24/08/2011 BBC News at Six

The hunt is on for Colonel Gaddafi. Libyan rebels fight street-to-

street with die-hard supporters in Tripoli.

Intense clashes continue around the dictator's compound. We report from

the rebel frontline. They have just stormed back in. They are now

firing rockets into the middle of the compound. You can hear one now.

Gaddafi broadcasts a defiant message, vowing victory or death,

as the opposition say they will not rest until he's gone for good.

I feel free I will see the blood of Gaddafi. Then I'm free. I can say

like the German "I am the man." Inside the Gaddafi family home.

Rebels ransack the trappings of his dynasty. Foreigners held at gun

point by Gaddafi loyalists are freed from the hotel which became a

prison. Also on tonight's programme: The police under fire

for dragging a disabled man from his wheelchair during the student

protests. And re-thinking the way doctors measure blood pressure. Up

to one-quarter of patients could be misdiagnosed. Coming up in

Sportsday at 6.45pm, the latest from the High Court, as Spurs win

the right to challenge the decision to hand the Olympic Stadium to West

Welcome to the News at Six. The Libyan capital has seen some of the

most intense clashes yet, as rebel forces came under renewed fire of

die-hard supporters of Colonel Gaddafi. He's in hiding. His forpbl

minister conceded that his 42-year rule was at an end. The fighting

has been concentrated in Abu Salim, Hadbha and at Colonel Gaddafi's

As we enter Gaddafi's pom pound, it's obvious there is -- compound,

it's obvious there is fighting still going on. Yesterday's

liberation has not cleared all the die-hard loyalists out.

This is about to get a lot more intense. So the rebels were driven

out of the centre of the compound, back to the outer wall. They have

stormed back in. They are firing rockets into the middle of the

compound. You can hear one going in now.

Left side, left side.... Stay, stay, stay!

Once again, the assumption that the fighting is over is premature.

Gaddafi's compound is a fortress, with blast walls, tunnels and

bunkers. This man believes Gaddafi is hiding under ground.

Do you think he's somewhere in here? If you ask me about what I

think, I think Gaddafi is here. There's a lot of tunnels and stuff

like, you know, it's like impossible. He built it for this

day. You know, to stay running away from people, you know?

Until Gaddafi is found, some here still will not dare to believe his

dictatorship is really over. REPORTER: When will you feel free?

When I see the blood of Gaddafi spreading on the grass. Then I'm

free. I can say like the Germans "scam I am a man. I am man."

Down on the seashore we got a glimpse into his life. This is the

summer house of his son, Hannibal. We found tens of thousands of

pounds worth of designer clothing and shoes. When you see the place,

you know, the sea, this is expensive things here. This is the

problem this is high the revolution has happened. Seeing this will

confirm what most Libyans suspected - that the Gaddafi clan lived in a

life of vulgar luxury. Until they are caught this revolution will not

be over. Well rebels have offered a reward

of over �1 million to anyone who kills or captures Colonel Gaddafi.

Today they have looked everywhere they can for him. They have offered

an amnesty for any Gaddafi supporter who turns him in. Our

diplomatic correspondent has this report now on the hunt for Colonel

Gaddafi. They trample on pictures of Colonel

Gaddafi whenever they can, but so far cannot track down the man

himself. The rebels know complete victory depends on finding him. I

will do all I can to find him, to judge him, to put him in a cage.

Colonel Gaddafi was heard today on a new pro-regime channel. He

claimed he had left his Bab Al- Aziziya compound for at thetyal

reasons and taken to the streets of Tripoli.

TRANSLATION: I walk through Tripoli incognito. Nobody saw me. I saw

youths ready to defend our city. Just the riots which can be easily

brought under control. Libyan rebels believe Gaddafi's

home town of Sirte, east of Tripoli is one of the places he might be

hiding. This has always been a Gaddafi hard-land. Now he's urging

supporters there to -- heart-land. Now he's urging supporters there to

fight to the death. The rebels are hopeful of negotiating the city's

surrender. Tpwad gad's spokesman is insisting there -- Gaddafi's

spokesman is inning there is a way back for the regime. He says, "we

will turn it into a fire that burns under the feet of those. I can say

that 600 new volunteers have arrived in the last six hours." the

reality is, it's the rebels that are steadily making head-way. Their

battle to control all of Libya is still not complete.

Now, in a moment, we can talk to our world affairs correspondent.

