Gaddafi Will Blow Up Tripoli If Rebels Attack: Russian Envoy

Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi will destroy Tripoli by blowing it up if rebels take control of the capital, a Russian diplomat told the Izvestia newspaper.

Russia's special envoy to Libya, Mikhail Margelov, told the paper: The Libyan premier told me: If the rebels take over the city, we will cover it with missiles and blow it up.”

According to reports, Margelov met with Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, the Libyan Prime Minister, Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi on June 16 in Tripoli.

Margelov also warned that he fears that Gaddafi truly does have such a suicidal plan in place and that the Libyan leader still possesses huge supplies of missiles and ammunition, noting that he has not yet even used the surface-to-surface missiles.

Russia has not directly participated in the NATO-led missile attacks on Libya. Moscow abstained from a vote in the UN Security Council in March over the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya.

Russia has also repeatedly criticized NATO’s bombing raids on Libya, claiming that the missiles have killed many innocent civilians.