during the campaign.

British air assets, including tankers and surveillance aircraft, will return home in the coming days, he said in a statement.

At the peak of the mission, Britain had 2,300 personnel, 32 aircraft and four ships, the defence ministry said.

Some operations will continue until Monday, but on a smaller basis that will require less aircraft.

NATO's announcement comes after the United Nations Security Council rescinded its March mandate for military intervention to protect civilians targeted during anti-regime protests.

Meanwhile, Gadhafi's relatives said NATO's actions led to the strongman's death, and plan to file a war crimes complaint with the International Criminal Court, a lawyer representing the family said.

"All of the events that have taken place since February 2011 and the murder of Gadhafi, all of this means we are totally in our right to call upon the International Criminal Court," said Marcel Ceccaldi, the lawyer.

Questions have been raised about how Gadhafi was killed.

Amateur videos showed him alive when captured by the opposition. He died from a shot in the head, officials said, but the circumstances surrounding the shot remain unclear.

Hundreds of wounded Libyans will treated in Germany

More than 300 wounded Libyans will arrive in Germany to be treated in hospitals within the next 10 days in an operation approved by Libya's interim government, the German Foreign Ministry said Friday.

"Our expectation of the amount of the wounded Libyans treated in German hospitals changes each hour," said Thomas Holz of the German health service Almeda. According to Almeda's marketing chief Michael Blasius, the company expects the number of Libyan patients to rise.

Already, 111 Libyans who arrived in 20 planes are receiving treatment in German civilian hospitals. Four further planes were expected to land in German territory Friday.
"Some of those patients will be transferred to countries like France, Great Britain, Turkey and the U.S.," Blasius told CNN on Friday.

The United States plans to provide treatment for at least 28 wounded Libyan fighters. U.S. officials said Thursday that at least 24 would be taken to a hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, because their wounds cannot be treated in Libya. An additional four will go to U.S. medical facilities in Germany, according to Major Janelle Jeffrey of the U.S. Africa Command, based in Stuttgart, Germany.

Libya's National Transitional Council requested the U.S. medical treatment, which is being offered as a humanitarian gesture and support for Libya's democratic aspirations, U.S. officials said.

Almeda said it received the health service request by Libya's new Finance Ministry on October 14. Four days later, the first military plane arrived in Germany with dozens of wounded Libyans.

That was a day after German Economy Minister Philipp Roesler announced Germany would offer medical help to the NTC.

Three so-called "scouting teams" are currently screening Libyan and Tunisian hospitals, searching for heavily injured Libyans who might benefit from treatment abroad.

Almeda told CNN there would be two further scouting teams in Tunisia and Libya at the beginning of next week.

Many wounded Libyans had already received treatment in Tunisia, according to Blasius.

NATO mission in Libya was ended

The United Nations Security Council voted unanimously Thursday to end military operations in Libya.

The council adopted a resolution that rescinded its March mandate for military intervention in Libya, effectively canceling the NATO mission there as of Monday.
Libya's interim leaders declared their nation liberated last Sunday after the capture and death of deposed dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, commended the NATO mission as putting Libya on a path to freedom but tempered her remarks with a word of caution.

"We're very concerned that, as we move forward, that the authorities make maximum effort to swiftly form an inclusive government that incorporates all aspects of Libyan society, and in which the rights of all Libyan people are fully and thoroughly respected, regardless of their gender, their religion, their region of origin," Rice said.

"But for the United States, and, I think, for the United Nations Security Council, this closes what I think history will judge to be a proud chapter in the Security Council's history."

The French ambassador called it a completion of a mission started by a decision to prevent Gadhafi from slaughtering his own people.

"During the seven months that have followed, we have seen dramatic events where the Libyan people have succeeded to free themselves with the support of NATO," said Gerard Araud.

Meanwhile, Gadhafi's family will file a war crimes complaint against NATO with the International Criminal Court, a lawyer representing the family said Thursday.

Members of the family believe NATO's actions led to Gadhafi's death last week, said Marcel Ceccaldi.

"All of the events that have taken place since February 2011 and the murder of Gadhafi, all of this means we are totally in our right to call upon the International Criminal Court," Ceccaldi said.

The ICC had previously issued a warrant for Gadhafi's arrest, accusing him of crimes against humanity. It still has warrants out for the arrest of Gadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, and his brother-in-law and intelligence chief, Abdullah al-Sanussi.

Questions have been raised about exactly how Gadhafi was killed.

Amateur videos showed him alive when captured by the opposition. He died from a shot in the head, officials said, but the circumstances surrounding the shot remain unclear.

Ceccaldi said the Gadhafi family's complaint will be filed in the coming days.

"Now we will wait and see if the ICC is a judicial system which is independent and impartial," he added.

NATO's Libya campaign began in March, after the Security Council adopted Resolution 1973, which imposed a no-fly zone in the country's airspace and authorized member states "to take all necessary measures to protect civilians under threat of attack in the country ... while excluding a foreign occupation force of any form on any part of Libyan territory."

