There are unconfirmed reports that Khamis Gadhafi has been killed. Rebels are claiming that a NATO strike killed Gadhafi's son and 32 others in Zlitan, a frontline town where Khamis Gadhafi’s 32nd Brigade is believed to have been leading the stand to defend the outskirts of Tripoli, 160 km (100 miles) away.
This is not the first time that reports of Gadhaffi's death have surfaced, the most recent being last March. Today, VOA is reporting:
Libyan rebels say a NATO airstrike has killed Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son Khamis and more than 30 other people.
There was no independent confirmation that Khamis Gadhafi had been killed. A NATO official at operations headquarters in Naples said the alliance is looking into the report.
Khamis Gadhafi has served as one of the main commanders of his father's military forces. His death would deal a strong blow to the Libyan leader's effort to quell a months-long uprising. Earlier this year Moammar Gadhafi's government said a NATO airstrike killed another of his sons, Saif al-Arab.
On Thursday, Gadhafi's government accused NATO of bombing civilian targets in Zlitan.
The government made the accusations through its state-controlled television station, a day after officials denied rebel claims that opposition fighters had gained control of the town.
NATO is operating in Libya under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians from attacks by Gadhafi's forces.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.