• Libya celebrates capture of Gadhafi in his hometown of Sirte

    Esam Omran Al-Fetori / Reuters

    Libyan fighters celebrate the fall of Sirte in on Oct. 20. Libyan interim government fighters captured Moammar Gadhafi's home town on Thursday, extinguishing the last significant resistance by forces loyal to the deposed leader and ending a two-month siege. The capture of Sirte means Libya's ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) should now begin the task of forging a new democratic system which it had said it would start after the city, built as a showpiece for Gadhafi's rule, had fallen.

    From NBC, msnbc.com and news services:

    Ousted dictator Moammar Gadhafi has been captured after the apparent fall of his hometown of Sirte, according to reports out of Libya.

    National Transitional Council official Abdel Majid told Reuters that Gadhafi has been wounded in both legs. But Reuters later reported that Gadhafi had died of his wounds, citing a senior NTC military official.

    Gadhafi was trying to flee in a convoy which NATO warplanes attacked, Majid said.

    For the complete story: Gadhafi is captured, Libya official claims

    View the slideshow: The life of Moammar Gadhafi

    View the slideshow: Conflict in Libya

  • Kevin Lamarque / AFP - Getty Images

    U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets National Transitional Council officials at the steps of her C-17 military airplane upon her arrival in Tripoli, Libya on Oct. 8 to hold talks with Libya's new regime officials.

    Hillary Clinton makes surprise stop in Libya

    By Phaedra Singelis, NBC News

    Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a surprise visit to Libya this morning.

    Reuters reports:

    U.S. officials said Clinton's visit was aimed at cementing a partnership with the new government and helping it steer toward democracy. Clinton would encourage the National Transitional Council to fulfill pledges to move swiftly toward elections.

    "The important thing is to be able to show the Libyan people that there is momentum," a senior administration official traveling with Clinton said. Continue reading...

  • Bangladeshi children rescued from besieged Sirte, Libya

    David Sperry / AP

    Revolutionary fighters run across the street under heavy sniper fire on October 17, carrying Bangladeshi children who were trapped in Sirte, Libya, during the entire siege of the city. Revolutionary fighters pushed hard on Monday to clear the remaining pockets of resistance in Sirte but their efforts to advance were hampered severely by the well trained snipers still loyal to the Gadhafi regime.

    Philippe Desmazes / AFP - Getty Images

    A Bangladeshi couple get emotional as they flee Sirte during heavy fighting between loyalist troops and National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters on October 17.

    Philippe Desmazes / AFP - Getty Images

    National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters provide displaced Bangladeshis with food and drink after they fled Sirte during heavy fighting between loyalist troops and NTC forces on October 17.

    See more images of the conflict in Libya in our slideshow.

  • Philippe Desmazes / AFP - Getty Images

    National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters rest outside a shuttered shop along a street in the town of Sirte, Libya, on October 16. Fighting around the last pockets of resistance in Moammar Gadhafi's hometown abated sharply with some besieging troops saying they were deliberately holding fire after an exodus of civilians.

    'Today Libya, tomorrow Wall Street': Graffiti in Sirte

    See more images from the conflict in Libya and the worldwide protests inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement.

  • Esam Omran Al-fetori / Reuters

    A musician, who had joined anti-Gadhafi fighters on the front line to entertain them, strums his guitar while being helped by doctors after he was injured during fighting between the pro- and anti-Gadhafi forces in Sirte Oct. 15. Picture received Oct. 16.

    Rebel guitarist injured during fighting in Libya

    By Katie Cannon, Senior Multimedia Editor

    Do you think this is the same musician pictured in Natalia Jimenez's post from last week? Either way, he is dedicated.

  • Gunfights, clashes erupt in Libyan capital

    By Rich Shulman

    What's with all the shouting?

    AP reports:

    Gunfights broke out in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Friday between supporters of deposed leader Moammar Gadhafi and forces of the National Transitional Council, raising fears of an insurgency against the country's new rulers.

    Hundreds of NTC fighters in trucks shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest) careered toward the Abu Salim neighborhood, a center of support for Gadhafi, and the two sides exchanged automatic and heavy machine gun fire.

    Related:

    Report: Cost of 'Arab Spring' more than $55 billion

    Slideshow: Conflict in Libya

    Ismail Zitouni / Reuters

    Anti-Gadhafi forces shout during a gun battle with Gadhafi supporters in the Abu Salim neighbourhood in Tripoli October 14, 2011. A gun battle broke out in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Friday between 20 to 50 armed supporters of deposed leader
    Moammar Gadhafi and forces of the National Transitional Council (NTC), a Reuters witness and residents said.


    Ismail Zitouni / Reuters

    Anti-Gaddafi forces shout during a gun battle with pro-Gadhafi supporters in the Abu Salim neighborhood in Tripoli October 14.

    Gun battles break out in Tripoli between Moammar Gadhafi supporters and forces loyal to Libya's new National Transitional Council. NBC's Michelle Kosinski reports.

  • Gadhafi loyalists in two small pockets of Sirte

    By Rich Shulman

    As the battle for Sirte winds down, the images become more dramatic. You can see in the third photo below how close the photographers are to the action.

    AP reports:

    Fighters loyal to deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi are now holding out in just two small pockets of his home town Sirte Wednesday, government commanders said after making gains overnight.

    Gaddafi loyalists have fought tenaciously for weeks in Sirte, one of just two major towns they still control nearly two months since rebels seized the capital Tripoli.

    Fighters from the interim Libyan government's volunteer army walked slowly up the same battle-scarred streets strewn with empty ammunition cases where they had fought fierce clashes a day before. Other fighters searched the damaged houses as a few dazed civilians emerged from their basements.