There were no opposing votes on the 15-member council, but China, Russia, Germany, India and Brazil abstained. Germany said it was concerned about a protracted military conflict.
The resolution became the basis for NATO's airstrikes in the North African nation.

In ending the mandate Thursday, the Security Council expressed concern at the proliferation of arms in Libya and said it intends to address that issue further. The resolution also expressed "grave concern about continuing reports of reprisals, arbitrary detentions, wrongful imprisonment and extrajudicial executions."

Last week, U.S. Admiral James Stavridis, commander of NATO's military forces, recommended that NATO wrap up its mission in Libya by October 31. NATO ministers gave preliminary approval to that plan.

But U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said this week that Libya's National Transitional Council wanted NATO to stick around until it could establish governance.

However, Libyan Deputy Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi told the 15-member council Wednesday that the Libyan people were looking forward to ending the NATO mission.

While Libyans were grateful for the international community's support, he said, such measures felt like an infringement of Libya's sovereignty.

The Libyan leader's embrace of Sharia raises eyebrows

Officials with Libya's interim government are reassuring the West that their religious views are moderate, after the country's interim leader called for the country's new laws to be based on Sharia, or Islamic law.

At a rally on Sunday in Benghazi, National Transitional Council leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil said, "As a Muslim country, we have adopted the Islamic Sharia as the main source of law. Accordingly, any law that contradicts Islamic principles with the Islamic Sharia is ineffective legally."

Jalil also suggested in his speech that he would like to see new Islamic rules implemented to limit how banks charge interest, and put an end to some of the Gadhafi-era restrictions on polygamy.

"The law of marriage and divorce, which deals with polygamy -- this law is against Islamic Sharia, and is now halted," he said.

That kind of talk could raise concerns among the fledgling government's Western backers.

In many Muslim countries, Sharia law forms the basis for the constitution, but is interpreted moderately. But in some, such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, it is seen as grounds for cutting off the hand of a convicted thief, or even stoning a woman to death for adultery.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, visiting Tripoli just last week, offered a warning when she was asked whether there should be a role for Islamists in the new Libya.

"Groups and individuals who really believe in democracy should be welcome into that process," she said. "But groups that want to undermine democracy or subvert it are going to have to be dealt with -- by the Libyans themselves."

But Libya's ambassador to the United States, Ali Suleiman Aujali, says the West should not be alarmed. "Sharia law, Islamic law, it is not against democracy, it is not against equality, is not against the relations with the other countries based on interests and respect and cooperation."

He says that women now enjoy new rights since the end of Moammar Gadhafi's regime. "There is no restriction against Libyan women to do anything now in Libya," he says.

And Jalil on Monday quickly reassured the international community that Libyans are moderate Muslims.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said, "We were encouraged to see President Jalil make a clarification." But she reiterated a warning to Libya and other Islamic countries in transition, saying that "the number one thing is that universal human rights, rights for women, rights for minorities, right to due process, right to transparency be fully respected."

Jalil's embrace of Islam's role in Libya comes just as voters in neighboring Tunisia handed a victory to the moderate Islamist party Ennahda.

"Islam is clearly going to play a much stronger role across the region," says Robin Wright, a Mideast expert at the U.S. Institute of Peace. "Whether it's Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and beyond -- as countries redefine their political systems, they are going to want to use the values of their faith to help define what they want next. But that doesn't mean necessarily they're going to be rigid Islamist regimes."

Still, she says, Libyan women are very concerned about equal rights in the post-Gadhafi era.

"The idea of allowing polygamy again -- or allowing the husband to marry again without asking permission of the first wife -- is something that is going to really resonate throughout Libya," she said.

Bodies of 53 apparent Gadhafi loyalists found in hotel

The bodies of 53 people, believed to be supporters of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, have been found in a hotel that was under the control of anti-Gadhafi fighters, Human Rights Watch said Monday.

The rights group said it found the bodies clustered together at Hotel Mahari in Sirte on Sunday. About 20 residents were putting the bodies in body bags to prepare them for burial when Human Rights Watch found them.

"We found 53 decomposing bodies, apparently (Gadhafi) supporters, at an abandoned hotel in Sirte, and some had their hands bound behind their backs when they were shot," said Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director of Human Rights Watch.

"This requires the immediate attention of the Libyan authorities to investigate what happened and hold accountable those responsible."
Residents told Human Rights Watch investigators they found the bodies last week after the fighting in Sirte stopped and they returned home.

They identified some of the deceased as Sirte residents and Gadhafi supporters.

Officials with the National Transitional Council, Libya's new leadership, were not immediately available for comment.

A NATO official noted that Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has repeatedly applauded the Libyan council for saying it is committed to human rights, the rule of law and reconciliation.

