-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com hi there i'm brooke baldwin.

want to remind you quickly. we're getting the president on camera. his remarks and statements on libya. we're getting that turned around for you. as soon as we do, we'll play it for you on cnn. check the clock, 3:00 eastern time. 9:00 p.m. in tripoli. the libyan capital now 90% controlled by western-backed rebels. that's according to the u.s. government. rife with rumors as to the fate of moammar gadhafi. for 42 years the country's undisputed, unbalanced leader, that's where we're going it start. is dpad fi holed up in his compound? it appears to be -- take a good look. it appears to be surrounded by a concrete wall. is he hiding in the international hotel? it is said to be teeming with gunmen or is moammar gadhafi dead already? take a listen to this. >> there are rumors rampant as you know in tripoli and

elsewhere. if he is alive, the best thing he can do for his people is to step down immediately and end this. >> three of his sons, they're in custody here. there are the photographs. saif, mohammed and saadi. but where is moammar gadhafi? will he be taken alive? sara sidner on the phone. night as fallen, 9:00 p.m. where you are. tell me where specifically you are and what you're hearing on the streets as far as the whereabouts of colonel gadhafi. >> we left tripoli moments ago. came out to the outskirts of the city where a lot of the rebels often retreat in the evening time. some of them actually even go home. what we were hearing in city center today were definitely loud gunshots back and forth. definitely they were engaging in a fight in the city center or around the city center. we were told by rebel forces

that there were snipers in the area around the square and some on top some of the buildings in parts of the city. there was definitely, a battle that we heard. we were unable to get close to it. we were at a checkpoint and told us it was too dangerous to go. they had it partly under control. you hear that a lot of times. but they are also saying that they do have 80% of the city under control. that there are people who are hiding in some of these urban areas. obviously a big city. people finding places to hide that were gadhafi loyalists who are part of his army or a part of his forces, mercenaries as they call them. as far as rumors about moammar gadhafi, there are a lot of rumors going on. that's where the difficulty that weigh we face. if we go and report something and there have been reports earlier on that he has surrendered himself or that he has been arrested, if those turn out to be not true, we have to be very careful about exactly

what kind of information that we're getting. very difficult, lot of rumors. now it is pitch dark. we're seeing fire around going off and hearing a couple of bangs. it is very hard to gauge exactly what has happened to moammar gadhafi and where exactly he is. >> so you talk about gun battles in parts of the city in tripoli. you're describing tracer fire as you're leaving the city. i'm curious, sara, do the gadhafi forces appear organized at all? >> it's hard to tell. because we can't see them ourselves. because we came in from a side of the city where the rebels pushed in, they try to clear areas and i've got to tell you, it is a bit of an eerie feeling to drive into a city and see no one except for the people who have come into the city to take the city. the rebels. we came in behind them.

all of the shots were shuttered. everything was closed. there were very few people on the streets in the morning. then we started to see people. more and more and more of these men that are standing with ak-47s and rifles in the back of cars. they have these gunner type of pickup trucks, welded guns to pickup trucks. they were going up and down the main thoroughfare that goes all the way down to green square, which they now want everyone to call martyr square. so you get a sense by the end of the day that even some residents were coming out and celebrating. but it was far and few between. because you would drive several kilometers, you wouldn't see much of anyone except for a few rebel trucks back and fort. every now and then there was a family on a stoop and chanting and cheering from their terrace. an interesting scene in tripoli. >> lep me understand the sort of

change. i was watching you and the entire crew reporting last night on cnn, green scare, now called martyr square, people rejoicing, down with gadhafi. now you describe it as eerily quiet. what changed? >> well, see here is the issue that they face. because i think everyone was expecting at least a large amount of gadhafi forces to try and sort of secure the city. so as soon as they hit the end of the city, the rebel forces were expecting to have a huge fight. when they were allowed to go all the way in and push all the way in, much more closely than they expected, there was this sense of jubilation. i think everyone ran to the square. but then as we found out, there were terrifying moments when suddenly someone screams sniper and the entire group of people there, around 40 to 50 people around there, they all ran for cover, including your cnn crew.

and we got behind pillars wondering. we couldn't see anything. it was the middle of the night. so as soon as that starts to happen and you realize, hold on a second, you may not be able to see large numbers of forces. but there are definitely elements security forces trying to protect the person who they have pledged to protect moammar gadhafi and they're willing to get on top of the buildings and shoot at anything that moves. we're also hearing from loud bangs, blasts. we know that a couple of other journalists have encountered, where they would turn a corner and suddenly be faced with what appear to be some sort of cannon and they had to turn tail and run the other way. urban warfare can be very, very eerie. you're not sure what you're going to encounter and when someone suddenly is going to pop up out of a building and shoot at you. you have no idea where it's coming from at first until you're hit. >> but because it's so eerie and still unstable, even though the

rebels say they have controlled 80%, 90% of the capital city, is it just an assumption there, sara, that the gadhafi regime has fallen, or is there still this sense that this has been too easy? >> i think it's pretty clear that these have taken over quite a few neighborhoods. what we were seeing today as opposed to when we went in, even from the morning to the evening is slowly, slowly, some of the residents coming out and getting more and more 'em bowlened to take part in what they felt was a celebration. we saw facepainting. the city has been shuttered for 20 hours. we saw people coming out slowly from their homes, almost in a sense of is it really happening? is it really true. because so many people were -- caught in the middle that. now, there there is a sense in some neighborhoods that, wait a minute, the gadhafi regime cannot react, it cannot react to

these rebels. they are taking over street by street parts of the city and -- there are of course, going to be people in this capital -- >> we're losing her. >> hearing a lot from them. i think people are a bit scared to admit if they are supporters of the gadhafi regime, that they actually are. some are standing back and watching. you're not sure which side they're happy about. they're just kind of standing and seeing what's going on in the streets. >> we are losing her. in and out. sara sidner, amazing reporting through the hours. she was saying it's difficult to tell which side, the fear palpable. coming forward and saying they're happy that the gadhafi regime has fallen. sara sidner, thank you so much. gadhafi forces right now are keeping our reporters on lockdown inside of that

international hotel. the hotel in tripoli. our matthew chance is there. we're expecting him to call in at any moment during this hour. we'll bring that to you live, of course. one of the final gadhafi strongholds in all of the capital city. coming up, i want to talk about the rebels. what started as a group has become an army. close to taking down moammar gadhafi. but rebels in libya are definitely getting help. we'll explain to you these reports of sleeper cells and which moves broke this battle wide open. plus, we're just getting in this brand new video as i mentioned of president obama, he's on vacation in martha's vineyard. he spoke a short time ago on what's happening. these developments in libya. the president uninterrupted in his own words, next. it's good for the entire community. at bank of america, we know the impact that local businesses have on communities, so we're helping them

