NATO strikes

NATO airstrikes on Thursday hit Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's compound in Tripoli, which had been targeted several times since the campaign began. Libyan officials said three people were killed and 25 others wounded.

A NATO official said the target it struck contained a command and control bunker. However, a Libyan government spokesman denied that the complex housed military facilities.

The latest attack came after Libyan state television showed Gadhafi meeting tribal leaders at a hotel in Tripoli, saying the footage was recorded on Wednesday.

Gadhafi, who was last seen on TV after one of his sons was killed in a NATO airstrike two weeks ago, appeared to be in good health.

Rebels make advances

Rebels claimed to have captured the airport in the western city of Misrata after fierce fighting with forces loyal to the regime earlier in the week.

A spokesman for the rebel Transitional National Council (TNC) in the eastern city of Benghazi confirmed the aviation hub had been taken.

"We took full control of Misrata airport and pushed back Gadhafi forces around 15 kilometers (nine miles) from the airport," said Abdel Busin on Wednesday, as anti-Gadhafi forces celebrated in the streets.

"The airport is in our control but is not free because it is still within range of Grad rockets" fired by retreating Gadhafi forces, he added.

Misrata is the only major city held by the rebels in the west of the country. It has been the site of intense fighting in recent weeks, leading to hundreds of deaths.

Lobbying for recognition

Meanwhile, members of Libya's opposition Transitional National Council were due to hold talks in Washington on Friday with US national security officials.

The White House said the Libyan delegation, lead by the TNC's president Mahmoud Jebril, would meet National Security Adviser Tom Donilon and members of Congress. It was unclear whether President Barack Obama would meet the delegation.

Jebril told US television broadcaster CNN that he was lobbying for Washington to acknowledge the TNC as "the sole legitimate interlocutor of the Libyan people."

"We need the recognition," he said. All we need is for the world to understand our cause and help us get our legitimate rights recognized," he added.

While France, Italy and Qatar have recognized the TNC, the US and the UK have been hesitant to follow suit due to concerns that extremists are among the opposition’s ranks.

"This is one of the reasons why there has been such reluctance, at least on our part, to provide any kind of lethal assistance to the opposition," US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said.

Request for funds

Jebril also called on Washington to free up $180 million (126 million euros) of Gadhafi’s frozen assets in the US and to turn the funds over to the opposition. Jebril estimated that over the course of the next six months the TNC will need $3 billion (2 billion euros) to make ends meet.

"We are facing a very acute … financial problem because of the frozen assets," he said. "So I would like to seize this opportunity to call on the US administration to help us."

Author: Spencer Kimball, Rob Mudge (Reuters, AP, AFP)
Editor: Nancy Isenson