Muammar Qadhafi is sounding out the possibility of handing over power, a Russian newspaper said on Tuesday, but the Libyan government denied it was in talks about the veteran leader stepping down. Five months into a conflict that has embroiled Nato and become the bloodiest of the "Arab Spring" uprisings, there has been a flurry of reports about talks on Qadhafi ending his 41 years in power in exchange for security guarantees.
Russia's respected Kommersant newspaper based its story on a high-level source in Moscow. But the report was denied in Tripoli and Italy said it believed talk of a deal was a ruse by Qadhafi's administration.
"Information about negotiations about Qadhafi stepping down or seeking a safe refuge inside or outside the country is simply untrue," Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim told Reuters. "Qadhafi is not negotiable, this is our position of principle, and the future of Libya will be decided by Libyans. Qadhafi is an historical symbol, and Libyans will die to defend him," said Ibrahim.
Despite the talk of a peace deal, the fighting between government forces and rebels continues. A Reuters reporter in Misrata, 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli, said rebel positions in the Dafniya district on the city's western outskirts came under heavy artillery fire on Tuesday.The bodies of five rebel fighters were brought in to Misrata's al-Hekma hospital. Medical workers there said 35 fighters had been wounded.