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a short time ago we heard from the president. a brief interruption of his summer vacation in martha's vineyard to address the situation in libya. let's listen to this together. >> good afternoon everybody. i just completed a call with my national security council on the situation in libya. and earlier today i spoke to prime minister cameron about the extraordinary events taking place there. the situation is still very fluid. there remains a degree of uncertainty and there is still regime elements who pose a threat. but this much is clear. the gadhafi regime is coming to an end. and the future of libya is in the hands of its people. in just six months, the 42-year reign of moammar gadhafi has ununravelled. earlier this year we were inspired by the peaceful

protests that broke out across libya. this basic and joyful longing for human freedom echoed the voices that we had heard all across the region. from tune is to cairo. in the face of these protests, the gadhafi regime responded with brutal crackdowns. civilians were murdered in the streets, campaign of violence launched against the libyan people. gadhafi threat yented to hunt down peaceful protestors like rats. there existed the potential for wholesale massacres of innocent civilians. in the face of this a dpregs, the international community took action. the united states helped to shab a u.n. security council resolution mandating the protection of libyan civilians. an unprecedented coalition was formed including the united states, our nato partners and arab nations. in march, the international community launched a military operation to save lives and stop gadhafi's forces in their

tracks. in the early days of this intervention, the united states provided the bulk of the firepower. then our friends and allies stepped forward. the transitional national council established itself as a credible representative of the libyan people. the united states, together with our european allies and friends across the region, recognize the tnc as the legitimate governing authority in libya. gadhafi was cut off from arms and cash. his forces steadily degraded. from benghazi to misurata to the western mountains, the libyan opposition courageous yes confronted the regime and the tide turned in their favor. over the last several days, the situation in libya has reached a tipping point. as the opposition increased coordination from east to west, took town after town and the people of tripoli rose up to claim their freedom. for over four decades, libyan people had lived under the rule of a tyrant who denied them most

basic human rights. now the celebrations that we've seen in the streets of libya shows that the pursuit of human dignity is far stronger than any dictator. i want to emphasize that this is not over yet. as the regime collapses, there's still fierce fighting in some areas and we have reports of regime elements threatening to continue fighting. although it's clear that gadhafi's rule is over, he still has the opportunity to reduce further bloodshed by explicitly relinquishing power to the people of libya and calling for those forces that continue to fight to lay down their arms for the sake of libya. as we move forward from this pivotal phase, president opposition should continue to take important steps to bring about a transition that's peaceful, inclusive and just. as leadership of the tnc made clear, the rights of all libyans must be respected. true justice will not come from

reprisals and violence. it will come from reconciliation and a libya that allows its citizens to determine their own destiny. in that effort, the united states will be a friend and a partner. we will join with allies and partners to continue the work of safeguarding the people of libya as remaining regime elements menace parts of the country, i've directed my team to be in close contact with nato as well as the united nations to determine other steps that we can take to deal with the humanitarian impact, we're working to ensure that critical supplies reach those in need, particularly those wounded. secretary clinton spoke today with counterparts of the coalition on all these matters and i've directed ambassador susan rice to request that the u.n. secretary general use next month's general assembly to support this important transition. for many months, the tnc has been working with the international community to prepare for a post-gadhafi

libya. as those efforts proceed, our diplomats will work with the tnc as they ensure that the institutions of the libyan state are protected. we will support them with the assets of the gadhafi regime that were frozen earlier this year. above all, we will call for an inclusive transition that leads to a democratic libya. as we move forward, we should also recognize the extraordinary work that has already been done. to the american people, these events have particular resonance. gadhafi's regime has murdered scores of american citizens in acts of terror in the past. today we remember the lives of those who were taken in those acts of terror and stand in solidarity with their families. we also pay tribute to admiral sam lockly and all of the men and women in uniform who saved so many lives over the last several months, including our brave pilots. they've executed their mission with skill and extraordinary

bravery and all done without putting a single u.s. troop on the ground. to our friends and allies, the libyan intervention demonstrates what the international community can achieve when we stand together as one. although the efforts in libya are not yet over, nato has once more proven that it is the most capable alliance in the world. and that it's strength comes from both its firepower and the power of our democratic ideals. and the arab members of our coalition have stepped up and shown what can be achieved when we act together as equal partners. their actions send a powerful message about the unity of our effort and our support for the future of libya. finally, the libyan people. your courage and character have been unbreakable in the face of a tyrant. an ocean divides us but we're joined in the basic human longing for freedom, for justice and for dignity. your revolution is your own and

your sacrifices have been extraordinary. now the lib kra that you deserve is within your reach. going forward, we will stay in close coordination with the tnc to support that outcome. and though there will be huge challenges ahead, the extraordinary events in libya remind us that fear can give way to hope and that the power of people striving for freedom can bring about a brighter day. thank you very much. president obama speaking just a short time ago from his vacation speaking on these late-breaking developments there in tripoli. and as to moammar gadhafi's whereabouts, we heard the state department say it has no indication he is anywhere other than in country in libya. other cnn sources are also saying the same thing. so the smart money is saying that moammar gadhafi remains this hour in libya. the hours ahead, though, as night has fallen, likely to get bloodier. it's 9:to 20 p.m. in tripoli.

coming up next, we're going inside the battle. who is talking to, who is communicating with the rebels and making secret calls to attack? plus, if gadhafi is still in fact in libya. realistically how would he sneak out? i'll talk live to a covert operations officer next. for broccoli, say one. for toys, say two. toys ! the system can't process your response at this time. what ? please call back between 8 and 5 central standard time. he's in control. goodbye. even kids know it's wrong to give someone the run around. at ally bank you never have to deal with an endless automated system. you can talk to a real person 24/7. it's just the right thing to do.

joining me from new york, mike baker, form ir covert operations officer. mike, great to have you on. >> thank you very much. let's talk about moammar gadhafi. if he's still alive and we're having from our government he very much believes he's still there in tripoli, is there any possible way for him to sneak out of the country?

>> well, sure. i mean, there's still supporters. i think what's happening right now is a number of people are laying low, sitting on the fence, trying to make sure they understand who at the end of day will be winning. he does still have support. he certainly has dollars scrolled way. with that, there's always a possibility that he could make his way out of the country. it's unlikely at this point. there had been talk that he had moved to algeria a short while ago. i don't think that's credible at this point. so it certainly appears he's holding up in tripoli. probably still trying to figure out what went wrong. >> what went wrong and what he does next. mike, certainly some knows where he is, perhaps someone on the outside. do you think or maybe this window closed months ago, but do you think there is some negotiation going on, where he could go alive? >> i doubt it at this point. i mean, that could have been a possibility a couple of months ago. that they could have secretly

been discussing a safe-haven for he and his family. at this stage of the game, he's hung out so long, i think his options are down to almost zero at this point. so this is clearly not going to end well for him. whether he decides to fight until the last moment or take his own life, that's all speculation. >> you think he might do that? take his own life? >> it's a possibility i suppose. your point earlier is a very good one. in that, one of the things that we're doing very aggressively right now is talking to all the close inner circle people that we have our hands-on, including his sons that have been taken into detention. some of the recent defections out of his cabinet and other military commanders who have kmom on site over the past couple of days as they've seen the tide turn. they are working this issue obviously and reminiscent of trying to find saddam hussein, obviously.