    Previous PhotoBlog posts from Libya.

    Ahmad Al-Rubaye / AFP - Getty Images

    A fighter loyal to Libya's new regime the Transitional national Council (NTC) tries to break down a door during fighting in the town of Sirte on October 12 as they move in for the kill against Moammar Gadhafi's diehards in his hometown.


    Ahmad Al-Rubaye / AFP - Getty Images

    A fighter loyal to Libya's new regime fires his weapon during fighting in the town of Sirte on October 12.

    Mohamed Messara / EPA

    Libyan rebels carry an injured comrade, after he was wounded during the battle to liberate the city of Sirte, Libya October 12.

    Aris Messinis / AFP - Getty Images

    Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) soldiers capture an alleged fighter (C) loyal to Moammar Gadhafi during street battles in Sirte on October 12, 2011 as Libya's new regime forces were moving in for the kill against Gadhafi's diehards in his hometown.

     

  • A look inside the Djeida prison in Tripoli

    By Natalia Jimenez, NBC News

    A peek into the Djeida prison in Tripoli, Libya that currently houses about 1400 inmates, including Gadhafi loyalist fighters, criminals, former regime ministers and foreign immigrants.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    Female inmates at the Tripoli's infamous Djeida prison walk about the courtyard on Oct. 11. Some 1400 inmates are detained in this facility, among them former regime ministers, loyalist fighters, ordinary criminals and foreign immigrants.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    An inmate of the infamous Djeida prison gestures towards a warden in Tripoli on October 11, 2011.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    Female inmates of the infamous Djeida prison stand in their cell in Tripoli on Oct. 11.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    Two couples of sub-Saharan African immigrants confined in the Djeida prison in Tripoli on Oct. 11. Both women are pregnant.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    A female inmate of the infamous Djeida prison washes her dishes in Tripoli on October 11, 2011.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    A female inmate leans against a wall at the infamous Djeida prison in Tripoli on Oct. 11.

    See more pictures of Libya in our slideshow and on PhotoBlog.

  • Aris Messinis / AFP - Getty Images

    Libya's new regime forces fire their weapons at fighters loyal to fugitive strongman Moammar Gadhafi as a comrade plays a guitar during a battle in Sirte on Oct. 10, in a drive to control Gadhafi's hometown after a month-long siege.

    Libyan fighter brings guitar, not gun to firefight

    By Natalia Jimenez, NBC News

    I did a double take when I first came across this photo. In the middle of heavy fighting in Sirte, a Libyan fighter carries a guitar with him instead of a firearm.

    This image brings up many questions, among them: what song was he singing?

  • Battle for Sirte rages on in Libya

    By Jonathan Woods, msnbc.com

    The month-long battle fighting for Moammar Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte by all appearances seems to be intensifying.

    Reuters reports that Libyan transitional government forces captured landmark buildings in a thrust toward the center of Sirte, but were holding off an assault on its main square to allow civilians to escape the chaotic fighting.

    Mohamed Messara / EPA

    Libyan rebels fire a rocket as they enter Sirte, Libya, on Monday, Oct. 10. Fighters loyal to Libya's interim rulers withdrew from the airport in the desert town of Bani Walid amid fighting with forces loyal to fugitive leader Muammar Gaddafi. The withdrawal comes a day after the fighters claimed major advances in Sirte and Bani Walid, the last strongholds of Gadhafi.

    Majid Saeedi / Getty Images

    A Libyan rebel fighter mourns the death of a comrade on Oct. 7 in Sirte, Libya. National Transitional Council fighters say this is the final assault on Gadhafi's hometown as they capture the main hospital, University and the Ouagadougou conference center in the city.

    Aris Messinis / AFP - Getty Images

    Libyans battle fighters loyal to Moammar Gadhafi in Sirte on Monday, Oct. 10, in a drive to control Gadhafi's hometown after a month-long siege.

     Read more in our full story.

  • Students at the University of Tripoli adjust to a new reality

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    Students at the University of Tripoli, formerly Al-Fateh University, gather at a volunteer's meeting on October 9. The academic year started a little late this year, after the ouster of former leader Moammar Gadhafi, but the University of Tripoli is full of enthusiastic students with new found freedoms now only missing their comrades still on the front.

    Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

    Students at the University of Tripoli chat in the conference hall on October 9.

    By David R Arnott, NBC News

    As a new academic year begins, staff and students at the University of Tripoli are adjusting to a new reality. An article in The Wall Street Journal on October 6 examined how the transition of power is affecting life at the university, where 13 professors and lecturers were among those whose names were posted on a blacklist of alleged collaborators with Moammar Gadhafi's fallen regime.

  • Aris Messinis / AFP - Getty Images

    A Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) fighter inspects a room at ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi's Sirte palace, partly destroyed by NATO air raids according to fighters, on Oct. 9. Forces of Libya's new regime were on the verge of claiming full control of Muammar Gadhafi's hometown Sirte after seizing its showpiece conference center and university from his diehards.

    NTC fighter inspects Gadhafi's Sirte palace after new regime seizes conference center, university

    Reuters reports:

    Libyan transitional government forces said on Sunday they had captured landmark buildings in a thrust toward the center of Muammar Gadhafi's hometown Sirte, but were holding off an assault on its main square to allow civilians to escape the chaotic fighting.

    Taking Sirte would bring Libya's new rulers a big step closer to establishing control of the entire, sprawling North African country almost two months after they seized the capital Tripoli, but pro-Gadhafi snipers have slowed their advance.

    Read the full story here.

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