Cameron cuts short holiday for Libya meeting

LONDON: British Prime Minister David Cameron cut short a trip to Cornwall to return to London to attend a security meeting on Libya early Monday, his office said.

"Last night the prime minister returned to London, cutting short his break in Cornwall. Later this morning he will chair a meeting of the NSC-L," the National Security Council on Libya, Downing Street said in a press release.

The meeting is scheduled for 9:00am (0800 GMT) and there are no plans at the moment for a press conference, a spokesperson said.

On Sunday Downing Street said in a statement "the end is near" for Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi as rebel fighters launched a final push for victory with an attack on the capital Tripoli.

"It is clear from the scenes we are witnessing in Tripoli that the end is near for Kadhafi," the statement said.

"He has committed appalling crimes against the people of Libya and he must go now to avoid any further suffering for his own people."

The sound of heavy fighting was heard Monday morning near Kadhafi's residence in central Tripoli after rebel forces surged into the capital, taking over many districts.

Fighting was also heard in the south of the capital from around 0400 GMT, with heavy weaponry and automatic rifle fire being deployed, an AFP reporter said.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011