>> you think there's a possibility the -- you think there's a possibility he's talking, he may try to help get his father in custody, you think? >> he's a very interesting character. he's not fully on board the crazy train like his father is sometimes. when i say crazy, moammar gadhafi is a survivor. so i don't mean that in the crazy sense. i mean it in he's incredibly cunning and manipulative. his son is a little bit of a different product, more western educated. you know, ultimately, it's a bit of a surprise to some people who have been watching this that his son remained in his father's camp all this time. so there's a possibility he could be talking. but they're working every source possible. >> interesting. mike, in the next, let's say, 12, 24 hours, what is the best case scenario you could see, maybe unfolding in terms of stable transition? trip will. >> yeah. that points to something really important here. this could either go very well

which i would put the likelihood of that at a small percentage or it could -- >> define "well." >> well, i mean in the sense that they are able somehow to prevent retribution against gadhafi loyalists that they are able to tamp down any remaining violence in the capital, that the transitional national council proves to have sway in tripoli and with the rebels from the west. again, this was an organization that rose up out of the east in benghazi in particular. they don't necessarily have the juice to hold council over the entire country. we have to hope that somehow in all the disparity elements and people and personalities involved in this event after they've taken tripoli and somehow gadhafi is reined in, they're able to find some governance. >> if that doesn't happen, go to your second point, that's the

well option. if it ends badly, what does it look like? >> i think it looks like, you know, they -- again, remember also that it's a tribal nation. not a lot of infrastructure. gadhafi spent the past four decades ensuring there were no strong personalities, characters, agencies in that country. so they lack the infrastructure. they also lack time. you know, people's expectations are enormous at this point as they are in any other place where this happened. we've seen that in egypt recently. they don't have much time to put something together to make the trains run on time. if they can't get unification, there's going to be probably a race to the trough by a lot of different groups and individuals trying to capture some turf or territory or government influence within whatever shakes out of this. >> yeah. that is certainly what we keep hearing. looking forward with the tribalism how will that manifest itself. final question. as former cia, looking back, the fighting within libya as a whole really appear to have reached a

stalemate for weeks, you could say, months, it was fairly quiet. but then the sudden advancement on tripoli to the best of your knowledge, mike, what happened and are you also hearing what these reports of sleeper cells set up in tripoli, you know, weapons, smuggled in, do you know anything about that? >> well, you have to take that with a grain of salt. in the euphoria that's erupting now, we'll hear all sorts of story about how this was a well-coordinated effort and they've been building up the sleeper cells. what we saw was over a period of several frustrating months, better training being taken place, it still was a rag tag group as has been referred to. but the training started to take hold. importantly, the rebels and the organization that was in the west, you know, they were better resource, better trained, more disciplined and they ultimately are the reason they're in tripoli. the nato bombings and the involvement of nato and very importantly the involvement of the u.s., whether it's the armed

drones or whether it's just logistics, refueling, reconnaissance, surveillance, whatever it might be, that was critical to what eventually happened. undoubtedly, also, they got the support from inside tripoli as a result of people, again, seeing which way this is going and wanting to be on the winning side. >> former cia covert on ops. thank you for coming on and explaining what we could be seeing in tripoli. checking top stories. new development in that search for that missing american woman in aruba. here's what we know. for the first time police searched the northern part of the dutch island and are interviewing several new witnesses. they had been looking in the southern part of aruba where robyn gardner's traveling companion said she disappeared. police say they didn't find anything in the new search. 35-year-old gardner of maryland last seen on august 2nd. her companion, gary giordano is still in custody on suspicion of

involvement in her presumed death. he says he's done nothing wrong. serious violence at a football game. have you seen this video? >> san francisco 49ers fans and oakland raiders fans beating each other up. throwing fists back and forth in the stands. this was at a pre-season game this past saturday. candlestick park. it gets worse. two men were shot and wounded in the parking lot after the game. football here. one of the men being treated for life-threatening injuries, a police sergeant told local papers that the man was wearing a t-shirt with a derogatory comment about the 49ers. the second man suffered less serious wounds we're told and another ban beaten unconscious in a stadium mens room. police are investigating whether team rivalry is to blame for the incidents. after a week of total volatility on the stock markets, stocks pushed higher today. let's take a look at all that green. that's a well some sight, isn't it. the dow up 88 points as we're half an hour from the closing

bell. obviously, markets are wondering when libyan oil production may be back up to speed. how might that affect some of the prices. libya, keep in mind, the 17th largest oil producer in the world. experts say it might take up to three years for libya to get back to producing the 1.6 million barrels of oil a day. fears are growing that moammar gadhafi forces may stage a last effort an attack against civilians in the capital city. there are questions about who would give that order. if we see that. plus, sources are telling cnn, just before the rebels stormed the city of tripoli, gadhafi's people made a desperate attempt to reach out to the united states. we're live at the pentagon next.

as the rebels are spreading out through the capital city of tripoli, the control of libyan national television. they say they have captured three of gadhafi's sons. the question mark is moammar gadhafi himself. the man who ruled libya for 42 years is con pick us in terms of

absence. no such luck to reach him. the state department has tried. let's try the pentagon. chris lawrence, what are your sources saying at dod? >> brooke, there's been a lot of speculation that perhaps he slipped out of the country at some point. but the pentagon today was knocking down that speculation. saying that from what they have seen, they believe that moammar gadhafi is still within libya. now, they're not getting into the particular intelligence assets that they may have to get that information or trying to specify where specifically they think he is. but they do believe he is still within the country. >> chris, i understand that libyan government officials were close to gadhafi, they were reaching the gadhafi folks, reaching out to the obama administration right up until the rebels started taking and claiming tripoli. i was talking to mike baker, former cia ops, he said no way in terms of negotiations, that window has to have closed.

do you think they were hoping to negotiate or salvage some sort of safe-haven for gadhafi? >> officials think more, brooke, that they were trying to buy time. stave off what they call the inevitable. you mentioned that this was occurring until the last minute. it was literally the last minute. because some state department officials are saying that about six officials been gadhafi's government were reaching out saturday night making multiple outreaches, phone calls, trying to get in touch with u.s. officials. they said everything they talked about and everything that they were still saying was still somewhat defiant. they never got to the point where they were saying yes, gadhafi will step down. so u.s. officials said it never even approached our benchmark for what we would have to have to enter into any negotiations. that's why they think it was a stall tactic to buy more time. >> is there any kind of concern that gadhafi or any of his

loyalists those remaining in tripoli could stage a last-minute attack on the rebels there? >> there is. there is that concern. you know, pentagon officials are obviously very concerned about that. not just from specifically the army. not just specifically from the libyan army or the parts of the libyan army that gadhafi controls, but individual militias as well which may be out of the control of gadhafi himself. but could issue a unilateral order. so that is a concern. one thing, though, there was a lot of talk that perhaps as this fighting got to tripoli, a dense urban environment, that a lot of the reconnaissance and surveillance assets that the pentagon has in the air and nato has in the air wouldn't be much use because the fighting would be so muddled in the middle of the city. the pentagon pushed book on that today saying no, they've got a pretty good idea of operationally where the different pieces are on the battlefield, which could come into play if there is this

last-ditch attack. >> okay. chris lawrence, thank you very much. live at the pentagon. want to turn our attention here. getting breaking news out of new york involving that sexual assault case involving former imf chief, come nooek strauss can. susan candiotti has been following this for us. >> after a meeting that took less than a half an hour, the maid met with prosecutors and her own civil attorney to find out that in fact, the charges against come nooek strauss-kahn will in fact be dropped. this is what they expected to hear. that's exactly what happened. as we said, the meeting lasted just under a half hour. when it was over, the lawyer representing the woman, with her at his side, kenneth thompson, he came outside and addressed reporters very briefly. he said this.

