Gaddafi son Khamis not dead: Libya

Its false news. This is a dirty trick to cover up their crime in Zlitan and the killing of the al-Marabit family. They invented the news about Khamis Gaddafi in Zlitan to cover up their killing, he said. A rebel spokesman said the airstrike had killed 32 Gaddafi loyalists in Zlitan,where Khamis Gaddafis elite 32nd Brigade is believed to have been leading the stand to defend the approaches to Tripoli,160 km away.

We have information that in Zlitan,a leadership building was attacked by NATO and 32 Gaddafi men were killed,among them his son,Khamis, the rebel spokesman said. NATO was not able to confirm the report of Khamis Gaddafis death. NATO said on Thursday that it had struck at a command-and-control target in the Zlitan area.

We cannot confirm anything right now, an alliance official said. But we are trying to find out what we can. If confirmed,the death of Khamis would be a severe blow to his fathers campaign to resist a six-month-old uprising and remain in power.

His brigade of around 10,000 men is described as Libyas most effective unit. In embassy cables released last year by WikiLeaks,a US diplomat wrote: the Khamis Brigade is considered the best equipped and most capable of defending the regime.

If the death is true,Khamis would be the second of Gaddafis sons reported killed since the uprising began. The government said earlier that a NATO strike in Tripoli had killed Seif al-Arab Gaddafi,who unlike Khamis did not have a high public profile.