Sporadic gunfire inside Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli

Col Muammar Gaddafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound in Tripoli Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called on Muammar Gaddafi and Libya's rebels to stop fighting and sit down for talks.  "We want the Libyans to come to an agreement among themselves," Medvedev

said after talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il at a Siberian military base. "We would like [the fighting] to stop as soon as possible and for them to sit down at the negotiating table and reach an agreement on Libya's future." Medvedev also suggested Moscow could recognise the rebels as Libya's formal government if they can unite the country. He said Gaddafi still has some influence and military capabilities despite rebel successes.

Despite remaining pockets of resistance in the capital and elsewhere, Libyans celebrate their gains. Al Jazeera's Sue Turton, reporting from inside the Bab al-Aziziya compound, said that although Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's stronghold has fallen "fighting  is far from over on in Tripoli". "It is not yet apparent that the rebels have control of this city." While Al Jazeera's Evan Hill, also at the Bab al-Aziziya compound said that "Explosions have been heard here and occasional gunfire. Rebels told me there are snipers about and that four people have been injured by gunshots."

Meanwhile, Diplomats and expats at Libya's embassy in Manila smashed portraits of Muammar Gaddafi and raised the rebel flag in the latest in a months-long wave of defections against the longtime leader at Libyan missions worldwide.
Libyan consul Faraj Zarroug says about 85 per cent of his country's 165 diplomatic missions around the globe have recognised the interim rebel government, National Transitional Council. Zarroug says Gaddafi's power has plummeted, adding: "It's game over". Diplomats at the mission in the Philippine capital pulled down Gaddafi's green flag and raised the rebel while young expatriates smashed glass-covered portraits. Zarroug says pro-democracy rebel forces are fighting pockets of Gaddafi loyalists in the Libyan capital, but that "probably in a few days, everything will be over".

In recent developments, A gang of armed robbers attacked the South Korean ambassador's residence in Tripoli and stole televisions and other gadgets, but no one was hurt during the rioting, a diplomatic source in Seoul said Wednesday. About 30 rioters stormed the residence building in the Libyan capital on Tuesday evening (local time), where two or three local employees were working at the time, but no one was injured in the looting, the source said on the condition of anonymity. Meanwhile, Col Muammar Gaddafi has vowed death or victory in the fight against "aggression", reports say, after Libyan rebels seized his Tripoli compound. Pro-Gaddafi al-Urubah TV said the colonel- whose whereabouts remain unknown - made an audio speech, saying the retreat from the Bab al-Aziziya compound was a "tactical move". The compound was one of the final areas under Col Gaddafi's control in Tripoli. The rebels have been celebrating their gains in the capital's Green Square.

TV footage also showed fighters breaking the head off a statue of the Libyan leader and kicking it along the ground after capturing Bab al-Aziziya on Tuesday. They also seized items from Col Gaddafi's home. However, there are still pockets of resistance in the capital, including the Abu Salim and al-Hadba districts, and near the Hotel Rixos, where many foreign journalists are staying. The BBC's Rana Jawad in Tripoli says there is a real sense that this is the end of Col Gaddafi's rule, but the proper celebrations will not begin until he and his family are found. Many city residents are also still very much on the edge, wary of what Col Gaddafi's regime might do, our correspondent says.

Speaking on a local Tripoli radio station on Wednesday, Col Gaddafi pledged "martyrdom or victory" in the fight against Nato and the Libyan rebels, al-Urubah said. Col Gaddafi also said that his compound was destroyed by 64 Nato air strikes.  Al-Urubah also broadcast what it said was a live telephone interview with government spokesman Musa Ibrahim.He said Libya would be turned into a "burning volcano and a fire under the feet of the invaders".
The spokesman also said that 6,000 volunteers had arrived to Libya to fight for Col Gaddafi. The claim has not been independently verified.

On Tuesday morning, heavily armed rebel fighters streamed into the capital in dozens of pick-up trucks to take part in the attack on Bab al-Aziziya. After five hours of intense fighting, they breached one of the main gates and then quickly overran the compound. The rebels were shown destroying statues - including the iconic giant golden hand crushing a US fighter jet - firing guns in the air in celebration, and seizing weapons and ammunition from arms depots. Col Gaddafi's Bedouin tent, where he used to receive visiting foreign dignitaries, was set on fire, while his golf cart, in which he appeared frequently, was paraded around the compound.

There were no obvious signs of resistance in the compound by Tuesday evening, despite reports that hundreds of Gaddafi loyalists had been tasked with guarding it. "We have won the battle," Abdul Hakim Belhaj, the top rebel commander in Tripoli, told al-Jazeera. "They fled like rats." "We entered the tyrant's offices, his rooms, we searched everywhere, but there was no-one."It is not known if Col Gaddafi and his family were in Bab al-Aziziya on Tuesday, but the complex is reported to be connected by underground tunnels to various key locations across the city.The Gaddafi family are also believed to have access to numerous safe houses in Tripoli and beyond.

The situation is unclear in the colonel's hometown of Sirte, which has been a stronghold of regime loyalists. Reports said retreating government troops were heading there. And rebel leader Mahmoud Jibril, currently in Qatar, warned that there were still places that needed urgent help, such as the southern city of Sebha which is home to many members of Col Gaddafi's tribe. "Today, the atrocious Gaddafi's brigades continued to bomb Sebha city viciously," said Mr Jibril, who is considered as prime minister of the interim rebel government, the National Transitional Council (NTC). "In the next stage, we must extend a helping hand and support to all the cities that have not yet risen, so as to rise and to join the procession of glory."

Members of the NTC, which has so far been based in the eastern city of Benghazi, said they planned to fly to Tripoli on Wednesday to start work on forming a new government. Rebel representatives also prepared for high-level talks in Qatar on Wednesday with envoys of the US, UK, France, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates to discuss how to move ahead in the post-Gaddafi Libya. Meanwhile, the US state department said the US would seek to release between $1bn and $1.5bn (£600m and £900m) in frozen Libyan funds in the coming days, and hand the money to the NTC.The rebels swept into Tripoli at the weekend, but after a swift advance they met stiff resistance in a number of areas on Monday.The uprising against Col Gaddafi's 41-year rule began in February. The rebels held the east of the country and pockets of the west, before making their push towards the capital at the weekend.Nato air strikes have been targeting Col Gaddafi's forces, acting on a UN mandate to protect civilians.

Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, a spokesman for the rebel National Transitional Council, told Egyptian state television that Muammar Gaddafi must face trial in Libya before being transferred to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Gaddafi, who was indicted by the ICC in May for war crimes, is still in LIbya and there is "no chance" for rebels to would allow him an escape route, Ghoga said. Gaddafi is still in Libya, if not in Tripoli, then he may have sneaked to the centre [of the country] or the south. We are keen to capture Gaddafi and to try him in Libya before he is tried in the criminal court.