"What's important for us is to see that they're doing their utmost to get this message out about restraint and pulling the country together," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official is not authorized to speak by name on the record. NATO has "no way of verifying" the Human Rights Watch report and will not comment on it specifically, the official said.

The human rights group's report comes amid growing concerns about extrajudicial killings under Libya's new leadership.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told CNN Sunday that the United States supports calls by the United Nations and by Libya's National Transitional Council for an independent investigation into the death of Gadhafi. He was killed last week by a gunshot wound to the head.

Mahmoud Jibril, executive chairman of the National Transitional Council's executive board, has said Gadhafi's right arm was wounded when a gunbattle erupted between the fighters and Gadhafi loyalists as his captors attempted to load him into a vehicle.

More shooting erupted as the vehicle drove away, and Gadhafi was shot in the head, dying moments before arriving at a hospital in Misrata, Jibril said, citing the city's coroner.

Human Rights Watch, in its statement Monday, complained of the "still unexplained deaths" of Gadhafi and his son Mutassim while in the custody of fighters.

"At the site where Moammar Gadhafi was captured, Human Rights Watch found the remains of at least 95 people who had apparently died that day. The vast majority had apparently died in the fighting and NATO strikes prior to Gadhafi's capture, but between six and ten of the dead appear to have been executed at the site with gunshot wounds to the head and body," the group said.

A senior NATO official said Gadhafi's death came after he survived a NATO airstrike on a convoy in the Sirte area.

Mustafa Abdul Jalil, chairman of the NTC, said Monday in Benghazi that the council has established a committee to deal with Gadhafi's body. "The procedure will follow a fatwa made by the Islamic fatwa society," he said.

Lt. Gen. Charles Bouchard, commander of the NATO military operation, said at a news conference Monday, "We saw a convoy, and in fact we had no idea that Gadhafi was on board." It was a surprise that Gadhafi was in the area, Bouchard said. The convoy was carrying weaponry, and seemed to present "a clear threat to the population," he said.

Human Rights Watch, in its statement Monday, also reported other instances of bodies found recently in Sirte.

At a separate site in the city, "Human Rights Watch saw the badly decomposed bodies of 10 people who had apparently also been executed," the group said. "The bodies had been dumped in a water reservoir in District 2 of the city. The identity of the victims was unknown, and it was not possible to establish whether Gadhafi forces or anti-Gadhafi fighters were responsible."

Sirte, Gadhafi's hometown, was one of the last cities to fall before the National Transitional Council declared the country liberated Sunday following his 42-year rule.

However, anti-Gadhafi fighters from Misrata had controlled the area of Sirte where the hotel is located since early October, Human Rights Watch said, citing witnesses.

On the entrance and walls of the hotel, the group said, it saw the names of several brigades from Misrata.

Based on the condition of the bodies, the group's investigators determined the 53 had been killed between October 14 and 19.

"The evidence suggests that some of the victims were shot while being held as prisoners, when that part of Sirte was controlled by anti-Gadhafi brigades who appear to act outside the control of the National Transitional Council," Bouckaert said.

"If the NTC fails to investigate this crime it will signal that those who fought against Gadhafi can do anything without fear of prosecution."

In addition, medical officials in Sirte told the group that pro-Gadhafi forces had carried out killings in the city and that they had found 23 bound bodies between October 15 and 20.

how did Gadhafi end up dead, If he was captured alive?

The death of longtime Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi helped solidify the National Transitional Council's power in Libya, but there is still a large amount of uncertainty about the circumstances surrounding how he was killed, what happened during the last battle in Sirte and what it all means for the future of Libya.

When Gadhafi's death was first reported, it came with a large amount of uncertainty.

Multiple scenarios emerged as to how the last minutes of his life played out, thanks to cell phone pictures and videos, many later uploaded to YouTube. Then, there were statements from officials from NATO, from within Libya and from the National Transitional Council about what happened.

And as the country prepares to move on, the international community searches for answers as to exactly what happened in the minutes after Gadhafi was captured.

What exactly do we know about how Gadhafi was captured?

We know that the events leading to Gadhafi's death began about 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Libya, according to a NATO official, when a convoy of loyalists made a break from a part of Sirte and headed west, trying to get out of the city.

Gadhafi had long been suspected of being holed up in his hometown, which was one of the only remaining regime strongholds.

U.S. drones and French fighter jets struck the convoy, splitting it up and forcing the loyalists to scurry away on foot.  A NATO official said Gadhafi was in that convoy, though he was not hit.

Gadhafi fled with a handful of his men. The revolutionaries found him hiding in a drainage pipe.

Mahmoud Jibril, Executive Chairman of Libya's National Transitional Council, said that after Gadhafi was found, a gunbattle erupted between transitional council fighters and Gadhafi's supporters. His captors attempted to load him into a vehicle, leaving Gadhafi with a wound to his right arm.

Video out of Sirte showed what appeared to be a heavily wounded and bloodied Gadhafi being held up by NTC fighters as they took him toward a vehicle.

