Gaddafi men 'trapped' but fight goes on

Fighters loyal to deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi are now holding out in just two small pockets of his hometown Sirte, forces of the new government said today.

National Transitional Council (NTC) commander Mustah Hamza said: "More than 80 per cent of Sirte is under our control. Gaddafi's men are in neighbourhood Number Two and the 'Dollar' neighbourhood."

Government troops walked slowly up streets strewn with ammunition cases where they had fought a day before. Dazed civilians emerged from basements. Green Gaddafi flags still flew above many buildings.

In one skirmish, an NTC tank moved into a side street flooded with sewage. It fired at a building ahead, then infantrymen moved in, firing AK-47s. But they were ambushed and scrambled to safety after being met by a hail of rocket-propelled grenades and bullets. On a visit to Sirte yesterday NTC chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil said it would take two more days to capture the town.

Britain's bill for the Libya campaign is predicted to rise £40 million by December. The Ministry of De-fence's updated figure shows the war cost £260 million between March and last month. This is set to reach £300 million by mid-December.