First our correspondent is in Benghazi for us tonight. Jon, for

months now, the rebel opposition group has been based with you there

in Benghazi. Any thought they might move to the capital, Tripoli?

know, despite the exsilration in Benghazi and Tripoli, a note of

caution has moved in. They have postponed the move to Tripoli,

saying it is not secure. They say it is not over until the fate of

Colonel Gaddafi is done. They have offered him safe passage out of the

country if he renounces leadership. They have offered an amnesty for

anyone who kills him or captures him and that reward of more than $1

million. They have major cities they continue control, Sirte, his

birth place, big cities in the south of the country. The rebels on

this side of the country are not making the military progress they

have made in Tripoli. The trebles have taken Tripoli, most of it in

dramatic fashion. We have seen that. To what extent was that planned or

a case of luck? Well, it's very interesting. The opposition here

say that it was all actually planned, that great surprising move

into Tripoli at the weekend. It had been planned for many months. They

loyalists and trained them with the support and co-operation of NATO

and led by the opposition and put them in place as sleepers, waiting

for the signal. Last weekend they brought out those sleeper cells,

who were living in Tripoli itself. They invaded, over land and sea.

They had a key defection, they say, from the man who controlled the

gates of Tripoli. That is why we saw such dramatic developments over

the last couple of days. Now over to Jon Simpson in Tripoli.

We've been very, very careful with our words during these broadcasts

on Tripoli and the fall of the capital. Can we finally say it's

over now for Colonel Gaddafi? think we can. I think today the

24th August will be seen as the day when the six month and one week

revolution finally succeeded. Everybody here talks about the 17th

February when it began. I suspect the 24th August will be seen as the

time it ended. Certainly what everybody in the streets seems to

feel. I have rarely seen such an outrush of extraordinary feeling,

as people driving around the streets, firing endlessly into the

air. You can perhaps hear the firing still going on. It's fading

now as the end of Ramadan for the day comes closer. Nevertheless,

it's been an extraordinary day. I think everybody here thinks it is

entirely over. Jon, everyone in the region and here remembers what

happened in Iraq after Saddam Hussein. The transitional council

still has a tough job to do, doesn't it? It certainly does. Of

course the first responsibility that it has I think to some extent

at any rate, is to catch Colonel Gaddafi. Without that, it will not

be final, any more than it was in Iraq. But, you know, what happened

in Iraq eight years ago was really that Saddam Hussein almost

immediately ceased to be a figure of significance whatsoever in the

country. He was put on trial and executed. Almost forgotten you

could say in Iraq. I think the same thing will happen with Colonel

Gaddafi. However it ends, whether it is by his own hand or whether he

is captured, whatever that may be, I think you will find the new

Government will simply put all that aside and start moving forward very

quickly indeed. Thank you both. We will have more on Libya later in

the programme. Now the rest of the news. The man who murdered Philip

Lawrence outside his school in 1995 has been cleared of robbing someone

at a cash machine in North London. Learco Chindamo, who is 31 was

found not guilty along with two other defendants at Blackfriars

Crown Court. The Independent Police Complaints

Commission is investigating the death of a man who stabbed himself

and was then shot with a Taser by police in Bolton T gun carrys a

50,000 volt electric shock. It is the third death of a member of the

public to be referred to the IPCC in the past week. He is believed to

be the first juvenile involved in the rights to have his right to

anonymity lifted. 16-year-old Johnny Melfah pleaded guilty to

posting messages on a group called "Letz Start a Riot." He will be

sentenced next month. An investigation has found a

policeman used excessive force when he dragged a disabled man during

student protests in London. The IPCC said the Metropolitan Police

should apology to the man Jody McIntyre, after he was struck with

a police baton. Here's our home affairs correspondent.

