Britons rescued from Libya describe 'hellish' scenes
Fighting spreads to Tripoli
Libyan regime calls on protesters to surrender weapons
Britons return from Libya
Obama tells Gaddafi to stop violence
Benghazi becomes Libya's first free city
10.36am: We have been forwarded an email from a man in Tripoli, who makes a heartfelt plea for intervention. It was filed in haste as he was afraid internet service would be interrupted.
The security council should take actions not only words, people inside has no weapon so how can you imagine that they defend or fight against the mercenaries, we use stones and whatsoever and we go outside at night to get the benefit of the dark but ... against heavy and light weapons it's like you're committing suicide ... people had to do this to keep the battle in other field away of their families and houses. The problem with the leaders of the western word is that they care only about money and business, they have a strong relations with him and he is a tycoon and president of a wealthy country ... probably calculations are being made, what a shame. Your people should really do us a favour and protest outside in front of the American embassy and the Italian parliament ... Europe unfortunately is doing almost nothing, may be because of his tight control over communications so they know almost nothing. Plz do something tangible. Let me add one last frightful news ... I've just heard that bunch of his gang get into the morgue of Tripoli's hospital by force and took the dead bodies somewhere to hide them, they killed all had who tried to stop them .... you see now that it's even worse than what you have been told! I've to go now ...
10.22am: David Cameron has apologised for the much-criticised government effort to evacuate British citizens out of Libya, saying he was "extremely sorry" for the delays. Click here for the full story.
10.15am - Yemen: In signs of growing u! nrest, a bomb exploded during a protest in the south, killing one person and wounding two, a local official said. The explosion occurred in the town of Lawdar, where secessionist sentiment is rife, in the southern province of Abyan.
The death brought to 16 the number of fatalities in a wave of nationwide protests against President Ali Abdullah Saleh's 32-year rule in the past week. On Tuesday at least two protesters were shot dead during a street battle between pro- and anti-government demonstrators at the gates of Sana'a University.
The fatalities were the first in the capital after 12 days of anti-government protests that have swept across the country. Yesterday it emerged that seven members of parliament resigned in protest at violence used to quell demonstrations and called on Saleh to quit.
10.09am: Oil prices climbed to their highest level in 30 months in London as Libya's uprising reduced shipments and sparked fears of unrest spreading across the Middle East. Brent crude hit $119 a barrel for the first time since August 2008, while benchmark crude for April delivery on the New York mercantile exchange was up nearly $4 at $101.67.
Major western oil companies, such as Italian firm Eni and Spain's Repsol-YPF, have suspended production, while British giant BP has evacuated staff. Ongoing fears over the impact of soaring oil prices on economic prospects meant the FTSE 100 index fell by 1% at one stage.
Meanwhile, a group of petrol retailers predicted the rise in Brent crude will filter through to British forecourts in the next few weeks, leading to an estimated 5p per litre increase by April 1.
Michael Hewson, an analyst at CMC Markets, said oil prices were being pushed up by a combination of restricted production and speculation.
"There has been disruption to production - but Libya accounts for only 2% of th! e world' s oil supply," he said. "However, Europe takes about 50% of its oil from Libya and will have to source oil from elsewhere and possibly pay more for it."
10.04am: More finger wagging from Saif al-Islam, one of Muammar Gaddafi's sons, while speaking on Libyan national television in Tripoli. Saif and his father have been the public faces of the regime as it tries to cling on to power.
9.51am: More tweets from the intrepid Martin Chulov in Benghazi.
Most govt buildings here in Benghazi razed. Assault on the state is breathtaking in scale #Libya #Feb17
Aftermath of attack on army base incredible. This is a blood and guts revolution. No peaceful protest. #libya #feb17
#libya's army has clearly split. There's no way back for ghaddafi in the east. #feb17
Protesters stole bull dozers to break into the army base. At least a dozen still wedged against walls. #libya
9.47am: Another town has fallen to rebel forces, Reuters reports.
Anti-government militias are in control of the Libyan town of Zuara, about 75 miles west of the capital, Egyptian workers who crossed into neighbouring Tunisia told Reuters on Thursday. The workers, who said they were based on a construction site in Zuara until they fled the country, said there was no sign of police or military and the town was controlled by "popular committees" armed with automatic weapons.
9.26am: Martin Chulov has been tweeting about Benghazi.
