Gaddafi's press trip backfires

Libyan government officials this morning took the international press to a down 30km west of Tripoli to show that Muammar Gaddafi was in control, but found that the town had fallen to the anti-government protesters.

Sky TV's Lisa Holland, who was among the journalists, said it was a surreal experience.

She said people were celebrating in the town square of El Zawiyah and some said Col Gaddafi was 'finished'.

Their government guide simply told them that he was 'with the people'.

Meanwhile, Britain said it has revoked the diplomatic immunity of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his family. Foreign Secretary William Hague called on Gaddafi to step down.

The United Nations Security Council unanimously voted earlier to refer the brutal repression of the popular Libyan uprising to the International Criminal Court.

Sanctions also included a freeze on the assets of Mr Gaddafi and his immediate family and a global travel ban on the embattled ruler and his close associates.

Mr Hague also said the UK was "working intensively" to establish how many Britons remained in Libya as final evacuation missions were being planned.

Dozens of oil workers were dramatically rescued by military aircraft from remote desert locations last night in a secret mission involving British special forces. The workers were brought to Malta on two Hercules aircraft.