Pro-Gadhafi forces try to halt rebels' momentum
August 24, 2011 -- Updated 1312 GMT (2112 HKT)
Sidner surrounded by celebratory gunfire
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: NTC members want Gadhafi to be tried in Libya
- NEW:Elections are being planned eight months from now, Jalil says
- Clashes erupt outside Tripoli hotel, where journalists are trapped
- Russia will consider relations with Libyan rebels if they spur democracy
- A message purportedly from Gadhafi tells Libyans to enter houses and take rebels out
Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Despite dramatic rebel strides and momentum, embattled pro-Moammar Gadhafi forces toughed it out on Wednesday, striking back at Libyan rebels in several volatile pockets across Tripoli.
Loyalist forces shot at least seven mortars into Gadhafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound, a day after rebel fighters captured the symbolic heart of the Libyan ruler's regime in their months-long battle to topple the government.
Fresh clashes between rebels and loyalists broke out Wednesday outside the Rixos hotel, where about 35 international journalists were trapped.
Several rockets landed near the Tripoli International Airport -- one apparently on the tarmac -- and rebel commander Mukhtar Al-Akhbar said four rebel fighters were found bound and executed nearby.
Rebels control the hotly contested airport but were struggling to control an area east of it. The resistance caused them to speculate that loyalists could be protecting a high-profile figure in the vicinity. Gadhafi's whereabouts were still unknown.
The pro-Gadhafi resistance comes a day after rebels celebrated their most significant catch yet in the Libyan war with the capture of Gadhafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound in the capital.
The success punctuated the buoyant optimism of the rebels and their National Transitional Council political movement. The NTC claimed rebels now control 90% of the country and said it plans to move ministries from its base of Benghazi in the east to Tripoli.
Rebels said they had captured some of Gadhafi's forces inside the compound following an hours-long siege. They ransacked the facility and confiscated weapons there. But neither Gadhafi nor any of his family members were found at the compound -- and a message of defiance said to be from the longtime Libyan leader emerged Wednesday.
Two Arabic networks aired an audio message purportedly from Gadhafi in which he called upon all Libyans "to clear the city of Tripoli and eliminate the criminals, traitors and rats."
"They are hiding between the families and inside the civilian houses," the speaker said. "It's your duty to enter these houses and take them out."
CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of the message.
Hours earlier, Gadhafi spokesman Musa Ibrahim struck an equally defiant tone when he said government forces have the power to fight in Tripoli "not just for months -- for years."
"We will turn Libya into a volcano of lava and fire under the feet of the invaders and their treacherous agents," Ibrahim said in a phone call to satellite news channels, according to Reuters.
A senior NATO official said the war was "not over yet, although it's close. We continue to watch for flare-ups from around the country, where there are still going to be pockets of resistance. We are also watching the chemical weapons and Scud missiles to make sure they are not used in the endgame."
Mustafa Abdul Jalil, NTC chairman, told Italy's La Repubblica daily newspaper Wednesday that Tripoli is "80% under our control."
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"Pockets of resistance remain in the city and there is a large concentration of the armed forces in the Sirte area, the historical backbone of the regime." Sirte -- Gadhafi's hometown -- is east of Tripoli.
"The Gadhafi era is finished, even though all will end only with his capture and with his conviction for all the crimes he committed."
Jalil said the "prevailing thought" in the NTC is to put Gadhafi and his allies on trial in Libya, not at the International Criminal Court at The Hague. He also said that parliamentary and presidential elections will be held in eight months.
"We want a democratic government and a fair constitution," he said.
Foreign countries are recognizing the NTC as Libya's rightful government, though Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said his country would only recognize a Libyan regime led by Gadhafi, his close ally.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said his country will consider establishing relations with Libyan rebels if they "have have the power and spirit and opportunity to unite the country on a new democratic basis."
However, "there are two governing powers in the country, and despite the rebels' success in Tripoli, Gadhafi and his loyalists retain influence and military potential," Medvedev said.
Critical to the rebels' ultimate success will be the release of money that has been frozen in international banks, said Mahmoud Shammam, NTC information minister.
"We need to provide ourselves with a lot of necessities and we cannot do this without money," he said.
CNN's Sara Sidner, Arwa Damon, Raja Razek, Jomana Karadsheh, Kareem
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