As Libya cheers, questions over brutal Gadhafi death

While the international community raises questions about the brutal killing of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, many within the country are relieved that he is gone, especially as the transitional council prepares to declare liberation Sunday.

That historic declaration will clear the path to a new government and democratic elections.

Still, the victory by the revolutionary forces may be tainted by the circumstances of Gadhafi's death this week in the ousted dictator's hometown of Sirte.

CTV Middle East Bureau Chief Martin Seemungal said celebrations went on well into the night Friday in Misrata, where Gadhafi's bloodied body has been on public display in a walk-in freezer.

"There are concerns, certainly from overseas, about how he came to his end," Seemungal told CTV News Channel Saturday. "The official line is that he was caught in a crossfire."

An autopsy is scheduled to be performed sometime in the day, he said, adding that Gadhafi's death is not as big an issue inside Libya as it might be internationally.

"Most people in this country seem very less concerned about the way he was killed than the fact he is gone," Seemungal said by phone from Misrata.

In Tripoli, residents said they were relieved Gadhafi had died and was not captured.

"If there was a trial, it would take some time ... Maybe there would be revenge attacks," said Hosni Bashir, an employee in Libya's national oil company, who was attending the first meeting of a new political party in a Tripoli hotel. "Now, they (Libya's new leaders) can start."

Sunday's liberation announcement will set the wheels in motion toward a new interim government within 30 days and national elections within eight months.

The declaration will come more than two months after revolutionary forces took over Tripoli and most of this oil-rich North African nation. But the revolution was stalled by bitter resistance from Gadhafi loyalists in Sirte and pockets in the south.

But the death of the Libyan strongman after more than four decades of rule clears the way for the transformation of a dictatorship into a democracy.

But spokesman Abdel-Rahman Busin said the ceremony will be held Sunday, although he failed to give a reason for the delay.

Acting Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril, who plans to resign after liberation, said Saturday the new interim government "should last until the first presidential elections."

Speaking at the World Economic Forum on the Jordanian shores of the Dead Sea, he also said the transitional council must move quickly to disarm rebels who helped to overthrow Gadhafi's nearly 42-year-old regime. He said it was a priority to ensure huge caches of weapons are turned in over the "next few days."

Jibril also said the Libyan people must remember the agony of the past and choose a different path for the future. He said he was "relieved" after Gadhafi's ouster, describing it as a "great moment in my life."

The burial of Gadhafi's body is another troublesome issue, one that has yet to be resolved.

Seemungal said it is "great source of debate" in the country because some fear the burial site could become a rallying point for the pro-Gadhafi faction.

With files from The Associated Press