"manhattan district attorney cyrus vance denied the right of a woman to get justice in a rape case." then he went on to add this, referring to mr. vance. "he's not only turned his back on this innocent victim but he's also turned his back on forensic, medical and other evidence in this case." he also goes on to criticize the district attorney by saying that this is a man that has been elected as he put it to protect our mothers, our daughters, our wives and if he doesn't protect them, if they are raped, who will? this is a statement that he has also made in the last couple of days. now, of course, the question is, what happens next? well, that scheduled hearing, the status hearing for dominique strauss-kahn will still go on tomorrow as scheduled. the district attorney is about to file, i am told, a dor, that's called a dismissal of recommendation. in effect, it's to formally dismiss the charges. and he will mention in this

motion a number of different reasons. he'll enumerate all kinds of reasons why he thinks the victim in this case was not credible and that in essence, if the end, that he did not think there was enough evidence in order to convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that dominique strauss-kahn is guilty of sexual assault. >> this is a criminal case. they had filed civil, civil suit, had they not? where does that stand? also, what does this mean for dominique strauss-kahn? does this mean he gets to go home? >> the first thing is yes, the civil lawsuit is still in place. and so there's nothing about it that would keep him here certainly. dominique strauss-kahn could continue to fight that battle and it could take years. and it could play its way through the courts. we'll have to see what happens. other than that, he still faces lawsuits in at least one in france. remember there's a french journalist who made similar

accusations against him involving an attack that she says occurred in 2002. his troubles aren't over yet. >> not over. but as you mentioned, bombshell in manhattan, charges dropped. susan candiotti, thank you for the update. not going far from the situation still unfolding in libya, but first let me show you this picture. happening right now. take a look at the radar. a hurricane barreling toward the united states. find out where irene is heading and which states could be in its path. we're back in 70 seconds.

all right. here we go. the very first hurricane of the atlantic season is officially here. it could take aim in the southeastern part of the united

states. hurricane irene churning through the caribbean right now with maximum winds of 80 miles an hour. earlier this morning, it pounded parts of puerto rico, ten inches of rain on parts of the island. dave pennington sent us this video as irene came toward san juan. the storm left behind downed trees, flooded streets. no major damage but nearly a million people are still out of power there. now that irene is back to warmer water, it's likely to gain strength. that's certainly not good news for those of you who live in the southeastern part of the u.s. let me remind you your hurricane headquarters. chad myers has been watching the radar. irene is a cat 1. category 1 right now. as we mentioned with the warm waters, that could soon change. >> the warmest waters probably the entire eastern part of the world from anywhere from the east coast down into the caribbean over the a bahamas and the turks and caicos. that's where you want to swim all summer long. >> good for us, not hurricanes.

>> that's what a category 1 or 2 or 3 wants. it wants the warm water. that's exactly what irene is going to have for the next couple of days. warm water to get much stronger. it's the fuel to the fire of a hurricane. that warm water is the engine. it's the fuel, it's the premium gas to go in there rather than the cool waters that actually cool it down. the track is a scary track because it's still very wide. we're talking still three or four days away. could be all the way into the atlantic ocean or a landfall very close as a big storm near miami. not out of the question. i know it turns it to the right and on up toward the carolinas. you have to look at the cone. you can't look at the line. the line was wrong over puerto rico. the line was wrong over part of the dominican republic into haiti. the line is not always right. it's just the middle of the cone of uncertainty. we'll keep watching it. it's been a big story for the u.s. virgin islands.

awful lot of flooding still going on there. remember how topographic or mountainous the dominican republic and haiti are. there could be significant flooding. 700,000 without houses in haiti. >> so many people still in tents and you think about the people in the southeast. they have been hit before many time. chad myers x thank you so much. coming up here, i want to take you back to the developing story out of libya. it's no secret that moammar gadhafi is a bizarre character. up next, you're about to hear what this man is really like behind the scenes. including a apparent drug use and warm camel milk. jim clancy has been all around the world. he has come face to face with moammar gadhafi. multiple times. he's going to join me live. his own experiences in libya in a tent with colonel gadhafi after this break. li, say one. for toys, say two. toys ! the system can't process your response at this time. what ?

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we don't know where he is right now, but most experts say libyan leader moammar gadhafi is still in libya as the uprising

against him hits the tipping point as president obama has recently called it. cnn's international anchor veteran newsman, jim clancy here. i know you have interviewed moammar gadhafi three times, twice in person? >> yes. once by satellite here. >> once by satellite here. most memorable moment? >> it had to be in certificate. it was outside sert in the desert. he left us waiting in the hotel waiting for this interview. he plucked me from tunisia where i was covering palestinian affairs and had me drive over with a visa and i could get in and all of this. we arrived and waited. he had a palatial tent with air conditioning and fans. that's the lifestyle and he likes to show that off. when he interviewed him in belgrade during a summit, he had taken a tent. he took a tent to the u.n. general assembly. >> that's why i said that. >> in any event, he makes the grand entrance with his a.m.

zonian female bodyguards. at least one of them that really made an impression on the press corps. she was everybody's favorite. >> who was wielding a weapon? >> she had an ak 47. they all did. looking fierce. all of them, much better than six feet tall. he came in with this robe and sitting himself down. beautifully embroidered. but he was a ladies' man. he used to hit on the female journalists. you are my tigress. no no you're mytigress of the d. >> always travels with a female entourage. >> a nurse was with him. this is part of the character of moammar gadhafi and he would sit everybody down and begin to speak on the affairs of the day, and it never quite made much sense, brooke, at all. he would just ramble and he had a sense of, look back at you like this, so that he was looking down his nose and at some point he would always say, "they got copies of my green

book" to one of his aides, "you all have the green book" his philosophy of life and the universe, libya and politics. >> you said that he appears drugged. >> he does. >> delusional. >> in this case his eyes were bloodshot, slurring his speech and frankly wasn't making any sense in long sections, go off on tangents, but this was moammar gadhafi, a lot of theatrics, people were obviously afraid of him. as he shared this bedouin lifestyle and close to the land he'd say we're going to have warm camel milk later. we do have that warm camel milk? we don't, make the next time. >> he would offer that? >> oh they ran out of warm camel milk, the journalists there was a collective sigh of disappointment, no, it was

relief. moammar gadhafi is consumed by, was consumed, is consumed by his own world. he lives in his own world where he is very intelligent, powerful man that has philosophies and ideologies that no one else can really match. he is charismatic and that's how he got hold of power and he kept it by dividing all of the tribes and by telling them that i am the man to divide up the wealth of libya equally. >> despot chocesqu. >> outlawed christmas, and they broke into his home and this presents and christmas tree and everything else. living one life and dictating another. >> he rules, convicted of genocide and shot by firing squad. >> his wife protested, you are our children, took them out in the snow and shot them to death.

