Rebels’ efforts to take Gaddafi’s hometown looming

National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters have taken the Ougadougou Convention Center, which was a showcase project for Colonel Moammar Gaddafi's Pan African Union in his hometown of Sirte.     

The center lay in ruins on Sunday, another symbol of the end of the ousted leader's 42-year rule over Libya. As fierce fighting continued nearby, the end of the effort to take the fugitive leader's hometown appeared imminent.     

NTC fighters have pushed forward on five fronts, taking both the western and eastern coastal roads, the southern entrances from the south, and now much of the center of town.    
NTC fighters also raided the Ibn Sina Hospital complex on Sunday, searching for pro-Gaddafi loyalists.     

At least 25 pro-Gaddafi loyalists were detained inside the hospital, many accused by the NTC fighters of being mercenaries or snipers. They were led away, to be interrogated by intelligence officers.     

With the capture of the University of Sirte on the eastern outskirts of the city, pro-Gaddafi loyalists are fighting in an ever-shrinking defensive perimeter, now consisting only of a Gaddafi Palace complex, some residential buildings and a hotel near Green Square.     

Sirte is the last major city in Gaddafi loyalist hands.     

-APTN