22/08/2011 BBC News at Six

The battle for Libya: Rebel fighters storm into Tripoli and say

the capital is almost theirs. After 42 years of Gaddafi rule, rebel

fighters say they now control most of the city. He played his last

card - his last game. Even his Army, they lose control. Celebrations

across Libya as people mark the beginning of the end of decades of

dictatorship. But the battle's not over yet. We saw a 20 millimetre

empty aircraft can earn fired directly into the front of our

convoy. -- 20 millimetre anti- aircraft cannon. We report from the

front line as the fighting continues. Tonight, Colonel

Gaddafi's whereabouts are unknown. He says he is in Tripoli and will

remain there until the end. His sons have been captured though, one,

during a live TV interview. I am being attacked right now. This is

gunfire inside my house. They up inside my house. International

reaction has been swift. His regime is falling apart and is in full

retreat. He must stop fighting without conditions and showed he

has given up any claim to control Libya. Also on tonight's programme:

The sexual assault case against the former IMF chief, Dominique

Strauss-Kahn, could be on the verge of collapse tonight. And a stunning

win for England against India at the Oval to complete a 4-0 series

victory. Later, the price of oil falls as the battle for Tripoli

continues. We will find out how the volatile global markets have

Good evening. Welcome to the BBC News at Six. Libyan rebel leaders

say they now control about 95% of the capital, Tripoli. But fighting

is still going on there tonight. Forces loyal to Colonel Gaddafi are

continuing to resist, with tanks defending the port and other

pockets of the city in the battle for Tripoli. Last night, there was

pressure on the capital from all sides as rebels advanced towards

the centre. Opposition forces reached Green Square, which they

have renamed Martyr's Square, in the heart of the city last night.

Tonight, pro-Gaddafi tanks are said to be protecting the Libyan

leader's main compound, Bab al- Aziziya. And there is fighting

around the Rixos Hotel, where foreign journalists are staying.

Our correspondent, who is in that hotel, has this report. On the

streets of Tripoli, a revolution. They chanted their new Libyan

national anthem and flew the flag of what they believe is the new,

free Libya. Gaddafi, your time is up, they cried. The rebels sped

into the capital overnight with astonishing speed. Moving into

Green Square, where days ago, supporters of Colonel Gaddafi out

the city was safe. They tore down posters and flags. Three miles to

the south, in a luxury hotel, we watched as a spokesman of Colonel

Gaddafi held what may turn out to be his last press conference.

Tripoli is well-protected and we have thousands upon thousands of

professional soldiers who are ready to defend this city. Even as he was

speaking, the rebels were celebrating. Trampling the leader

they have come to despise. Today, rebel forces continued to stream

into Tripoli, believing they were on the verge of a significant

victory. This is a city at checkpoints, of men protecting

neighbourhoods, wary of what the forces of Colonel Gaddafi may do

next. In areas, there has been fierce fighting. Battles have raged

around the compound of Colonel Gaddafi. Any campaign -- gunfire

can be heard and explosions. The Gaddafi family is under pressure

like never before. Another son, Saif Al-Islam, has been arrested.

He faces war crimes charges at the International Court. Another son,

Mohammed, was live on air when rebels seized him.

TRANSLATION: I am being attacked right now. This is gunfire inside

What a Colonel Gaddafi himself? He made the short radio address last

night calling on supporters to rise up. Is he in Tripoli? What is he

planning? This city is not under full opposition control. Here in

the hotel, where foreign journalists have stayed since the

conflict began, Gaddafi supporters are in charge inside and out on the

streets. It is hard to determine how much of the city they hold but

the battle for Tripoli is not yet over. NATO has continued airstrikes.

Without air support, the rebels would not be in a strong position

they find themselves in now. Libyan state television has now fallen off

air. Opposition supporters are confident enough to be freely

talking about the new Libya. They believe Colonel Gaddafi is finished.

He has played his last card - his last game. Even his Army, they lose

control. The Army of Gaddafi, they fight without any order, without

anything. If he is, will his supporters laid down their guns or

fight until the last? The rebel advance been to Tripoli has been

swift and co-ordinated, taking town after town. They have been pushing

east from the town of Zawiyah, just 30 minutes' drive from the capital.

