— Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi survived a NATO missile strike Saturday that killed his youngest son and three grandchildren and wounded friends and relatives, Libya's spokesman said.
Gaddafi and his wife were in the Tripoli house of his 29-year-old son, Saif al-Arab Gaddafi, when it was hit by at least one missile fired by a NATO warplane, according to Libyan spokesman Moussa Ibrahim.
“The leader himself is in good health,” Ibrahim said. “He was not harmed. The wife is also in good health.”
“The attack resulted in the martyrdom of brother Saif al-Arab Gaddafi, 29 years old, and three of the leader’s grandchildren,” Ibrahim said. He described Saif as a student.
The one-story house in a Tripoli residential neighborhood was heavily damaged.
Saif al-Arab Gaddafi was the sixth son of Gaddafi. He had spent much of his time in Germany in recent years.
NATO on Saturday brushed aside Muammar Gaddafi’s call for a truce and negotiations to end an international bombing campaign, and alliance warships cleared sea mines laid by his forces near the harbor of the only major city held by rebels in western Libya.
Three aid ships were prevented from docking at the port of Misrata during the sweep, temporarily cutting off the besieged city of 300,000 people from its only lifeline.
In a rambling pre-dawn speech, Gaddafi said “the door to peace is open.” “You are the aggressors. We will negotiate with you. Come, France, Italy, U.K., America, come to negotiate with us. Why are you attacking us?” he asked. He also railed against foreign intervention, saying Libyans have the right to choose their own political system, but not under the threat of NATO bombings.
Late Saturday evening, two booms were heard in Tripoli, apparently from NATO airstrikes. Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim declined to comment when asked what was targeted.
Clashes continued around the edges of Misrata, with intense battles in the al-Gheran neighborhood southwest of the city center. The fighting killed at least 10 people, including two brothers aged 10 and 16, and wounded 17 others, according to officials at central Hikma hospital.
Five fighters, including a rebel commander, were killed in clashes with Gaddafi’s troops in the city’s east.
Fighter Mohammed Sebti said rebels were using heavy artillery they had captured and managed to hit a government vehicle. Gaddafi’s forces responded with truck-mounted rockets.
Human Rights Watch said two mines had been destroyed by NATO forces combing Misrata’s port while a third was being closely monitored.
On Friday, NATO intercepted boats laying anti-ship mines in the waters near Misrata. A NATO warship could be seen in the distance while a smaller boat circled the harbor’s entrance Saturday.
Rebel security officials said NATO ships had been searching since about 1 a.m., and one of the mines was destroyed nearly two miles from the port.
Hundreds of desperate migrants and residents waited for the port to reopen.
Ibrahim, the government spokesman, said he was unaware of the mine-laying. He said the government is trying to prevent weapons from reaching the rebels by sea and any aid shipments must be coordinated with the authorities and preferably should come overland.
Hubbard reported from Misrata, Libya. AP writer Slobodan Lekic in Brussels contributed to this report. See TIME’s special report “The Middle East in Revolt.”
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