>> is that a possibility in libya? >> distinct possibility if some of the rebels get a hold of him. he has said he would fight to the death but if some of the rebels get a hold of him, they see him as the entity, the one person -- for many of libyans it's not a regime, it's one man that has bedevilled their lives for four decades and until and unless he's eliminated, that's not going to change. there's always a risk, he could persuade someone and it would be reversed. >> he said he would be martyred? >> i don't. i believe moammar gadhafi thinks he's too good for that, part of that megalomeniacal psyche, he believes he knows the rest of the world. he's joking like i want them to think i'm mad but i think that's sour grapes. beautiful tent, beautiful tent. >> the man likes tents. i would like to continue this conversation. i'm fascinated by your

interviews with this man. jim clancy. >> great to be to you, brooke. republican paul ryan revealed whether he will challenge president obama to make a run for the white house, that is coming up. [ male announcer ] they'll see you...before you see them. cops are cracking down on drinking and riding. drive sober, or get pulled over.

less than 24 hours ago on live television, cnn's senior international correspondent matthew chance shows us the scene inside that international hotel where journalists are staying in tripoli. >> reporter: the assumption is it's because the rebels are close by, what we're expecting now -- we can't confirm this is going to happen but what we're expecting now is the rebels will come into the hotel and take

over control. >> right now he and fellow journalists have been sitting in the dark because armed gadhafi forces are not allowing the journalists to leave. the power has been off for an hour, reporters are on lockdown. paul ryan has just revealed his 2012 plans, that's next.

republican presidential

candidates have been out of the spotlight just a bit today obviously because of the news in libya but they are still getting in their two cents. joe johns is in washington with our check of the news percolating on the political ticker. let's talk about the reactions on the situation in libya. muted comments from most of the players in the gop field. >> you get the sense their advisers politics ends at the water's edge. statements with more focus on libya, less focus on the administration, typical example is mitt romney calling on the new libyan government to arrest the mastermind of the bombing on pan am flight 103, said the world is about to be rid of moammar gadhafi, the tyrant who brutalized the libyan people expressing hope libya will move toward a representative form of government supporting freedom, human rights and the rule of

law. texas governor rick perry and jon huntsman put out slightly muted statements, perry said events in libya are cause for cautious celebration, but the lasting impact will depend on ensuring rebel factions form a unified civil government that guaranties personal freedoms, we're hearing that again and again, builds a new relationship with the west, where we're allies instead of adversaries. jon huntsman said the expected fall of gadhafi is one chapter. the developing story of a nation in turmoil, called gadhafi a long time opponent of freedom and hopeful his defeat is a step forward openness in democracy and human rights. >> these are all reactions from some of these guys who have thrown their hat into the ring. paw ryan, is he making news today? >> the house budget committee, the youthful charismatic conservative who came up with that big idea, plan to cut the

budget and get rid of the federal deficit or at least some of it. he is telling people out there, supporters and non-supporters alike he will not be a candidate for president of the united states. he said he appreciates the support from those who are eager to get him into the race and he's humbled by the encouragement. he's not going to change his mind. he's going to keep his focus on the budget committee in the house of representatives. a lot of conservatives really loved paul ryan, but it's quite clear that many democrats out there were planning on using his budget plans especially for entitlements as part of the coming campaign. he would have had a lot of polarization issues, if you will, if he were to have run for president. >> so a no go for him. joe johns, thank you so much here. as we are now at the top of the hour, i want to get back to the top story, breaking story here.

42 years of moammar gadhafi's tight fisted control over libya appear to be nearing an end. anti-ga dpaf anti-gadahfi rebels rolling into tripoli. tracer fire, but the big question this hour, where is moammar gadhafi? let's go to wolf blitzer, who has been part of our team coverage here, the story, wolf, i was watching you for hours on end last night as the story has been developing. i want to talk about libya and washington because the state department, also the pentagon have reason to believe that gadhafi has not left. they're tamping down rumors that perhaps he had left. he has not. what are you hearing as far as where they think he is, in tripoli, might he be still in hiding and what are the odds he will be taken alive? >> almost all of the experts

here in washington i've spoken to over the past several hours, brooke, believe he is someplace in libya, that he has not left the country and they base that on this notion that if he had gone, let's say to chad or zimbabwe or venezuela or south africa or some other country, algeria has been mentioned u.s. intelligence would have gotten wind of that. there's no way that could have been kept secret and there's a no fly zone nato has imposed for months so you couldn't just get into a small plane. the assumption is he's hiding out someplace in libya. a lot of people assume he's in tripoli someplace. they don't know for sure. maybe he went to one of his other homes in serf or some of the other places in libya. they believe he's hiding out someplace in libya, and they also believe it's only a matter of time before the rebels find him, capture him and arrest him. >> we know the president several days into his vacation in

martha's vineyard, he stepped out a short time ago and i wrote down specifically describing the trantsition as looking ahead in libya using the words "must be peaceful, inclusive and just." here is part of what the president said this afternoon. >> as we move forward from this pivotal phase, the opposition should continue to take important steps to bring about a transition that is peaceful, inclusive, and just. as the leadership of the tnc has made clear the rights of all libyans must be respected. true justice will not come from reprisals and violence. it will come from reconciliation and a libya that allows its citizens to determine their own destiny. >> so wolf as we talk about the tnc, the transitional council, how involved will, how involved should the u.s. be in that process and a post-gadhafi libya as well? >> the senior u.s. officials

have been meeting with leaders of the transitional national council or some people calling it the national transitional council, high level meetings including this past weekend, jeffrey feltman, he was in benghazi meeting with the leadership and i think it's fair to say that they are encouraged. u.s. officials are encouraged that many of the leaders of this transition are responsible and do, in fact, want to lead a transition to some sort of democracy in libya along the lines as envisaged by the president of the united states. the caveat there are various elements of the transition and some might not be as courteous, shall we say as some of the experienced libyan diplomats who defected to the rebel cause. there's deep concern there could be recriminations, revenge and violence and can could getting you will i in terms of looting, so they don't just speak with

one voice and as we pointed out over the past 24 hours there is no single nelson mandela who can do in libya what nelson mandela did in the post apartheid area in south africa, lead a smooth, quiet, peaceful transition from a racist policy of athat aparth democracy. there are teams and many of them are talented and patriotic libyans, there are many but some of them aren't that good. >> certain situations are not analogous. you talk about the arab springs, different iterations over the past six months, remind everyone it goes back to december, protests following the death of that street vendor in tunisia who set himself on fire to protest his treatment by local officials. we provided this map. i want everyone to take a look here.

you have the presidents of tunisia, we watched hosni mubarak in egypt, bahrain, yemen, syria. there have been significant protests in algeria, iraq, jordan, oman. it looks like we're close, wolf, to seeing libya's leader removed from power, reporting just a couple of days ago president obama calling for that. do we think as a direct result of what we're seeing in tripoli that we might see the heat ratcheted up in damascus, perhaps the uprisings strengthened there? >> i think what's happening now in tripoli will send a powerful signal to everyone in syria, and i write about this on my cnn.com/situationroom blog today. it will embolden the demonstrators who are trying to get rid of president bashar al assad at the same time it will embolden him to get tougher with

the demonstrators. here is the question, how does the military in syria react to what's going on? will they continue going ahead and killing unarmed demonstrators, peaceful syrian civilians who are simply out on the streets protesting the assad regime? at what point will they begin to question what they're doing? will there be cracks, ds defections? this syria, don't expect nato to get involved with the no fly zone. don't expect the u.n. security council to impose a no fly zone in syria. i don't expect that to happen but i expect the powerful streets of libya to the military in syria potentially telling these officers, time is not on your side. you better stop killing these unarmed civilians because it's going to be baddor you, for syria when all is said and done. i think the syrian president bashar al assad looks at a serious eye at what is going on

and is deeply concerned. my gut tells me he's going to crack down even more aggressively. >> we've all been wondering if president assad will come forward and speak. wolf blitzer, thank you so much. as always check out your blog. come up i'll speak live with retired general wesley clark that concerns moammar gadhafi whether he could launch an attack. first live to tripoli to the streets where sara sidner is live standing alongside the rebels. this is the relief i've been looking for. salonpas has 2 powerful pain fighting ingredients that work for up to 12 hours. and my pharmacist told me it's the only otc pain patch approved for sale using the same rigorous clinical testing that's required for prescription pain medications. proven. powerful. safe. salonpas.