In the east, they are moving in from Zlitan. Another column of

fighters has made rapid progress from the south. In a moment we were

here from our correspondent who is with rebels in the east. First this

report from the West. Our correspondent is with a convoy of

rebels that managed to enter central Tripoli. Generally this

morning, it has been very quiet. The sound of shooting in the

background. Here is a group of young men on the corner. This is

what we are seeing every time we go past - groups of the ament

celebrating. So far no signs of fighting in the city. It looks very

quiet. We have just come in to the centre of Tripoli ahead of us. We

have come up against a road block. They say there is biting up ahead.

Their RFU Gaddafi soldiers up ahead. They are bringing up rebel fighters.

Where is Gaddafi? Nobody knows. Maybe he is down there. Gaddafi

mouse. Maybe here. He is hiding somewhere? He can go there because

he is scared. He is scared so much. Although it appears very quiet on

the surface in Tripoli this morning, it is clearly extremely tense and

there are parts of the city that are not under the control of the

rebels and there is still resistance going on here. Then we

came across a convoy heading into the city. Little did the young

fighters know what lay in store ahead. We decided to follow them as

they headed along the seafront towards the city centre. Up ahead,

they are still signs of fighting. Then we ran straight into an ambush.

We saw a 20 millimetre anti- aircraft cannon firing directly

It is clear that despite the overnight celebrations this is

still a city that is far from safe also kill. -- or secure off. In the

east the fighters are backing their way towards Tripoli. From Zlitan,

they have been pinned down by pro- Gaddafi fighters from the valley

south of the town. We set out on the road to Tripoli. It was eerily

quiet. Many here believe victory is fast approaching. There is no

headlong rush to the capital. Along the way, some already celebrating

and dreaming of revenge. Gaddafi out. Gaddafi is not going to come

to live here anymore. If he is still in Libya, he will be dead. We

are going to kill him. The revolution will end with killing

Gaddafi and his son. To find Colonel Gaddafi, they have to get

to Tripoli and beyond the town of Zlitan, the regime's troops are

still blocking the way. On the Eastern Front, the battles are not

over. The fighting is continuing here. Rebel cars are streaming

forward towards the front line. They said there is a fierce battle

going on there. The rebels Atlanta push up this road towards Tripoli

but they are meeting stiff resistance from the troops of

Colonel Gaddafi. The troops stayed to fight. The rebels are going

forward, back into battle. Some are still paying the price for freedom.

Another fighter died today from wounds sustained at the weekend.

His brother had just got the news. He always said the time of freedom

will come, he told us. He wanted to die in this way. Now I will have

the honour of continuing what he started. But how long will it take

to finish it? That remains unclear. Fighters claimed optimistically not

more than a day or two. As we said earlier, Matthew price is at a

hotel in Tripoli which has come under fire already today. What is

happening now? I am here with about 30 other members of their

international media. We are in one of the areas which is still

controlled by pro-Gaddafi forces. The street outside here and in the

immediate area certainly has Gaddafi Army troops out there. We

believe this is one of two areas of the city where they still have

control. It is clear from our vantage point that the opposition

has not taken control of the entire city. We have been hearing fighting

all day, the sound of heavy gunfire and explosions in the distance.

Just a short while ago, one of my colleagues from the Arabic media

were standing outside the front of the hotel when he saw a large

amount of tracts of what he said work well equipped soldiers heading

north. They were heading north possibly towards the Green Square

area of Tripoli. Possibly they would head over to the compound of

Colonel Gaddafi. It looks as though large numbers of Colonel Gaddafi's

troops are moving through the city at the moment. The Prime Minister

has said that the regime of Colonel Gaddafi is in full retreat. He has

seemingly lost control in Libya and the next few days and weeks will be

critical in shaping the country. We report on the international

As rebels swept into Tripoli, they had much to celebrate. It was

dangerous and difficult and needed no to's air campaign. The future

for Libya is still uncertain. David Cameron has not hidden these future

challenges. There will undoubtedly be difficult days ahead. No

transition is ever snood or easy. But today the Arab Spring is one

step further away from oppression and dictatorship and one step

closer to freedom and democracy. The Libyan people are closer to

their dream of a better future, free from the terror of Gaddafi.

