Rebels fighting to topple Muammar Qadhafi scorned reports of secret talks with the Libyan leader on Monday as their forces fought to secure gains and the United States said Qadhafi's days were numbered. After 41 years of supreme power in his oil-rich desert state 69-year-old Qadhafi was isolated in the capital Tripoli, with reinvigorated rebel forces closing in from the West and South.
Libya's rebel National Transitional Council (NTC), recognised by many of the Nato nations whose air power is supporting their assault, denied any kind of negotiation with Qadhafi to resolve the six-month-old conflict. "The NTC would like to affirm that there are no negotiations either direct or indirect with the Qadhafi regime or with the special envoy of the United Nations," said NTC leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil. Qadhafi must step down and leave Libya, he said. "It is unthinkable to hold any negotiations or talks that disregard this basic principle."
In Washington, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said Qadhafi's forces had been thrown back onto the defensive, and reports that a senior figure in the Libyan security apparatus had defected indicated the regime was cracking. "Qadhafi's forces are weakened and this latest defection is another example of how weak they've gotten," Panetta said. "I think the sense is that Qadhafi's days are numbered," Panetta said at event with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Rebels fighting to topple Qadhafi seized two strategic towns near Tripoli over the past two days, cutting the city off from its supply lines and leaving the Libyan leader with a dwindling set of options if he is to stay in power. However, pro-Qadhafi forces were mounting a fight-back in one of those towns, Zawiyah, west of Tripoli.
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