It was one of the many confrontations between protestors

and police that December night. But the way in which Jody McIntyre

was removed from his wheelchair and dragged from the road has resulted

-- into two investigations. Today the IPCC decided it was appropriate

to move him as police attempted to control the streets, but that they

used excessive force. The police watchdog has concluded that the

incident, right here in the heart of Westminster, may have amounted

to an assault, and should have been reported to prosecutors. Six months

on, the time limit for that has now passed. Why is it that when young

people are rioting in London they have the courts open 24 hours a day,

seven days a week, but when a police officer commits a crime they

overrun the six-month limit to prosecute that officer? Mr McIntyre

is a prominent activist. He was at the forefront of the student

protests. The Met's investigation concluded he was inadvertantly

struck by a police baton in this earlier incident. No officer was

blamed. The IPCC report said the force should have apologised and

officers should have been given words of advice. Jody McIntyre has

been criticised for suggesting on Twitter that neighbourhoods should

be inspired by the recent riots and rise up against the police. He has

argued, following his experiences in December that public order

policing is too heavy-handed. In recent weeks the criticism has

been the opposite, that the police Our main headline - there has been

intense fighting in Libya, as rebels say they will finish off the

regime of Colonel Gaddafi. Coming Doctors in England and Wales are

being advised to change the way they measure blood pressure after

research found that up to a quarter of patients may have been

misdiagnosed. It's thought many people are so nervous that their

blood pressure goes up when the doctor appears. Our health

correspondent, Hywel Griffith, has It has been dubbed "white coat

syndrome". A patient's blood pressure goes up because the doctor

makes them feel anxious. It is believed the problem has caused

millions of pounds to be wasted on the NHS. It is natural, people get

stressed when they come to see the doctor. It means people are being

exposed to treatment and therefore receiving medicines when perhaps

they do not need them. Getting a correct diagnosis for patients like

Sheila is vital. Hypertension is a major cause of stroke and heart

attack. To see if she is at risk, she has been trying a different

type of test. To get a more accurate picture, Sheila has been

asked to wear one of these portable monitors, which takes a reading

every half-an-hour. This could become the standard way of testing

for hypertension across the NHS in England and Wales. Over 24 hours,

the monitor stores readings to give an average. It allows doctors to be

certain of their diagnosis. It is not discomfort, you know it

is there, it is a bit awkward if you're out doing some shopping, and

all of a sudden, this Norway's start beeping. But I just smile at

people. Research published in today's

Lancet suggests this is the most effective way of testing. The

monitors will cost the Health Service around �5 million a year to

introduce, but money is saved by treating fewer patients. By the

fifth year, the net saving stands at more than �10 million. New

guidance could also follow in Tottenham Hotspur has won the right

to challenge a decision on the future of the Olympic Stadium after

next summer's Games. Previously West Ham United had been awarded

the rights to move into the stadium. But today's decision could change

that. We can go live now to the High Court and speak to our sports

correspondent, Dan Roan - how significant is this? With less than

a year to go until the Games, the uncertainty surrounding the

principal venue, the athletics stadium, continues. This was a

significant victory for Spurs, but by no means decisive. Their

argument rested upon a �40 million loan which had been agreed between

West Ham united and the London borough of Newham. It meant that

West Ham would be able to move into the stadium after the games. Spurs

and Leyton Orient argued that that loan constituted state aid and was

therefore illegal. They said the original decision made by the

Olympic Park Legacy Company to allow West Ham preferred bidder

status should be re-examined. The judge today agreed that the

argument had married. There will be a full judicial review in October.

But whether or not Spurs take up that opportunity remains to be seen.

I understand they are now close to an agreement with the Mayor of

London over a cash injection which will enable them to move into a

stadium neighbouring their traditional white Hart Lane home in

return for them dropping their legal challenge. But one thing is

certain, today's victory will have done them no harm, but it will have

Rail commuters in the north of England have been hit by the first

of two 24-hour strikes on First TransPennine Express. The strike,

by train drivers from the Aslef and RMT unions, began at midnight after

talks over pay broke down. Rail services from Manchester to York

were disrupted. A second 24-hour strike is planned for Friday. The

former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has defended her use of two

prisoners on day release who did three hours of decorating work at

her home. Jacqui Smith said she made a donation to the community

group that arranged the work, but the group now admits it wasn't the

best use of the prisoners' time. Were supposed to be doing work to

help the whole community. A new BBC survey has found 3G mobile coverage

across the UK is still falling short of the claims made by

short of the claims made by operators. Last month thousands of

phone users took part in a survey and the resulting map shows that

there are still too many places where there's no reception -

including built-up areas. Our technology correspondent, Rory

How good is your mobile signal? Over the past month, 40,000 people

across the country have downloaded an application allowing us to track

just how good the coverage is. The result is a map which shows that

even in the centre of cities like Cardiff, you cannot be sure of

Cardiff, you cannot be sure of getting the 3G signal you need.

There are some surprising areas, even in city centres like this. In

some cases there will be no service at all. It is quite surprising.

Nationwide, our survey shows coverage is not as complete as the

mobile networks would have you believe. I got on a London-bound

train in search of further evidence. These days, a lot of people expect

to be able to get online with their phones and other devices even on a

moving train. Our map appears to show that on large sections of this

journey, that could be rather tricky. I got off at Didcot to go

and meet someone who had taken part in our survey. What kind of signal

are you getting? In the village of Cuddesdon, trainee vicar Chris

Phillips has found that his smart phone is not much use without 3G.