can that dream of a better future be made real? The first days will

be crucial. Can rebels be persuaded not to take revenge on Gaddafi

loyalists? I call on all Libyans to exercise self-restraint, says the

head of the rebel council, Mahmoud Jibril, and to respect the memory

and lives of others. It is the memory of the Iraq following the

toppling of Saddam Hussein that is the nightmare. Looting, and descend

into sectarian bombing and killing. Libya is not Iraq, and the

opposition can point to cities they already hold where law and order

have not broken down. But in Benghazi, the rebels failed to

prevent the murder offer Abdul Eunice. Transforming dictatorship

into democracy is the challenge. A new draft constitution has been

drawn up, promising a democratic state based on law rather than

tribal or personal loyalty and there are plenty of guarantees of

freedom, including freedom of opinion, freedom of demonstration

and freedom of mass media. For now these are just words, but the

opposition NTC says it is committed to deliver. The NTC has it within

its power to show the West, including showing members of

ambivalent tribes, that it is genuinely going to rule in line

with its professed liberal values. If it does that early on and

persuades people, I think they have excellent chances of avoiding what

occurred in Iraq. As the opposition celebrate in their original

stronghold of Benghazi, his leadership will now come under

intense scrutiny. Prospects are far better than in Iraq. After all, the

world including the Arab world was largely united against Gaddafi. But

still the risks remain. Let's speak to our deputy political

editor James Landale from Downing Street. We saw David Cameron

speaking earlier. A mood of cautious optimism from politicians,

it is fair to say. That is right. The public word from David Cameron

and other ministers has been no complacency. He has been talking

about the practical details of the next few days. What to do if

Gaddafi turns up, what to do if they can and freeze Libyan assets

and so on. -- unfreeze. It is all about making sure the international

community worked as one over the next few days. That caution has

been met by satisfaction and optimism. Satisfaction, following

the criticism that this could not be done and aerial bombardment

would not work. They have been proved wrong. And also optimism

that if the diplomacy works and the NTC do as they had promised, it is

possible that this will end the right way. And this administration

will claim some credit for that. Thank you.

More on the situation only the end later on in the programme. You can

find out more about what is happening in the country on a

special live page online. It brings together all the latest from across

Libya. Our top stories tonight: The battle

for the Libyan capital Tripoli is still under way. Rebels say they

control most of the city. The whereabouts of Colonel Gaddafi

remains unclear. What a way to go, number one in the

world officially now. England are on top of the world after a

stunning victory over India at the Oval.

Later on the News Channel, the price of oil falls as the battle

for Tripoli continues. Hopes are that oil production will soon come

on stream. We will find out how the volatile global markets have

In New York there are growing signs that the sexual assault case

against the former head of the International Monetary Fund,

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, will be dropped. He resigned from the IMF

following his arrest. The hotel made that brought the charges is

due to appear before prosecutors later today. Our correspondent

joins us from New York. What is expected to happen tonight?

criminal case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn appears to be close to

collapse. US media are citing prosecution sources as saying that

the district attorney will ask the judge to dismiss the case. And

later today, the made that accuses Mr Strauss-Kahn of attempting to

sexually assault hair, she will meet her lawyers and is expected to

be told that the charges will be dropped. If that happens, it will

be a remarkable twist in a high- profile case and it will happen

because of questions that have arisen about the credibility of the

chambermaid. She has admitted to lying on an asylum claim and that

she changed her account of her movements immediately after the

attack. The bottom line is that Mr Strauss-Kahn could be free as early

as tomorrow. Thank you.

The Royal Air Force will receive 40 new Chinook helicopters in a �1

billion contract. -- 14 new helicopters. This will bring the

total fleet to 60. Chinooks have played a vital role in Afghanistan

but many of the new helicopters will not enter service until 2015

when British from -- troops will have left.

Councils could be given the power to charge utility companies for

digging up the roads during peak times. This would reduce the costs

to the economy of congestion and would encourage firms to do

roadworks during quieter periods and overnight.

A fire has destroyed Richard Branson's home on the Caribbean

island of Necker. He said that everybody in the house including

Kate Winslet and her children, guests there, got out without

injury. It is thought a lightning strike started the blaze.

In cricket, England have completed a series victory over India after

winning the 4th and final Test at the Oval. Graeme Swann took 6th

wickets for England, and Sachin Tendulkar fell just short of

getting his hundredth hundred. The find a champagne no event of a

vintage summer but for English cricket. -- the final champagne

moment. But this could have been India's moment to remember. All

summer, Sachin Tendulkar has stood on the brink of a remarkable

achievement, is one hundredths International 100. He cruised

through the morning and frustrated England's bowlers. When he emerged

after lunch, the crowd sensed history but instead they got this.

Sachin Tendulkar was agonisingly gone for 91. It was almost too

cruel to watch. With their talisman gone, the rest soon followed. The

sort of collapse that has blighted India's summer, as Graeme Swann

turned things round. Six wickets for him, and for England quite a

day. A 4-0 whitewash against the Indian side that was previously the

best in the world. For English cricket and its fans, these are

heady times. A series that promised to be tied has proved anything but.

