Gaddafi's son warns of 'civil war' in Libya if father's regime toppled

Tripoli, Feb 20 (ANI): The son of Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, has warned the protestors that their country would come under the purview of a civil war, and even renewed Western 'colonization' if they do not give up their ambitions of ousting his father from his position after 40-year-long rule.

After a five days of uprising in the oil-rich country, Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam el-Qaddafi has blamed the Islamic radicals and Libyans in exile for the disturbances in Libya that has reportedly left nearly 200 people dead and hundreds wounded from gunfire by security forces, The New York Times reports.

After repeating several times that "Libya is not Tunisia or Egypt", el-Qaddafi said: "Libya is made up of tribes and clans and loyalties. There will be civil war. The West and Europe and the United States will not accept the establishment of an Islamic emirate in Libya."

According to witnesses, protestors had gathered in Tripoli's central Green Square late Sunday night and clashed heavily with armed forces. Young men had armed themselves with chains around their knuckles, steel pipes and machetes, the paper said.

"The state has disappeared from the streets, and the people, the youth, have practically taken over," Mansour Abu Shenaf, a writer living in Tripoli, said.

Sixty-eight-year-old Colonel Qaddafi, who has wisely cultivated tribal rivalries to avoid any threat to his authority, has shown no indication that he would allow revolt to topple him like the neighbouring countries-Tunisia and Egypt, the paper added.

Yesterday, it was reported that sniper commandos had shot dead at least 15 mourners and wounded many others attending the funeral of protesters killed during the Libyan uprising as Gaddafi's regime attempted to crush dissent.

Gaddafi's regime had also reportedly deployed artillery and helicopter gunships against the demonstrators, and thugs armed with hammers and swords attacked families with the intention of crushing down the uprising. (ANI)