Gaddafi the rat runs to his last hole: Dictator goes to ground as rebels sweep into the heart of Tripoli meeting little resistance

Forces claim the city is totally under their control

• Thousands gather in Green Square to celebrate, rename it Martyr's Square
• Tripoli residents receive congratulatory text messages from rebels
• 375 people dead with at least 1,000 injuries
• Gaddafi says Tripoli 'is now like Baghdad' in latest audio message
• Rebels chant 'We are coming for you, frizz-head' as they enter city
• Oil price falls by $3 a barrel following rebel's advance
• David Cameron has cut his Cornish holiday short to chair Libya talks
• President Obama said Libya is 'slipping from the grasp of a tyrant'

By Andrew Malone

Last updated at 8:27 AM on 22nd August 2011

Colonel Gaddafi was today in hiding after rebel forces swept into the Libyan capital of Tripoli in huge numbers and took control of large areas.
The Libyan leader was believed to be cowering in a bunker outside Tripoli, as heavy fighting erupted around his compound and wild celebrations broke out across the country among opposition supporters cheering on the rebels.
As the dictator's regime appeared to be on the brink of collapse, independent Libyan television claimed the tyrant had ‘run away like a coward’,
The dictator could be offered exile by the African Union in Angola or Zimbabwe, according to the news channel Al-Jazeera.

Jubilant: Rebels in Tajura, a suburb of Tripoli, celebrate the taking of large parts of the capital

Thousands of people gathered in central Benghazi last night following the news from Tripoli

Celebration: Opposition supporters in Tajura, Tripoli, were out in numbers as the noose around Gaddafi's regime tightened

Celebration: A man on the roof of a building in Benghazi fires a flare into the air as other fireworks go off around him

Hatred: A man stamps on a picture of Gaddafi's face in Tripoli, while thousands gathered in Benghazi to celebrate the rebels advancement

Meanwhile, three of Colonel Gaddafi’s sons are reported to be in the hands of Libyan rebels.
The head of Libya’s National Transitional Council, the rebels’ governing body, said they had arrested Saif al-Islam and Al-Saadi, two of the tyrant’s sons. A third, Muhammad, was reported to have handed  himself in.
Mustafa Abdel Jalil told Al-Jazeera: ‘He (Saif) is being kept in a secure place under close guard until he is handed over to the judiciary.’

Armed to the teeth and baying for Gaddafi's blood: Rebels head towards the gates of Tripoli yesterday. They claimed the dictator had reached 'zero hour' for his reign of terror

Riding to victory: A group of Libyan rebels smile and make peace signs as they progress into Tripoli yesterday

Last stand: Gaddafi's son Saif Al-Islam in a televised address. Last night he was said to have been captured by rebel forces

And he insisted Saif would not be harmed, telling French newspaper Le Monde: ‘We gave instructions that he is well treated, in order to be judged.’

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi once had a very close relationship with the West and was considered by many to represent a more democratic future for Libya.
But since the uprising began he has become closely allied to his father. The International Criminal Court has a warrant out for his arrest on war crimes charges.

Jubilant: This group of Libyan civilians were on the streets of Maia celebrating the rebels advancement

Freedom: A young man carries the flag of the Libyan republic along the streets of Maia

Gaddafi’s oldest son, Muhammad, ran the company which operated all mobile phones and satellites in the country, as well as being head of the Libyan Olympic Committee.
Al-Saadi, took a far more hands-on role in his father’s regime, as commander of Libya’s Special Forces. He has been accused of ordering the army to fire on unarmed protesters in Benghazi at the start of the uprising.
As wild celebrations erupted across Libya to mark Gaddafi’s apparent departure, there were reports that the dictator, who has been in power for 42 murderous years, was actually moving around a series of bomb-proof bunkers and tunnels beneath the capital.

And even as he was supposed to have taken refuge within the complex – which is reputed to be able to withstand a nuclear attack – the dictator broadcast a message as his troops prepared to mount a last stand.
Gaddafi’s official spokesman had previously lashed out against Britain, France and the U.S. – the three countries leading the campaign to oust the dictator – as he warned of a ‘ghastly disaster’ if rebel forces took Tripoli.

Earlier in the day, sources inside the embattled city said pro-Gaddafi forces had put snipers on the rooftops of buildings around Bab al-Aziziyah, Gaddafi’s secret compound, and on the top of a nearby water tower.

The battle for Tripoli

Compound: Two men survey damage at the Gaddafi residence in Tripoli following an air strike. There are reports the home has secret tunnels the tyrant may use to escape

JOYOUS LIBYANS DANCE IN STREETS OF LONDON

 Libyans poured on to the streets of London to celebrate Gaddafi’s fall early today.
Waving red, black and green opposition flags, hundreds gathered along Edgware Road chanted ‘Libya is free!’ and ‘Gaddafi can go to hell!’ into the early hours.
The rebel supporters, including children as young as ten, banged drums and danced in the street. Others draped themselves in flags and chanted passages from the Koran through megaphones.
Ahmed Hmeid, who went to Edgware Road with his family to celebrate as ‘it is the heart of the Arab community in London’, said it had been an emotional day.
The 25-year-old IT consultant, who lives in Hounslow, said: ‘My dad’s been shaking and in tears all day with joy. We never thought this day would come. We spoke to our family in Libya and usually you can never say anything insulting about Gaddafi, but they were screaming down the phone at us that they are now free.’
His 65-year-old father Mehdi, who moved to the UK from Tripoli 30 years ago, said: ‘We’ve lived for 42 years as a slave to Gaddafi, now we feel free. The Libyan community in this country was close before, but this has made us even closer.’
Another Libyan, Zian Elghuwel, 24, said: ‘I couldn’t believe it. We’re just so happy Libya is free. This is an incredible time.’

His bunker complex is the stuff of Libyan folklore. Tunnels are said to connect vast, cavernous rooms capable of housing tanks, aircraft and weapons. He also has sleeping quarters in different parts of the complex.
An insight into his desire to seek refuge underground emerged when rebel forces seized control of Benghazi, the country’s second city, in March.
They discovered a series of tunnels and rooms built more than 100 yards below the earth.
But the Tripoli complex is far grander, and some defectors claim there are even tunnels running for hundreds of miles from Gaddafi’s bunker to the south of the country – a possible escape route.
At the start of the uprising, Gaddafi ordered a children’s playground to be built around the secret entrances to the bunker, hoping this would deter targeted Nato airstrikes.
And Nato sources warned the shifting battle lines and the movement of the fighting into built-up areas in Tripoli had made it more difficult to engage airstrikes without endangering civilians.
Downing Street said tonight that 'the end is near' for Colonel Gaddafi and called on the Libyan leader to go to avoid more suffering for his people.
In a statement, President Obama said Libya is 'slipping from the grasp of a tyrant' as the battle between rebels and Gaddafi has reached a 'tipping point'.
Mr Obama, who is on holiday in Martha's Vineyard, said the surest way for the bloodshed to end is for the Libyan leader to relinquish power.
He said: 'The future of Libya is now in the hands of the Libyan people.'
The president promised to work in close co-ordination with the rebels and said the US will 'continue to insist that the basic rights of the Libyan people are respected'.
The statement was issued after Mr Obama took part in a conference call with his national security team.