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forces in that capital city. straight to sarah rah sider in who has been covering the story, she drove into the city, she is out of the city. sara sidner excellent job. set the scene for me. i understand you are in zawiyah, the town west of the capital. what have you seen tonight? >> reporter: that's right. we've seen and heard fighting in the city center, more so actually than yesterday and so things are always changing with these conflicts especially in an urban setting because there are of course going to be some rebels coming from all over the country literally coming in to tripoli, some of them know the city very well, some of them do not and have been training to try to learn the city, to know where to go, but we do understand that there have been some teams of journalists who have turned corners and found themselves face to face with what could be gadhafi forces and had to turn tail and run.

a difficult situation especially when it gets dark. hard for the rebels to figure out just what they're dealing with. the one thing to note here is that for days, months really, the gadhafi regime, gadhafi himself said there will be thousands of people who would rise up, there was an army waiting for anyone who was going to try and come into the city or try and take back libya. that is just not what these rebels or anyone else going into that city has seen. the question everyone has on their minds is where are all these people who are supposedly prepared to fight for moammar gadhafi? there is always going to be the concern that there is something lurking, that there is something that we don't know or something that the rebels don't know as you go into a city like that and it's very quiet. it gives you a bit of an eerie feeling to see a capital city with the only traffic being those of the rebels speeding back and forth in their trucks with guns blazing celebrating

and yelling "god is great" and "free libya." that's all that we were seeing in the streets for the most part and then in the evening as it started to turn to dusk and people were about to take their one meal a day as it is still ramadan we noticed some families coming out and they, too, began to celebrate, but still, mostly the streets are quite empty. all of the businesses shuddered, most of the homes closed. >> sara you have been covering this for a number of weeks and months ago the last adjective you would use to describe these men is sophisticated. characterize for them as we've seen them take down this capital city, how do they appear? >> reporter: yeah, it's very interesting, because we met a lot of different kinds of rebels, if you will. they are human beings, people who lived in neighborhoods. some of them, many of them live

in libya. they are people who were planning on trying to protect their families, protect their homes, protect their neighborhoods, and indeed, protect their cities. some of them are libyans who lived outside of the country. there are ex-patriots who decided that they were going to leave their comfortable lives and return to libya to fight what they felt like was the good fight to try and rid this country of the gadhafi regime. they came back into this country and had to learn, for example, how to shoot a gun, never having touched a gun before so within the few months that this has gone on we're talking about an army that really doesn't have that much training and that is pretty concerning when you think about what they thought they were going to encounter when they got to tripoli, and that is why there is a lot of surprise here in the minds of a lot of these opposition fighters. they cannot believe in some ways that they have done this so quickly and just basically 24 hours from getting to the edge of the city they've pushed their

way all the way in and have taken over most of the neighborhoods. >> so quickly and as you have, matthew chance have been echoing, almost seems too easy. might moammar gadhafi have something up his sleeve but those professionally trained troops nowhere to be found in tripoli. sara sidner thank you so much. where is moammar gadhafi and where and when, if he is captured alive, how will he be prosecuted? also the uncertainty in libya, it's about to have a huge impact on gas prices here at home. that's next. app for the sales team in beijing. and convince the c.e.o. his email will find him... wherever he is. i need to see my family while they're still awake. [ male announcer ] with global services from dell, jim can address his company's i.t. needs through custom built applications, cloud solutions and ongoing support in over 100 countries. so his company sees results. and jim sees his family. dell. the power to do more.

the head of the u.n. says

it's time for a peaceful transition of power in libya. is that possible? we're watching the story play out in real time. as rebels are solidifying their own control of the capital city what will moammar gadhafi's next move be? richard roth live at the u.n. with some answers. the icc, international criminal court issued arrest warrants for gadhafi months ago. what are they saying today about moving forward with the case against him? >> there's many aspects to the international system and the international criminal prosecutor maurice ocampo spoke with officials by phone to go over is the next stop for moammar gadhafi if apprehended the hague to face charges, the arrest warrants against gadhafi and his son, the intelligence chief? that is unknown whether libya will set up its own tribunal or gadhafi will be sent to the

hague like milosevic or charles taylor though it's quite slow there. ban ki-moon in effect warning or reminding u.n. member countries of their obligations to live up to this international criminal court treaty system where he can't be allowed to really stay in a country if they're a party to this international criminal court system. gadhafi could be seeking refuge elsewhere. brooke? >> we heard and i took note of the president speaking earlier mentioning the u.n., the next general assembly asking next month's meeting support the specific transition and when it comes to this transition because there are a lot of variables still, how can the united nations help moving forward? >> the u.n. may not be very good at preventing conflict but it does seem to specialize in post conflict discussions, improvements getting a country back on its feet from east timor

to sierra leone, liberia, puts personnel in to talk about dearming, demobilizing conflicts, post conflict they're anticipating what occurred in tripoli overnight and basically the u.n. is prepared to go in, the secretary-general is calling a big summit later this week with regional organizations. it certainly is, still challenges ahead, a hopeful situation there but there are risks going forward. the u.n. has to see things stabilize on the ground there and you mentioned the general assembly, brooke. we all remember almost two years ago now moammar gadhafi in front of the u.n. general assembly instead of speaking the required 15 or 20 minutes going for 90 minutes as diplomats dozed off, finlg fidged the as gadhafi rambled about the united nations security council.

>> jim lancy said he could barely string together a sound bite. richard roth thank you. as the situation unfolds, oil prices plummet, the markets will rise. look at the big board, the dow up a smidge, 37 points at 10,854, this after four straight weeks of big losses, we've been watching this together as alison kosik live at the it new york stock exchange. how encouraging is this on the street today? >> the rally fizzled out fast. as much as 200 points today. it fizzled out and came back, now modest gains. investors are tormented by the problems that rattled them last week. fears of a possible recession in the u.s., and the big bank problems in europe, so that's why you see this rally that we had really fizzle out because

it's not really based on anything concrete. the problems that we had last week still remain and until some of the problems are solved or until the market gets good news you're not going to see much of these gains stick. brooke? >> with regard to libya, i know it's the 17th largest, you know, oil producer globally here, so does that really translate for us? would it mean cheaper oil, cheaper gas prices? >> you're really not going to see it here, because there are different types of oil and they're traded in different places. oil traded in europe known as brent crude fell today about 1%, but oil traded here in the u.s., it was up over 2%, so analysts say what you saw happen in europe with the prices was really more of a kneejerk reaction and we're not going to see oil flow out of libya again. it could take months or years. we need to assess the damage first. it could be extensive. also the political situation in

libya remains uncertain and that means with uncertainty you're going to see that fluctuation in prices as well and you're going to see the trade continue to trade on that kind of fear about what will happen with oil out of libya. in the u.s. you're not going to see prices drop especially today with prices up 2%. >> wishful thinking i suppose. alison kosik thank you very much. behind the libyan rebels all the way is the international force commanded by nato. they have monitoring every move of gadhafi's forces for months and months. yet no one knows still where gadhafi is. we'll speak with former nato commander wes clark and i'll ask him the concern gadhafi may mount in a last ditch effort. let me tell you about a very important phone call i made.