People here want to be able to consume media on their mobiles,

just as much as people in the city. To cut them off from services like

that, not to provide those services, it seems to perpetuate that

disadvantage. The next stage in our mobile journey will see us moving

from 3G to 4G networks, but will that solve these problems?

Even when we get the 4G licences, coverage will get better, but you

will still find relatively poor coverage in the same areas.

hope is that our map will give the mobile networks more information on

who needs a better signal. who needs a better signal.

And if you want to see what 3G mobile coverage is like in your

area, you can find the map on our A reminder of our main story now,

the continuing battle for Tripoli between the rebels and forces still

loyal to Colonel Gaddafi. There has been fierce fighting throughout the

day inside Gaddafi's compound in the capital city. The rebels appear

to be coming under attack from government troops still holed up

inside some of the buildings and from others hidden nearby. And

Libya's government in waiting has offered Colonel Gaddafi free

passage out of the country, but it is also promising an amnesty and a

reward to any member of his More than 30 foreign journalists

who had been trapped by pro-Gaddafi fighters in a Tripoli hotel since

Sunday have been freed. The Rixos Hotel is just a couple of miles

from Colonel Gaddafi's compound. Armed guards prevented the group of

around 35 foreigners from leaving. But this afternoon they were

released as fierce fighting raged outside. Amongst them was a BBC

team of five, including our correspondent Matthew Price, and we

can talk to Matthew now. It was not just journalists in that hotel, it

must have been quite an ordeal... Yes, as well as the host of

international journalists, there was also a former US Congressmen

and parliamentarian from India. It was a huge ordeal. In a way, it

started 12 days ago, when the town of Zawiya was cut off, which meant

that the route used by the government to get journalists in

and out of Tripoli was also cut off. We then started to explore options

of how we might eventually get out of Tripoli, for example, by sea.

But then, with the uprising on Saturday, and the celebrations in

Green Square, we realised that we might be stuck for some time. The

government minders drifted off, slowly but surely. Some of them had

their weapons around for a while. On Monday morning we woke up, and

it was these new guys in civilian clothes with Gaddafi green bandanas

around their heads, carrying Kalashnikovs. At that point, the

power went off in the hotel, the water stopped as well. Food and

water was always worrying, and of course constantly, we had the

sounds of battle around us. We really did begin to wonder if at

some point we might become some sort of human shield for the

Gaddafi forces which we assumed that some point would reach our

hotel and perhaps even use it as a barracks. When did you actually

realise that Colonel Gaddafi had lost control of his capital? This

probably sounds bizarre to people, but we were in a 200 metre square

area, which was still controlled by Gaddafi's forces. Throughout Monday,

and for most of Tuesday, there were these guys around, a group of 10 or

12, and we believe there were snipers on the roof as well. And

then today, when we woke up this morning, there were just two guards

left, and we asked them if we could leave, and they said no, we're

keeping you here for your protection. We're waiting for our

forces, the Gaddafi forces, to take control of the city again. We

thought it was astonishing that we wondered if there was some logic to

what they were saying. And then a New York Times journalist and his

team walked through the door without anybody armour on, strode

into the hotel... I'm afraid we have lost Matthew Price. Time for

August continues to be pretty topsy-turvy. Some pretty heavy

showers around this evening. And there is more of the wet stuff on

the way tonight. At the moment, heavy showers across Birmingham,

Newcastle and Edinburgh. After those, the next bit of rain comes

up from the south-west of England. It becomes much more extensive

overnight. Up to 40mm of rain will fall in some sports. It will be

quite chilly in Scotland and Northern Ireland. This rain will

make a pretty miserable rush-hour in these areas. In the south-west

of England, some wet weather this evening, and tomorrow, some sunny

spells, but showers throughout the day. In Northern Ireland, a day of

sunshine and showers. Similar in Scotland. Although not too many

showers first up here. Running through tomorrow, you can see this

wet weather in the east, likely to linger on the coast until well into

the afternoon. Then we have a slice of sunshine. But lots more showers

in the west. The risk of thunderstorms, particularly in

South Wales and the south-west of England. And we're still not done,

Friday could be very soggy indeed, particularly across eastern areas.

We keep the showers into the weekend. But I'm hopeful that

during the weekend, the showers during the weekend, the showers

will fade and we should get a bit more sunshine.

Our main headline - there has been intense fighting in Libya, as