Early Monday morning, a Libyan rebel spokesperson said that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte was captured by them. No independent verification of the rebel statement was immediately available…

Rebels said on Sunday they now had their sights on the coastal town of Sirte, Gaddafi’s hometown and an important military base about 150 km (90 miles) further along the coast. A Reuters reporter in Sirte heard four blasts on Sunday night. It was unclear if they were in the town or its outskirts.

The reporter also saw a convoy of 20 military vehicles including truck-mounted anti-aircraft guns leaving Sirte and moving westwards towards Tripoli, along with dozens of civilian cars carrying families and stuffed with personal belongings.

“We want to go to Sirte today. I don’t know if it will happen,” said 25-year-old rebel fighter Marjai Agouri as he waited with 100 others outside Bin Jawad with three multiple rocket launchers, six anti-aircraft guns and around a dozen pickup trucks mounted with machine guns.