9.14am: An interesting article in the New York Times suggests Gaddafi maybe preparing for a final showdown on the streets of Tripoli today. Witnesses in the city told reporters he has deployed "thousands of mercenaries and irregular security" personnel on roads leading to the capital over the past 24 hours as his hold over the regular army sl! ips away .
[They are] massing on roads to the capital, Tripoli, where one resident described scenes evocative of anarchic Somalia: clusters of heavily armed men in mismatched uniforms clutching machine guns and willing to carry out orders to kill Libyans that other police and military units, and even fighter pilots, have refused.
Some residents of Tripoli said they took the gathering army as a sign that the uprising might be entering a decisive stage, with Colonel Gaddafi fortifying his main stronghold in the capital and protesters there gearing up for their first organized demonstration after days of spontaneous rioting and bloody crackdowns. "
The piece claims that Gaddafi has built up this mercenary force over many years.
"Distrustful of even his own generals, Colonel Gaddafi has for years quietly built up this ruthless and loyal force. It is made up of special brigades headed by his sons, segments of the military loyal to his native tribe and its allies, and legions of African mercenaries he has helped train and equip. Many are believed to have fought elsewhere, in places like Sudan, but he has now called them back."
9.13am: Oliva Fairless, who talked to the Guardian earlier this week about her mother, 66, and partner, who were trapped in Tripoli, has told us that they have managed to reach Warsaw thanks to the Polish ambassador in Libya, who was a "star".
They were stuck in the Corinthia hotel in Tripoli and decided to leave for the airport yesterday because they were afraid they would not be able to get petrol as supplies were running low.
My mother said the airport was chaotic, it was like a refugee camp with about 10,000 people. There were about 94 people in the British section outside the airport, where many Arab workers were trying to get out. They could hear screaming and they could hear ! shooting , although it was probably for purposes for crowd control. My mother and partner were stuck there from 11am to 6.30pm, it was raining, muddy and freezing.
The Polish ambassador came in person and offered seats on a Polish plane and 22 Brits accepted. He was a star, holding an umbrella for people, offering people shelter in his car. When the Polish plane came, it took three hours to get through the airport and the plane finally left at 12.10am. We're really disappointed at the FCO response. They were left stranded with no advice and no communications.
8.52am: Passengers landing at Gatwick this morning spoke of their relief to be home as they described the "hellish" scenes in Libya.
Helena Sheehan, 66, said she had just experienced "some of the worst hours of her life".
She said: "Libya is descending into hell. The airport is like nothing I've ever seen in my whole life. It's absolute chaos. There's just thousands and thousands of people trying to get out."
Oil worker Bryan Richards escaped from Libya last night on what he was told was the Polish President's official plane after being offered one of 50 seats. Speaking to the BBC Radio 4 Today programme from Warsaw, he said: "I am not quite sure how it came about but we had a call saying that there's a Polish plane going with 50 seats. 'Does anyone want one?' It was a bit of no-brainer really. I am in Warsaw. I am out of the sand and into the snow."
He said he was nearly "bludgeoned" as he tried to escape through Tripoli airport.
"I was the tail-end Charlie of our little entourage going through the airport. I do this many times a year coming in and out of Tripoli airport. Now, we see organised chaos but we are used to it. This was manic. This was the worst nightmare of pop concerts and football hooligans all mixed into one."
8.45am: While Muammar Gaddafi has lost control of Benghazi, Libya's second city, he is ! fighting tooth and nail to hang on to the capital Tripoli. Just how desperate things are in Tripoli can be gauged by this Reuters report out of Cairo.
The Libyan people's committee for general security called on protesters to surrender their weapons and offered rewards for those who inform on protest leaders, in a statement broadcast live on Libyan TV.
"He who submits his weapon and shows remorse will be exempted from being pursued legally. The committee calls on citizens to cooperate and inform on those who led on the youth or supplied them with money, equipment or intoxicating substances and hallucinatory pills," the statement said.
The committee also said those cooperating would be given money.
"A lucrative monetary reward will be given to anyone who contributes or informs on them," the statement, read out by a Libyan army officer, said on television monitored in Cairo.
Benghazi may be free but it has paid a heavy price. Read Martin Chulov's gripping account of Libya's first free city, where the rebels are busy erasing all traces of the man who has ruled the country for 41 years.
Ian Black writes about Gaddafi's increasing isolation as senior aides defect.
Barack Obama finally breaks silence on Libya to condemn ruling regime and make threat of sanctions.
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