What happened after that is more murky.

What do we know about how Gadhafi died?

When Gadhafi was captured, he was, by all accounts, alive.

Several videos from the scene showed Gadhafi looking wounded and confused but alive and even walking as he was pulled toward a vehicle.

Jibril said Gadhafi was shot in the arm as he was dragged into a vehicle headed to Misrata, a two-and-a-half-hour trip.

But the autopsy report from the chief pathologist said Gadhafi died of a gunshot wound to the head.

So how did Gadhafi go from being captured to being shot in the head?

It depends on whom you ask, and there are many details that simply are not confirmed.

Leaders of Libya's interim government have said Gadhafi was killed in that crossfire after fighters captured him in Sirte.

But videos and pictures coming out of Libya lead to more questions about what shot may have killed the leader.

Some members of the international community had hoped there would be some more clarity from the autopsy report.  But the doctor who conducted the examination would not disclose whether findings revealed that he suffered the wound in crossfire or at close range, a key question that has prompted the United Nations and international human rights groups to call for an investigation into the final moments of Gadhafi's life.

Jibril, the transitional prime minister, said that as the vehicle carrying the wounded Gadhafi drove away, more shooting erupted, and that was when Gadhafi was shot in the head.

Mohammed Sayeh, a senior member of the council, said that in the hail of gunfire, Gadhafi was shot in the feet and then in his head.

"I cannot tell you whether it was from far or near, but it was unintentional," he said. "No one decided to kill him or slaughter him. It would have been much better for us Libyans and the whole universe to capture him and take him to a court."

But in a new video from Reuters, a man standing next to an ambulance claims he killed the ousted leader, and another man claims he saw it happen. The group surrounding him applauds and hugs the self-described gunman.

There were no more specifics given about the fatal shot.

Gadhafi's Photo after Death

Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed October 20 in his home town of Sirte, as forces from the National Transitional Council overran and liberated the city.
Three of Gadhafi's children have fled the country and at least three of his sons are thought to be dead.
Here is a look at the Gadhafi family -- a large, at times quarrelsome, clan that helped the embattled strongman hold onto power for more than four decades.

Celebrations erupt in Libya After Gadhafi's death

Even before confirmation of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's death came from the nation's interim government Thursday, Libyans erupted in jubilation after early reports said he had been captured or killed.
A "cacophony of celebration" could be heard in Tripoli as ships and cars blasted their horns and shots were fired into the air, said CNN's Dan Rivers.


"It is very, very loud -- a lot of excitement," Rivers said.
"It's a great moment," said Mahmoud Shammam, information minister for Libya's National Transitional Council. "I've been waiting for this moment for decades, and I'm thanking God that I'm alive to see this moment."
The sound of cheering could be heard, along with a call to prayer, as people embraced and jumped up and down joyfully and crowds ran through the streets alongside cars.


While reports of Gadhafi's fate were unconfirmed earlier Thursday, "what isn't speculation is what's going on down here," Rivers said.
Outside a hotel, staff including chefs wearing their white hats gathered, dancing and waving Libyan flags.
"They're breathing a huge sigh of relief here," Rivers said. Many Libyans were concerned that a free Gadhafi might play a role in destabilizing Libya in the future, he said.
In Sirte -- Gadhafi's hometown -- video showed people gathering in celebration, some riding on the tops of cars waving Libyan flags and shooting guns in the air as horns honked.


One man, dressed in fatigues and carrying a weapon, ran up and kissed a television camera. Others chanted, danced and waved their hands in the air, some flashing the "peace" sign.
Libyan television networks displayed a cell phone photo released by Agence France-Presse showing a bloodied man identified as Gadhafi.
On Wednesday, Libyan fighters said they had entered the last holdout of Gadhafi loyalists in Sirte. The NTC said it would officially declare Libya liberated when Sirte fell.


Many had suspected Gadhafi was hiding in Sirte after revolutionary forces took Tripoli in August. He was wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, for alleged crimes against humanity and had not been seen in public in months.
Social media sites such as Twitter showed users expressing support for the Libyans and noting that Gadhafi's death would be another victory in a year that has seen the ouster of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and former Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and the death of Osama bin Laden. Those from countries that participated in the so-called Arab Spring issued messages of support for Libyans.