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as with all medicare supplement plans, you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare, get help paying for what medicare doesn't... and save up to thousands of dollars. call this toll-free number now. okay, as i am taking a look over my shoulder we have matthew chance, he's been covering what's been happening out of tripoli as have many, many international journalists at the ricksus hotel in the capital city and it has been difficult to stay in touch with him simply because the power has been out. he has been seated away from a window on the upper levels of the hotel because there are gadhafi forces, gunmen on the lobby of the hotel essentially not allowing the journalists to leave. he has been tweeting, that's been the best way we have been able to keep in touch with his movements as his security is

priority number one for us at cnn. we'll read the second to last tweet. he says "on the bright side and with excellent group of journalists at rixos we are feeling our way around corridors with candles. no power." next one "very dark, very quiet at the rixos, some gunshots cracking outside, we raided the hotel and got some cheese." i encourage you to follow him and his movements, mchancecnn is his handle. keep in mind the time there well after 10:00, just after 10:30 in libya, rebels in control of most of the capital in tripoli. the numbers of reporting, 80%, 90% in control. no word on the fate or the whereabouts of moammar gadhafi. joining us from quebec city,

former nato supreme commander general wesley clark. general clark let me begin with this. can nato help the rebels find gadhafi? can the cia help? because we know they're in there somewhere. >> if he's talking, yes, but if he's just in a bunker somewhere, burrowed down underneath a house in some nondescript part of the city, probably not. in a given amount of time he'll be found. it seems unlikely he's going to simply hold out there. the way this has to work is the rebels have to find exactly where their limits of control are in the city. they have to push gadhafi's forces back into a perimeter, and continue to constrict that perimeter, and if gadhafi's not there, that perimeter is going to collapse pretty quickly.

if he's there, putting his personal charisma on the line behind it, that's how you'll know. >> i know as you were on last night, we were talking and you could see the pictures of the rebels out in green square, martyr's square, the momentum was palpable, but they do appear to have lost the momentum according to sara sidner. did that allow gadhafi a little time in say he's in tripoli per what the state department and pentagon believe. is that buying him some time, general clark, to dig his heels in and -- >> of course. >> -- and hatch a last-ditch effort attack? >> and that's exactly what shouldn't be allowed. just as a for instance, remember when we invaded iraq and we went into baghdad, the u.s. 3rd infantry division busted into the city with the armored column and completely prevented the organization of any coherent defense, and it was over in a couple of days. and in this case, although it's

not a whole city, whatever district it is that gadhafi's forces are in, the rebels have to have enough organization to push into that district to -- >> do they have that? >> that's the question. last night obviously it wasn't clear they had much organization and that's not surprising, but what we would hope is that over the next day, they would get that organization again. they would assign a distinct sector of responsibility to subordinate commands that leaders would be told to move in a certain direction, report what you find, report any resistance, and would eventually bump into whatever stronghold gadhafi has. >> we know that nato can only do so much from the air when it comes to this battle in tripoli. what kind of help with these rebels have on the ground if gadhafi is hold up somewhere

ready to attack? >> it's not clear they'll need any help on the ground if gadhafi is held up there. if it is a command and control headquarters, it is easier to pick out armored vehicles. it's always tougher striking at a city but nato has the precision strike to hit buildings and not hit other buildings around it. >> speaking of nato we have just learned here the u.s. and nato for the last up canal of weeks have been speaking with the national transitional council about securing libya's stockpiles. it's well-known gadhafi stockpiled mustard gas and sarin gas the libyans have. what can be done to secure those stockpiles? >> well it's not clear where all of the stockpiles are and what's going to have to be done is immediately upon the surrender of gadhafi and his forces, an inventory is going to have to be made of the remaining locations, who is in charge of them and so

forth. there were rumors months ago that terrorist organizations were trying to smuggle that nerve agent out of libya, that some of it was stored in eastern libya in the benghazi area, and that terrorists had already located it and tried to move it through saddam. i've been unable to confirm the accuracy of those surumors. >> safe to assume nato surveiled the stockpiles and knows exactly no one has touched them in. >> i wouldn't make that assumption. i would hope there would be immediately upon gadhafi's surrender a u.n. security council resolution and in that resolution nato would be authorized to send a survey team on the ground to find those special weapons. >> as that is then i guess still one variation in this story, former nato supreme allied

commander general wesley clark, thank you. coming up next, if moammar gadhafi relinquishes power in his home of libya, it would certainly not be an easy road ahead because gadhafi stripped that country of any political structure. he's been in charge for 42 years. there's not been anything close to a constitution. what will it take to rebuild and how involved will the united states be? we'll talk to a former state department spokesperson next. cops are cracking down on drinking and riding. drive sober, or get pulled over.

it is now well after dark in libya, just after 10:30 at night there. rebels are in control of most of the capital. joining me from carlisle, pennsylvania, t.j. crowley, nice to have you on. we know that the united states vowing to stand by libya during this hopeful peaceful inclusive transition, all of these adjectives we hear from the president, these democratic transition. do the libyan people know, though, given the history of the 42 years, do they even know what democracy is? >> obviously they don't have any tradition with this or the institutions that can contribute to a participatory government. this is the primary challenge that the tnc will face, assuming they're able to finally locate

and depose moammar gadhafi, for 42 years he hasn't allowed any kind of a rival power center to develop, so that some of the institutions that we take for granted, are institutions that will have to be built more or less as the airplane is in flight. >> this despot, totalitarian regime that's been in place, what needs to be done? >> it will be first of all institution building. there is a tribal structure within tripoli that will provide some support and structure to what happens going forward. the first challenge for the tnc is to prove that it's more than just a regional entity, that it can, in fact, become a credible national force and vehicle to move libya through this transition, and there's a lot of history that says that that's going to be difficult for the tnc to do.