World number ones and a clean sweep. Not a bad summer.

Now we return to our main story and the battle for Tripoli. Rebels say

they have control of the city and although Gaddafi says he will

remain in the City and fight to the end, his regime appears to be all

but over after four decades, decades in which he inspired fear

at home and funded terrorism abroad. Is there something in the mindset

of dictators that makes them blind to their own impending downfall?

This bizarre moment came only in February, as rebel forces were

seizing half his country. He seems to imagine himself invincible.

love me, all my people with me. They love me all. They would die to

protect me, my people. Gaddafi seized power in a coup d'etat in

1969. He was 27. Soon his regime was marred by brutal repression at

home and violence abroad. Libya became isolated and feared. He

backed armed groups around the world. He helped to arm the IRA. In

1984, someone opened fire from inside the Libyan embassy in London.

A police woman was killed, Yvonne Fletcher, and nobody was ever

brought to justice. Two years later, the United States blamed Libya for

a bomb attack on a Berlin nightclub that was full of US servicemen. The

Americans bombed his compound but he survived. He claimed to be a

heroic defender of the week against the strong. 270 died when a Pan Am

jet en route to New York was bombed over Lockerbie. The investigation

led to two Libyan agents. Gaddafi refused to hand them over. In 1999

he began a process that would change his relationship with the

outside world. 30 surrendered the Lockerbie suspects for trial. Then

in 2003, he announced he was dismantling his weapons of mass

destruction to become an ally in the war on terror. Western leaders

embraced him. The FA country is prepared to say they want to put

the past behind them, give up chemical and nuclear weapons

capability, sees their ties with terrorist groups, -- cut their ties

with terrorist groups, we should be able to open up to that. This meant

we turned a blind eye to his continuing brutality at home, where

his family were feared and reviled. A popular uprising began in

February and NATO intervened in March. Still he claimed to have an

impregnable hold on power. Tonight his personal faith remains

undecided. But his 42 year regime, his ability to rein through terror

is surely now over. Let's speak to our diplomatic

correspondent. We are hearing from our correspondent in Tripoli

earlier. He was saying that Gaddafi's forces are fighting back.

Is it possible to say what is going on in the City and who had overall

control? It is not possible to be certain about that. The rebels have

achieved an enormous amount. They swept into the city, Green Square,

the very heartland of the Gaddafi regime, apparently without

opposition. But we have seen quite a lot of fight back from Gaddafi's

forces and his loyalists since then. We have got reports from Matthew

Price that they have considerable armour. And another correspondent

got caught up in a Gaddafi ambush. It is a very dangerous time,

frankly, when the rebels and the outside world are very keen to

establish immediate control and bring stability to Tripoli. We are

not there yet. There are wild rumours tonight that Gaddafi is in

hospital tonight. There are also reports that one of his sons may

have tried to escape in women's clothing, but we know that Saif Al-

Islam was actually captured. This Now the weather. A nice end to the

day as far as most of the country is concerned, but that changes

overnight as it becomes increasingly wet across the South

especially. In Northern Ireland it will be different, dry overnight

with varying amounts of cloud. But overnight it becomes wetter and

what across the South and it is East Anglia where there will be

some thundery downpours developing. Not everybody will see the worst of

the conditions, but there will be a lot of rain falling in a short

space of time and the risk of some minor flooding. Persistent rain

setting into the Midlands, but they try a start. Cool in northern

England and some sunshine around. Bright in Scotland. Some cloud but

the West will see some sunny breaks first thing. Dry in Northern

Ireland with some sunshine before showers develop through the day. A

bright start in the North West of Wales but generally a lot of cloud.

Damp in the South East. The same story in Devon, but in Cornwall you

should start the day dry. Through the day, the rain will clear up in

the South. The thunderstorms will depart. The rain set in and will be

with us for much of the day in the South East. Further North, largely

dry with just a couple of showers and in the brightness temperatures

will get into the high teens. All change through Tuesday night and

into Wednesday. The wet weather clears the way towards the East and

then more of comes into the West, pushing into Northern Ireland on

Wednesday. Eastern areas will be drier and brighter with just a

couple of showers. We have our first hurricane on this scene in

the Atlantic and more details are available online.

The battle for the Libyan capital, Tripoli, is still under way. Rebels