Latest News in Libya

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has been killed. Here are the latest developments:
-- U.S. Defense Department costs for operations in Libya stand at about $1.1 billion as of September 30, according to Pentagon spokesman George Little. That includes daily military operations, munitions, the drawdown of supplies and humanitarian assistance.
-- Opposition activists from Syria and Yemen said dictators should pay heed to the fate of Gadhafi.
-- U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, "This day marks an historic transition for Libya," after hearing of Moammar Gadhafi's death.
-- U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry said Gadhafi's death marks the end of his reign of terror and the promise of a new Libya.
Earlier developments:


On the ground:

-- Moammar Gadhafi's son Mutassim has been killed, according to Anees al-Sharif, spokesman for AbdelHakim Belhajj of the Tripoli military council.
-- Al-Sharif also said Gadhafi's chief of intelligence, Abdullah al-Senussi, has been killed.
-- Libyans erupted in jubilation with the first reports that Gadhafi may have been killed. A "cacophony of celebration" could be heard in Tripoli as ships and cars blasted their horns and shots were fired into the air.
-- Revolutionary fighters attacked the house where Gadhafi was hiding, National Transitional Council Information Minister Mahmoud Shammam told CNN. Gadhafi was shot while trying to flee, he said.
-- A cell phone photograph distributed by the news agency Agence France-Presse appeared to show the arrest of a bloodied Gadhafi. CNN could not independently verify the authenticity of the image.
-- A video surfaced that apparently shows Gadhafi's body.


International:

-- NATO is going to convene soon for a meeting to discuss ending its operation in Libya, a source told CNN's Barbara Starr on Thursday.
-- NATO said its aircraft struck two pro-Gadhafi military vehicles in the vicinity of Sirte on Thursday. "These armed vehicles were conducting military operations and presented a clear threat to civilians," Col. Roland Lavoie said.

Gadhafi was killed

Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed October 20 in his home town of Sirte, as forces from the National Transitional Council overran and liberated the city.
Three of Gadhafi's children have fled the country and at least three of his sons are thought to be dead.
Here is a look at the Gadhafi family -- a large, at times quarrelsome, clan that helped the embattled strongman hold onto power for more than four decades.


MOAMMAR GADHAFI
Became leader of Libya in 1969. Prior to his death on October 20, Gadhafi was last reported seen June 12, two weeks before the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest.
An audio message purporting to be from him aired August 24, days after rebels overran the capital Tripoli.
Gadhafi's son Saif al-Islam told Syria's Rai TV August 31 that his father was "fine. We are fighting and we are drinking tea and drinking coffee and sitting with our families and fighting."
The Algerian government announced earlier that week that Moammar Gadhafi's wife, Safia, and three of his grown children -- daughter Aisha and two of his sons, Hannibal and Mohamed -- had arrived in the neighboring North African country.


But on September 1, Algeria's foreign minister denied that the leader had come with them.
"Of course not," Mourad Medelci told French radio network Europe 1 when asked whether Gadhafi was in Algeria.
"The hypothesis that Mr. Gadhafi could come knocking on our door was never considered."
Gadhafi had said repeatedly he had no intention of ever leaving Libya.


SAIF AL-ISLAM

The most noted power player is Saif al-Islam. Once seen as a possible successor to his father and an advocate of reform, he became a vocal defender of his father's brutal regime. Saif is wanted by the International Criminal Court, which issued an arrest warrant for him in June on charges of crimes against humanity. Although rebels claimed his capture when they rolled into Tripoli, Saif al-Islam later showed up at the Rixos Hotel in a convoy of armored Land Cruisers.
Since then, his whereabouts have been unknown, but at the end of August he vowed "Victory or martyrdom!" in a call to Syria's Rai TV.
Saif al-Islam, saying he was speaking from a suburb of Tripoli, urged Libyans to rise up against the rebels: "Wherever you see the enemy, attack them. They are weak, they have suffered lots of losses and they are now licking their wounds."


He is the second-oldest son, the oldest of Gadhafi's second wife Safia. He was educated at the London School of Economics. He speaks fluent English, is a fastidious dresser and he paints. An exhibition of his work was displayed in Moscow.


SAADI

Saadi offered to negotiate an end to the war with the rebels after his father's troops lost control of Tripoli, but later seemed to change his mind. In intermittent contact with CNN's Nic Robertson earlier, he originally appeared willing to promise his father and older brother would stay out of the way of a peace deal. "If (the rebels) agree to cooperate to save the country together (without my father and Saif) then it will be easy and fast. I promise!" Saadi Gadhafi said in an e-mail to Robertson. He said the opposition cannot "build a new country without having us in the table."
But he later said he would not surrender to the rebels. They, in turn, offered him safe passage to Tripoli and proper treatment, but said he would be put on trial rather than given a chance to negotiate.
A businessman, Saadi ran the Libyan Football Federation before the unrest began. He played soccer for Perugia in Italy for one season. Leaked U.S. diplomatic cables posted on WikiLeaks claim that he had "scuffles" with police in Europe.


AISHA
Moammar Gadhafi's only daughter, a former U.N. goodwill ambassador who has kept a low profile during Libya's violent uprising, crossed into Algeria with her mother and brothers Hannibal and Mohamed August 29. She gave birth to a daughter at the border, sources close to her family told CNN.
Known in the Arab media as the "Claudia Schiffer" of the region, the striking blonde beauty was once considered her embattled father's best asset. But, unlike her brothers, Aisha Gadhafi has largely kept out of the public eye as rebels continue to quash the last pockets of resistance from her father's 42-year-old regime.