there will be this window of opportunity, perhaps look at tunisia, for example, where the people gave the interim government an opportunity but have been challenging that government for months now to do better at transforming the society there and transforming the daily lives of those citizens. that would be the same kind of challenge for the tnc going forward in libya. unfortunately, libya does not necessarily have the strong institutions like you see in a country like egypt. egypt could fall back on a respected institution like the military, which has been shepherding its transitions, so libya is going so need a lot of support but by and large this is libyans coming together recognizing the opportunity that they have. >> we do know, though, that thus far the u.s. is involved, jeffrey feltman has been in benghazi talking to the opposition, the tnc, asking they be democratic, asking that they be politically and geographically inclusive, going

forward specifically in terms of the u.s., how involved will we be in the transition? >> certainly the united states and international community will be in the way to help libya one of the things they need quickly is money and one of the actions of the u.n. is in locking the funds frozen for some time to make sure there are resources available for the libyans to move forward. then there will be this technical assistance, what kind of relationship will the security forces have with the people? what kind of rule of law will be developed? what kind of electoral support would be required for what kind of system that the libyans want to put in place? these are areas where the international community and the united states have expertise. that's the kind of support that the tnc will need. >> you mentioned those frozen assets. i've seen figures $33 billion to $36 billion in frozen assets that the u.s. has but what about just in terms of the u.s. taxpayer, how much more will we

pay to libya? >> well, libya has resources. they have energy, their energy can provide them assistance. tripoli is a, don't want to overstate this but it is a modernizing city, so libya has capabilities. one of the key questions will be, is this thing quick and relatively peaceful? if that is the transition will be relatively quickly and the humanitarian situation will be fairly manageable. if there's a fight to the death between the rebels and those forces that are still loyal to gadhafi, then obviously the prospect of greater damage is likely and the humanitarian crisis, the flow of people leaving libya for neighboring countries, that's where the crisis could develop and that's where significant international support will be required, but going forward, it will be less about money and more about the kind of technical assistance

that enables libya to build a civil society. >> t.j. crowley, former state department spokesman thank you very much sir. >> all right, brooke. and now this. we are here in the middle of tripoli. >> cnn's sara sidner just bracing for cover there, caught in the midst of the chaos in tripoli, zero hour, hit this capital, coming up how the past 48 hours unfolded and what happened. hey ! chocolate, vanilla or strawberry ? chocolate ! chocolate it is ! yeah, but i'm new, too. umm... he's new... er... than you. even kids know it's wrong to treat new friends better than old friends. at ally bank, we treat all our customers fairly, with no teaser rates and no minimum deposit to open. it's just the right thing to do.

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>> reporter: we are about 30 miles outside of tripoli so we are very, very, very close. last night, the rebels were telling us that they got help from nato and that is one of the ways that they were able to secure this refinery. there are rebels inside of tripoli, they began the uprising, inside the city waiting and watching for their time to begin wreaking havoc on the city and trying to get gadhafi forces out of the city. we are a few kilometers away from the capital. >> translator: a lot of gadhafi troops are withdrawing and giving up their weapons outside of tripoli but inside the capital as well. it's going easily. it's easy. trbs there's chatter in the

raising of the white flag we will not talk about. it is rejecting completely and not because of moammar gadhafi or seif al islam. it is rejected by the people of libya. >> it's difficult to give an exact kind of a scale of how much territory is still in the hands of colonel gadhafi but clearly his forces are on the back foot at the moment and it all seems to be crumbling rather quickly. >> reporter: we are in green square here in the middle of tripoli. rebels are all over the square, there are really no civilians, mostly men with guns in the square but we're also seeing people running, there's a lot of gunfire, they say there are snipers, we all had to pull back. the situation is very tense. >> translator: we are now liberated. [ horns honking ] >> today we couldn't talk on the

phone before, most of us had our phones closed because we were scared. there's no more being scares anymore. game over! >> sara sidner covering that battle in tripoli, sara, thank you. president obama weighing in this afternoon on the ongoing situation in tripoli, giving a statement on the situation there. we will take you live to martha's vineyard next. ford ex. two titans of the s.u.v. world. which has the strength? which has the power? which has the ability to... oh, geez. [ screeching ] the s.u.v. is back. right now, get $2,000 cash allowance or 0% apr financing on the 2011 dodge durango.

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all right, back to the situation in libya. president obama did speak a

short time ago from his vacation in martha's vineyard. let's listen quickly to the president. ? the situation is still throughout. there remains a deal of uncertainty. this much is clear, the gadhafi regime is coming to an end. >> joining me is dan lothian. dan does the white house believe the libyan rebels, the national transitional council can actually establish order in libya, and is there any talk at all of an international pea peacekeeping force? >> reporter: on your first point i think the white house has now for some time been putting its full support behind the rebels and you heard from the president today that the administration will continue and the u.s. and its allies will continue to provide the support as they try to make that transition a peaceful transition, as the president put it, to democracy.

how much and how big the involvement of the u.s. will be is unclear. the administration, top aides making it clear that no u.s. boots will be on the ground there, that the strategy for u.s. boots on the ground remains unchanged, but there are a lot of questions about whether or not the rebel groups will be able to carry out that transition and certainly carry it out in a peaceful way. >> also, dan, when the president was talking about how initially the united states took the lead militarily last spring, and then handed things over to nato, what about the rebuilding process, this hope for democracy in a nation that has not known that in decades? who foots the bill for that? >> reporter: withal that's a very good question as the president himself pointed out, this situation is far from certain. there are a lot of challenges that remain, and so this will be a long process in terms of how libya is able to rebuild that

next government, and what exactly the role will be of the u.s. one thing i can tell you is that this future process is part of the discussions that the president was conducting with his top aides. we another high level conference call with his national security team. this follows another one that he had yesterday, and that is part of the focus, figuring out what the role of the u.s. will be in helping these rebels rebuild the government there in libya. >> dan lothian, thank you very much with the latest there from the administration. also, any minute now, switching gears here, forecasters will be releasing the updated path of eye rein. we'll tell you where it's heading now and if the u.s. coast is still in the bull's eye. let me tell you about a very important phone call i made.

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serious violence breaking out at a football game. look at this video. men throwing fists, san francisco 49ers fans and oakland raiders fans clearly beating each other up in the middle of the stands. where did this happen, a pre-season game, just this past saturday at candlestick park but it gets worse. two men were shot and wounded in the parking lot after that game. one of the men now treated for a life-threatening injuries. a police sergeant told local papers the man was wearing a t-shirt with a derogatory comment about the 49ers. the second man suffered less serious injuries. another man was beaten unconscious in the stadium men's bathroom. police are investigating whether team rivalry is to blame for these incidents. and as we mentioned a lot of eyes on this hurricane, the very first hurricane of the atlantic season is officially here, could take aim at parts of the southeastern united states. here is the radar, irene

churning through the caribbean right now. maximum winds 80 miles an hour. in puerto rico, irene has already visited there, early this morning, you can see the rain, more than ten inches on that island. now that irene is back into warmer water, it is gaining strength not good news for areas in its path. chad myers, tell me where she's headed? >> we are still days away from that. i'm getting tweets, people asking can i go to disney world? there's no chance that i can tell you that today. >> what is the now? >> there are models that go all the way to miami, all the way to cape cod with a major hurricane in between, 120-mile-per-hour land falling hurricane miami to massachusetts. it's that wide right now. that's what you get when you're talking four to five days out. it's a big storm, gathering strength and you just showed the radar. no longer over land.

there's a little bit of influence from the dominican republic getting dry air and mixing in with high mountains. the entire area is going to turn to the right. this is going to be one of those right-turning storms and where does it finally not turn right any longer and go straight into something? go straight into land? why i said massachusetts because there's a potential this stays on the right edge of the cone and makes landfall somewhere up in the northeast. i talked to rob marciano on the tweet he said maybe iceland. they can keep turning to the right. by the time you get up here to georgia and the carolinas, the wind aloft is from the west so that's why it keeps wanting to turn to the right because the wind comes from the west. if you've been to the british virgin islands the wind is from the east that's why hurricanes come from the wind, the trade winds.