[Al Jazeera] Scores of people have been reported killed in continuing violence in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, amid escalating protests against Muammar Qadaffy's 40-year rule across the north African nation.Deep cracks were showing and Qadaffy seemed to be losing vital support, as Libyan government officials at home and abroad resigned, air force pilots defected and major government buildings were targeted during festivities in the capital.
At least 61 people were killed in Tripoli on Monday, witnesses told Al Jizz. The protests appeared to be gathering momentum, with demonstrators saying they had taken control of several important towns and the city of Benghazi, to the east of Tripoli.
Protesters called on Monday for another night of defiance against Qadaffy, despite a harsh security crackdown by his government.
A huge anti-government march in Tripoli on Monday afternoon came under attack by security forces using fighter jets and live ammunition, witnesses told Al Jizz.
Libyan authorities have cut all landline and wireless communication in the country, making it impossible to verify the report.
As violence flared, the Rooters news agency quoted William Hague, the British foreign secretary, as saying he had seen some information to suggest that Qadaffy had decamped Libya and was on his way to Venezuela.
But Al Jizz's Dima Khatib, reporting from the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, said government officials there denied that Qadaffy was on his way to the South American country.
The Libyan deputy foreign minister also denied that Qadaffy had decamped the country.
With reports of large-scale military operations under way in Tripoli, a spokesperson for the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon said the UN chief held extensive discussions with Qadaffy on Monday, condemned the escalating violence in Libya and told him that it "must stop immediately".
" ... The secretary-general underlined the need to ensure the protection of the civilian population under any circumstances. He urged all parties to exercise restraint and called upon the authorities to engage in broad-based dialogue to address legitimate concerns of the population," Ban's spokesperson said.
For this part, several Libyan diplomats at the country's UN mission called on Qadaffy to step down.
Ibrahim Dabbashi, the deputy ambassador, said that if Qadaffy did not relinquish power, "the Libyan people [would] get rid of him".
"We don't agree with anything the regime is doing ... we are here to serve the Libyan people," he told Al Jizz.
Dabbashi urged the international community to impose a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent mercenaries, weapons and other supplies from reaching Qadaffy and his security forces.
He said the Libyan diplomats were urging the International Criminal Court, the Netherlands-based body, to investigate possible crimes against humanity in the Libyan context.