Many observers expected her to show more support for her father's increasingly beleaguered regime, especially when a NATO airstrike in April killed her brother, Saif al-Arab Gadhafi, and her own daughter -- one of several Gadhafi grandchildren who died in the attack.
In February, as Moammar Gadhafi called on the military to crack down on anti-government protesters early in the Libyan conflict, the United Nations terminated his daughter's stint as a goodwill ambassador in Libya for the U.N. Development Program.


A lawyer by profession, she is also known to toe a very tough political line. She has been a longtime, loud supporter of anti-government groups -- except at home -- including the IRA and the insurgents in Iraq. She was famously part of Saddam Hussein's defense team when he was tried. He ultimately was convicted and hanged. When London's Telegraph newspaper asked her how she felt about Iraqis who say he slaughtered thousands of their countrymen, she replied, "You are bound to meet people who may be against your policies."


HANNIBAL
Hannibal fled into Algeria with his mother, sister Aisha and brother Mohamed August 29. Rebels who picked through Hannibal Gadhafi's seaside villa a day earlier introduced CNN's Dan Rivers to his family's badly burned former nanny, who said she had been doused with boiling water by Hannibal Gadhafi's wife Aline when she refused to beat one of their crying toddlers. The nanny, Shweyga Mullah, is covered with scars from the abuse, which was corroborated by another member of the household staff.

Hannibal has reportedly paid millions of dollars for private parties featuring big-name entertainers including Beyonce, Mariah Carey and Usher. Several of the artists now say they have given the money back.
It's not just Hannibal's parties that make news. He has been implicated in a string of violent incidents in Europe. He was accused of beating his staff, although the charges were later dropped. He was accused of beating his wife, model Aline Skaf, in a London hotel. She later said her broken nose was the result of an accident.
In a spectacular episode, Hannibal was stopped after driving his Ferrari 90 mph the wrong way on the Champs-Elysees in Paris. He invoked diplomatic immunity.


MOHAMED
Mohamed is the son of Moammar Gadhafi and his first wife, Fatiha. Mohamed was one of three Gadhafi sons who had been reported captured as the rebels overran Tripoli last week, but the rebels said he had escaped the following day. He was among the family who crossed into Algeria at the end of August.
Before the unrest, he was the head of Libya's Olympic committee and chairman of the company that operated cell phone and satellite services in Libya.


MUTASSIM
Mutassim was killed in Sirte October 20, the same day his father was killed, according to Anees al-Sharif, spokesman for AbdelHakim Belhajj of the Tripoli military council.
He once allegedly helped plot a coup against his father and had to flee the country when it failed. He was eventually forgiven and became his father's national security adviser. Mutassim was involved in official talks with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2009 about improving U.S.-Libyan relations.


KHAMIS

Khamis was said to command a special forces unit known as the 32nd brigade, or the Khamis brigade, which protected the Gadhafi family. His troops were involved in much of the heavy fighting throughout Libya.
Senior rebel commander Mahdi al-Harati told CNN Khamis was killed August 28 in a battle with rebel forces between the villages of Tarunah and Bani Walid -- near Misrata -- in northwest Libya. Khamis died from his wounds at a hospital, and was buried in the area by rebel forces, al-Harati said. CNN has not independently confirmed his death.


SAIF AL-ARAB
Saif al-Arab was killed in an April 30 NATO airstrike. Moammar Gadhafi and his wife were at their son's house when it was targeted. Very little is known about him.


MILAD
Milad is a nephew whom Moammar Gadhafi adopted. He is said to have saved Gadhafi's life in the U.S. bombing of his compound in 1986. Milad's whereabouts are unknown.

Hillary Clinton makes unannounced visit to Libya

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Tripoli on Tuesday, making her the first Cabinet-level American official to go to Libya since the ouster of longtime strongman Moammar Gadhafi.

She landed under tight security in a country where forces loyal to the transitional government are still battling Gadhafi loyalists. She met with officials of the National Transitional Council and visited those wounded in the fighting.

NTC fighters toppled Gadhafi's nearly 42-year-old government in August after six months of battles. Gadhafi, his son Saif al-Islam Gadhafi and his brother-in-law and intelligence chief, Abdullah al-Sanussi, are wanted on war crimes charges and remain fugitives.

Regarding Moammar Gadhafi, Clinton told reporters: "We hope he will be captured or killed soon."

As Clinton boarded the military plane to leave for Malta on Tuesday evening, she saw several Libyan fighters, who gave her a warm welcome. After a short meet-and-greet at the airport with Malta Embassy employees, Clinton was headed for Oman.

At a news conference Tuesday with Clinton, interim Libyan Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril expressed appreciation for political, humanitarian and moral support from the United States. He said he does not plan to be part of Libya's new government.

Asked if she was concerned about civil war continuing in Libya, Clinton said she is encouraged that steps are being taken to address reconciliation and get the Libyan army and police under one command, but noted that action cannot be taken with fighting still under way.

