2055 GMT: Opposition fighters have liberated Qaddafi's infamous Abu Slim prison, south of Tripoli. The prison fell with very little resistance, and the prisoners have been set free.
In 1996, prison guards killed 1200 prisoners after they complained about prison conditions.
2043 GMT: The Qaddafi forces have set fire to the Brega oil refinery before they retreated from the town:
Wednesday, August 24, 2011 at 10:17 | Scott Lucas in Africa, EA Global, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran Yesterday, in one of the more surreal moments of the fall of Muammar Qaddafi's compound, insurgents "liberated" the former leader's tok tok --- the combination of vehicle, similar to a golf cart, and setting for one of his speeches in the days after the start of the uprising:
That got us thinking: how fast could a liberated tok tok go? Could it take on Hitler's radio car, for example? Or Stalin's ZIS-115?
And then we remembered a more recent and pertinent example. In January, we reported on the another Arab Spring vehicle liberation --- former Tunisian President Ben Ali's car had been freed by a forklift:
So let's do this: Tok Tok v. Ferrari in a Great Ex-Dictators Drag Race. And maybe we don't have stop there: what about Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's celebrated Peugeot 504? Maybe Bashar al-Assad would like to enter his car, unimpeded by the woman protester who tried to ruin his post-speech party at the end of March?
Photo: ReutersTwo myths should be put to rest. First, the idea that Libya’s war originated as anything but a native conflict is nothing but paranoid speculation. Indeed, freedom fighters have systematically ignored international sanctimony and calls for a cease-fire. Libyans fought, and appear to have won, their own war, following their own plan. That they had help — from the sky, or via Egypt, or by sea — does not detract from the sacrifices of Libyans who refused to stop fighting and dying. They own their victory.
Second, the image of “ragtag revolutionaries” is also false. Freedom fighters have in fact been consistently clever and creative. While still undisciplined tactically, they have demonstrated good operational discipline and planning, and in fact have done a very good job of coordinating with air power despite the challenges. Never wavering in determination, Libyans have written their own epic, and it is a good one. All the allies did was help.
Libya, Matt Osborne, Oil Wednesday, August 24, 2011 at 9:39 | James Miller in Africa, EA Global, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran 
There is a larger problem with the way the West is approaching this issue. The old power structures still exist, but all evidence points to them fading. Regimes are falling apart, though remnants remain. Tribalism is giving way to unity, though old divisions still threaten that unity. Al Qa'eda, in almost 20 years, has failed to do what the Arab Spring has done in 250 days. Iran, Israel, weapons of mass destruction, Western imperialism...all of the old bugbears have proven false alarms. They still exist, but their importance, and influence, is fading quickly.
Problems persist in Tunisia and Egypt, and questions remain about Libya, but what is unquestionable is the dedication and spirit of the youth of these countries, a brave and defiant youth that will not sit down while the old powers hijack their revolutions. Perhaps there are still forces that wish to co-opt the Arab Spring, but the indications are that these forces are weaker than their predecessors. Yes, these movements are rooted in a new way of thinking, or at least a new embodiment of an old way of thinking --- through the persuit of equity, freedom, democracy, and unity, the people will triumph, not the power- hungry.
Senegal's Abdoulaye Wade and Mahmoud AhmadinejadIt is important not to tie Iran interests in Africa too closely to sanctions and conflict with the West. Even if there were no sanctions, Iran would certainly be making an effort to use aid and development to pursue trade and investment opportunities.
Izraa in Daraa Province in south
Syria Insurgents take control of Muammar Qaddafi's compound, ripping his portrait and climbing atop a statue marking the 1986 US attack on Tripoli
See also Libya Snapshot: An Anecdote about Khamis Qaddafi, the Arab Spring, and 3 Cold-Blooded Killings
Libya Audio: Scott Lucas on BBC "Assessing Latest in Tripoli...And What's Next"
Monday's Libya LiveBlog: The Last Push Against Former Leader Qaddafi
2100 GMT: Luke Harding of The Guardian offers a night-time summary of the situation in Tripoli:
1950 GMT: Economy Watch. More on the attack on the Government's economic management by leading MP Ahmad Tavakoli (see 1410 GMT)....
Tavakoli, singling out Minister of Economy minister Shamseddin Hosseini for not appearing in Parliament, said huge embezzlements have been committed by government financial groups at the expense of the deprived. He asked, "Why have some received huge credits to establish banks during [Iran's] economic stagnation?"
1800 GMT: Unity Watch. Conservative website Khabar Online claims that conservative faction Islamic Constancy Front is falling apart only a month after its launch, deserted by former Minister of Interior and tycoon Sadegh Mahsouli.
In recent days, the Constancy Front has been embroiled in verbal battles with other conservative/principlist groups set up to promote "unity" before the 2012 Parliamentary elections.
Saeed, because he had known Qadhafi back in the days of the Free Officers, broached the topic of the Arab uprisings and the trouble brewing in Benghazi. He began to give his opinion that, the regional environment being what it is, the regime should be cautious about repressing what were still relatively minor protests in Benghazi. Instead, he argued, it should engage the protestors and be cautious about the potential for the movement to get much bigger, as it did in Tunisia and Egypt so recently.
This enraged Khamis. He stood up and shouted at Saeed, accusing him of being a traitor and a weakling, and said his father would never have to give in to the vermin in Benghazi. Saeed respectfully stated he was just giving his advice, in light of what was happening elsewhere in the Arab world — just being cautious. But this only further incensed Khamis (who may have been on some kind of drugs), and the argument kept escalating.
Finally, Khamis lost it. He pulled out his sidearm and shot Saeed, killing him instantly. Saeed's son jumped towards his father, and the son's wife wailed. Khamis turned out and emptied his gun into them, killing them both.
1915 GMT: This report via Al Jazeera:
"Six soldiers and an officer were killed and 30 others wounded when Al-Qaeda militants attacked the camp of the 201 Brigade in Dofes," south of Abyan, capital of Zinjibar, the officer said.
The attackers had used the cover of a wooded area around the base to approach a unit of the brigade and opened fire with rocket-launchers and automatic weapons.
An official from a military hospital that took in the casualties confirmed the toll.
On Monday, government warplanes killed six presumed al-Qaeda fighters in Arkub, another village in Abyan province, that they had seized a day earlier.
1439 GMT: Al Jazeera is reporting that 18 people were killed across Syria yesterday, mostly in Homs. They are also reporting that 55 tanks are deployed in Deir Ez Zor (matches our reports), and Syrian security forces are dropping troops, via helicopter, in al-Khowria.
1426 GMT: This is video of a new resolution, passed by the Syrian National Council, an exile group that has established in Istanbul, Turkey. According to Al Jazeera,
"We have given martyrs and some of us are injured... With all these efforts and sacrifices, as a result of this responsibility, a sense of unity has been formed," activist Ahmad Ramadan said.
"The council will convene in about two weeks to elect the chair and secretary... When it convenes it will adopt its bylaws," added Louay Safi, a US-based political scientist.
The dissidents declined to give out the names of council members and said the body, which brings together all opposition groups both from inside and outside Syria, will elect them after its first meeting.
"Coming together of all groups is a must despite all dangers. This delegation will bring different groups together," said Halis Halihi.
It is unclear, at this moment, whether the group actually represents the protesters in the streets of Syria.
Navi Pillay, Syria 
