Residents upbeat as rebels take control of the airport in Tripoli

TRIPOLI, Saturday

Libyan rebels said they had complete control of Tripoli airport today and had cleared a nearby district of Muammar Gaddafi’s forces but still feared isolated snipers at the airfield.

“We control the airport entirely,” rebel commander Bashir al-Taibi told AFP.

Rebels said they had also taken the Qasr ben Gheshir District after a “clean-up” operation around the international airport, launched to push out remaining loyalist forces entrenched in the neighbourhood.

They added that they were still being cautious after loyalist forces fired rockets and mortar rounds that destroyed three civilian aircraft on the tarmac.

At a roundabout in Qasr ben Gheshir, a cheering crowd celebrated the district’s “liberation”, singing: “Hey, hey hey, Gaddafi is gone forever,” an AFP correspondent said.

“Last night (Friday), about 60 to 80 cars from the battalion of Khamis Gaddafi,” one of the fugitive dictator’s sons, left the area and “fled to Bani Walid”, a city near Sirte, Gaddafi’s hometown, said Mokhtar Lakhtar, who commanded the operation.

“It was not a tactical withdrawal, but really a flight,” he added.

Many in the district confirmed the departure of the convoy of vehicles with Gaddafi loyalists, saying they included 4x4s and “pick-ups with heavy weapons”.

Two residents said they had seen a pair of large missiles, which they identified as Scuds, going with the convoy, but the rebels did not confirm that.

Rebel fighters fired their guns into the air, with the rattle sometimes punctuated by a burst of anti-aircraft fire.

At the centre of the roundabout, some residents sacrificed a sheep, in the Muslim gesture of celebration.

“We have been freed today! I sacrificed a sheep, and I will sacrifice another tomorrow, when Gaddafi is caught,” said Saleh Belhaj, 42.

Nearby, the airport was under rebel control and calm.

Taibi said pro-Gaddafi forces had fired rockets and mortars at the airport on Friday, destroying three civilian aircraft and damaging several others.

“They specifically targeted the aircraft,” he said.

The charred carcasses of the planes were visible on the tarmac, and rebels were still nervous about being in the open, fearing isolated snipers.

At the same time, the African Union’s Peace and Security Council summit in Ethiopia that failed to recognise the Libyan rebels on Friday showed the extent of the continental body’s struggle to remain relevant.

Also emerging as quickly as the fall of Gaddafi are the divisions among the members in dealing with the crisis in Libya.

Having its relevance questioned in the Cote d’Ivoire crisis, the AU had the chance to redeem itself in Libya by making more emphatic intervention before the West did, but it failed.

Once again, the AU is on the spotlight, with several questions being raised on whether or not to recognise the National Transitional Council (NTC) that has ousted Gaddafi.

Despite the Arab League supporting the UN-backed no-fly zone over Libya to protect civilians, Africa, led by South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma, opposed it.

South Africa has had strong ties with Gaddafi that date back to the anti-apartheid struggle.

African governments too were reluctant to abide by the council’s resolution to freeze Libyan assets.

And South Africa, which had frozen the assets, fought hard to release them after the fall of Gaddafi.

The AU is in dilemma with the present situation. About 20 countries — led by Nigeria, Ethiopia and Rwanda — want the NTC to be given legitimacy but South Africa is leading the opposing voices.

At the Ethiopia summit, the AU called for an inclusive government for Libya, rejecting the rebels as the legitimate representatives of the country. (Walter Menya and AFP)