On whether the United States will cooperate with Islamists, Clinton said democracy must reflect the aspirations of the Libyan people. America will support a democratic process that respects the rule of law, she said, and includes renouncing violence and giving up arms.

Women in Libya should have equal rights, she said, as they sacrificed in the revolution and deserve to be part of the new Libya.

Clinton then attended a town hall meeting, telling residents: "Don't spend your time settling scores of the past. Keep an eye on the future. ... You can't drive forward when looking in the rearview mirror."

She also visited a hospital and met wounded fighters, many of whom need surgeries to save their limbs. The operations are being held up by red tape and processing necessary to get out of the country for transport. She said she will try to help them.

"There are three main purposes to the secretary's visit," a senior State Department official said in a briefing to reporters Monday before Clinton's arrival.

"First is simply to offer on behalf for the United States, on behalf of the American people and government, our congratulations, our best wishes to the Libyan people for what, through great hardship, sacrifice and courage, they have achieved in opening the door to a more promising future for Libya after 42 years of the Gadhafi dictatorship."

The official said Clinton and her counterpart were to announce the restarting of the Fulbright Program, an educational exchange, and English Access, an English-language program. They were to talk about a new program with Oberlin College in Ohio and archaeologists in Libya to map, document and do risk assessments of archaeological sites in eastern Libya.

"We also want to be talking to the Libyans about how to integrate Libya fully into the 21st-century world economy in transparent ways where Libya's oil wealth is used for the benefit of all of Libya's citizens," the official said.

In discussing economic diversification, the official mentioned "privatizing some of the state monopolies, because much of the economy is state-owned."

"The NTC sees privatization as being one of the engines to diversification and growth. Now many of these decisions have to wait a more permanent governing structure. The NTC is being very careful about not taking significant decisions on dismantling this or dismantling that until they are able to assure themselves of a more popular base. They've very mindful of the fact that that T in NTC stands for transition."

The official said conventional and nonconventional weaponry in Libya is fully secured and accounted for.

Clinton intended to "talk to Libyan officials about the fact that we will be increasing our assistance on the MANPADS destruction to nearly $40 million ...," the official said, referring to man-portable air-defense systems, which are shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles.

Asked about reconciliation, the official said the NTC has remarked that it would work with people who don't have "blood on their hands" and try to be inclusive.

"It has to be able to show that it has political credibility, that it's able to also have places for those who actually fought for the liberation of Libya in the governing structures," the official said.

Gadhafi's whereabouts are unknown, and the official acknowledged the existence of pro-Gadhafi enclaves.

"He has people, henchman, loyalists, sons, here and there who still have circles around them. I don't think there's any coordination going on between them. I think you're having pockets of people who are trying to stop the flow of history ahead," the official said.

"Yes, he's a nuisance. Yes, he's still providing problems here and there. But the Libyans are not waiting to build a better future for themselves, for their children, for their country."

Clinton also said she was pleased to see an end to the ordeal of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier held captive by Palestinian militants for more than five years. Shalit was released Tuesday as part of a prisoner swap between Israel and the Palestinians. Shalit was held far too long in captivity, Clinton said.

Clinton say thanks to Malta for help with Libya

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited the Mediterranean island nation of Malta Tuesday and thanked authorities there for their help during the war in Libya.
Clinton met with Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in the capital city of Valletta, the State Department said.


"The Prime Minister and I discussed the importance of supporting the democratic aspirations of the Libyan people. They are beginning to build a new future for their country and they have a long road ahead," Clinton said in a State Department statement.
Earlier this year, American citizens and embassy staff were evacuated from Libya to the nearby island, Clinton said.
"Malta's unique geography, history, and expertise will make it a valued partner in this work," Clinton said.

Libya's dinars disappear and funding a revolution

When Libya's National Transitional Council set up shop in the capital, Tripoli, it found the cupboard was bare.
"We only had $13.5 million in the Central Bank of Libya," according to Ali Tarhouni, the oil and economy Minister and one of the first senior officials of the NTC to arrive in the capital.
Moammar Gadhafi was on the run, but an acute shortage of Libyan dinar -- the national currency -- threatened to stop the revolution in its tracks.
"I was willing to do anything to get the urgent needs to the Libyans," Tarhouni said last week. "We used parallel markets in the exchange of the money."


"Parallel markets" meant wealthy currency dealers in Benghazi, who apparently had many more dinar at their disposal than Gadhafi's Central Bank in Tripoli or the rebels' own Central Bank in Benghazi. With names like Golden Dinar and Sahara International, they became the financial lubricant of anti-Gadhafi forces.
The NTC's financial arm, the Temporary Financing Mechanism, had by then already tapped into this informal network of foreign exchange dealers, but not without some controversy.
Early in August, according to one source familiar with the TFM's dealings, it exchanged $10 million at a rate of 1.45 dinar to the dollar. The source said that was less than the prevailing market rate of 1.55 dinar, suggesting that the dealer involved did exceptionally well.


