Gaddafi's son killed in air strikes
Crowds chanting support for Muammar Gaddafi gathered in Tripoli yesterday for the funeral of his son, killed in a Nato air strike that has raised questions about the West's role in the uprising against the Libyan leader.
Gaddafi's forces halted their bombardment of the port in the rebel-held city of Misrata after Nato air strikes but the port remained closed, a rebel spokesman said, thwarting efforts to bring supplies in by sea to the besieged city.
Nato planes also struck overnight on positions held by Libyan government forces near the rebel-held town of Zintan.
On Saturday, a Nato air raid on a Gaddafi compound killed his 29-year-old son Saif al-Arab and three young grandchildren.
The announcement of the deaths triggered attacks by angry crowds on the British and French embassies and the US diplomatic mission in Tripoli, and accusations from the Libyan officials that Nato had been trying to assassinate Gaddafi.
About 2,000 people carrying flags and pictures of Gaddafi turned out for the funeral. They pumped their fists in the air and vowed to avenge the death of Saif al-Arab.
Saif al-Arab's coffin, covered in flowers and wrapped in the green flag that has represented Libya since Gaddafi took power in a 1969 coup, was carried through the crowds to the grave at Hani cemetery in the Libyan capital.
Gaddafi did not appear to be at the funeral but Saif al-Islam, the most prominent of his seven sons, attended along with his elder half-brother Mohammed.
Saif al-Arab had no children but three of his nieces and nephews, all under three years old, were killed in Saturday's blast, the government says. They were the children of Saif al-Arab's siblings Hannibal, Aisha and Mohammed Gaddafi.
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