Endgame?

Six months into their campaign to topple Moammar Gadhafi, Libyan rebels said Wednesday they were confident of achieving their aims by the end of the month.

"We are entering a decisive phase," said Mansur Saif al-Nasr, the rebel National Transitional Council's envoy to France. "We hope to celebrate the final victory at the same time as the end of the (Muslim holy month of) Ramadan."

Rebel fighters were said to control the vital port city of Zawiyah to the west of Tripoli as they continued their push to isolate the capital and cut off key road links to the outside.

There were reports that rebels had now reached the strategically important western city of Al-Heisha, that links Tripoli and Sirte -Gadhafi's hometown and an army stronghold.

Rebels hope their battlefield strategy will trigger high-level defections and an uprising against the regime.

Rebel leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil denied reports that the NTC was negotiating with Gadhafi to resolve the conflict. "There are no negotiations, either direct or indirect, with the Gadhafi regime," he said, adding that Gadhafi must leave and step down. "It is unthinkable to hold any negotiations or talks that disregard this basic principle."

Gadhafi himself remained defiant, urging his followers to continue their battle against NATO and the rebels. "The end of the colonizer (NATO) is close and the end of the rats is close," he said in telephone message broadcast on state television.

Game almost over?

Meanwhile the US said there were clear indications that Gadhafi's forces were on the defensive and that the regime was beginning to crack amid reports of another senior figure defecting from the regime.

"Gadhafi's forces are weakened and this latest defection is another example of how weak they've gotten," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said. "I think the sense is that Gadhafi's days are numbered."

Author: Rob Mudge (Reuters, AFP, dpa)
Editor: Michael Knigge