Another transaction later in August also appeared to be at less than the market rate.
"On what basis did they choose those dealers and those exchange rates?" the source asked.
One currency dealer in Benghazi, Ibrahim Salaby, said the TFM's dealings smacked of favoritism..
The TFM says all its dealings have been transparent. It says it had to use the "parallel" market and was sanctioned to do so by the rebels' "Central Bank," which was established in Benghazi soon after Gadhafi's forces were ejected from the city.
TFM officials said the central bank simply did not have the available funds to exchange large sums of cash, so it designated exchange dealers to be used.
E-mails obtained by CNN suggest that those dealers drove a hard bargain with the TFM. One wrote in August that he was withdrawing an offer to exchange at a rate of 1.45 dinar to the dollar because "no transfer was made, with situation changing in Libya. ... Therefore we had to change the ex-rate to be 1.3LD/US."


In the chaos of the uprising, there was plenty of cash floating -- and flying -- around Libya. Much of it came from the Gulf and went to groups and fighters beyond the NTC's control.
On one occasion, according to the TFM's director, Mazin Ramadan, a currency trader arrived at Benghazi airport short of 20,000 dinar. The money was due to leave on a flight to aid civilians in the western mountains who hadn't received salaries and pensions. Time was short, and a TFM official who had previously spent his own cash on a project was told to take an equivalent sum from a stockpile of cash held on board the plane. A guard thought he was stealing and reported the incident.


"It was a bad judgment call on his part," says Ramadan of the official, "and I paid for it through the gossip channels."
"It was a big mistake not communicating every step of our work. We were too busy getting things done," Ramadan says.


But he insists the TFM has had plenty of oversight. "We have a steering board which includes a representative from the governments of Qatar and France. We have an independent financial managing agent....They have to approve every transaction, every exchange and every project we do," he told CNN in an e-mail.
As for the shortage of Libyan dinar, that has eased, in part thanks to the Royal Air Force. At the end of August it flew banknotes worth 280 million dinar to Benghazi, part of a stock of 1.86 billion dinar that had been frozen in the United Kingdom with the passage of UN Security Council Resolution 1970.

Libyan leaders control new areas in Bani Walid

Libya's new government said it has control of new areas in Bani Walid as the battle rages on for one of the last cities loyal to the ousted ruler.

The city center and the northern part of the city are now under government control, said Ali Daeki, a member of the executive crisis committee.

Government forces have surrounded the city from all sides, and arrested more than 20 loyalists of former ruler, he said Saturday.

Troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi are now in Dahra, a residential area in the southern part of the city, according to Daeki.

National Transitional Council fighters also battling for control in Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte, and will boost Bani Walid troops as soon as that battle is over, said Abdurahman Bousin, a council spokesman.

As the battle for control continues, the U.N. human rights office expressed concern on the number of prisoners in Libya and their treatment.

"It could be up to 7,000," said Mona Rishmawi, a senior official with the group in Geneva, Switzerland. "At this stage, there is no police infrastructure, there is no prison authorities. ... Right now, the Justice Ministry is not fully functional."

"There is allegations and evidence of torture" in the prisons, she said, citing lawyers, clients and human rights groups.

The Government forces take over Gadhafi stronghold

More symbols of Moammar Gadhafi's rule over Libya began to crumble Monday as forces of the country's new government took over one of the last cities loyal to him while others bulldozed the walls of his Libya compound.
Forces took over the city of Bani Walid on Monday, National Transitional Council military spokesman Abdelrahman Busin said.
Meanwhile, in Tripoli, fighters began bulldozing the outer walls of Gadhafi's Bab al Aziziya compound. Seizure of the compound by then-rebel forces in August marked the end of the regime.


Fighters participating in the effort said they may begin as soon as Tuesday to bulldoze a structure in the compound that Gadhafi called the House of Resistance, his former residence bombed by the United States in 1986 and frequently used as a site for speeches.
The fall of Bani Walid leaves Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte as the focus of military action by Libya's new government.
National Transitional Council forces will bolster their number in Bani Walid as soon as the battle for Sirte is over, Busin said.


As the battle for control of the last Gadhafi outposts continues, the U.N. human rights office expressed concern about the number of prisoners in Libya and their treatment.
"It could be up to 7,000," said Mona Rishmawi, a senior official with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland. "At this stage, there is no police infrastructure, there is no prison authorities. ... Right now, the Justice Ministry is not fully functional."


"There is allegations and evidence of torture" in the prisons, she said, citing lawyers, clients and human rights groups.
State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland also expressed concern Monday for treatment of prisoners who are "being detained apparently on their skin color and an assumption that they have supported Gadhafi."
"We urge the (National Transitional Council) to honor its stated commitment to the rule of law and respect for the universal human rights of all people in Libya," Nuland said.