Sun Sep 4, 2011 5:2AM GMT
Forces loyal to fugitive Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi (file photo)
At least 800 people showing support for Libya's revolution have been killed by loyalists of fugitive Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi in his hometown of Sirt over the past three days, a Libyan revolutionary official says.
Shamsiddin Ben-Ali, a spokesman for fighters from the Libyan city of Benghazi, reported the casualties on Saturday, adding that many people in Sirt want to join the revolution, the Guardian reported.
The death toll would be alarming to Libya's new governing authority, the Transitional National Council (TNC), which has extended the deadline for pro-Gaddafi forces in Sirt to peacefully surrender by next Saturday.
Fighters have tightened the noose on Sirt on eastern and western fronts, waiting to march on the Mediterranean town to seal their revolution.
The TNC has sent a group to Sirt to hold negotiations with tribal leaders in the town with the aim of urging loyalists to give up fighting to prevent more bloodshed.
"Military action will be the last option, because after the fall of the capital, we are not in a hurry," said Khaled Zintani, another spokesman for revolutionary forces in the mountain town of Zintan.
The September 10 ultimatum has also been given to other pro-Gaddafi strongholds of Bani Walid, 180 kilometers southeast of the capital Tripoli, as well as Sabha, an important city in Libya's southern desert, lying around 600 kilometers south of the capital.
"Either they raise the white flag of surrender or the fighting begins," a revolutionary commander said.
MA/HRF/HJL
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