NATO Strike Reportedly Kills Gaddafi's Son

Libyan rebels are reporting that a NATO airstrike has killed Moammar Gaddafi's son Khamis, who is a high-ranking commander in the Colonel's military.

Rebel spokesman Mohammed Zawawi said on Friday that an airstrike in Zlitan, a city on the Libya's northwestern coast, killed 32 people. Zlitan has been the site of a viscous counter-attack against the rebel forces. The city is the half-way point from rebel-held Misrata to Tripoli, which is 90 miles away.

Khamis led Libya's 32nd Brigade, a special forces unit. They are said not only be the most loyal Libyan unit, but also the best trained and equipped.

NATO has been informed of the report, but has not confirmed the kill.

"We cannot confirm anything right now, because we don't have people on the ground, but we are trying to find out what we can," a NATO official at operations headquarters in Naples told MSNBC.

NATO also said in a statement that they do not target individuals.

The Libyan government denied the report, insisting that NATO killed civilians and not the leader's son.

"It's false news. They invented the news about Mr Khamis Gaddafi in Zlitan to cover up their killing," spokesman Moussa Ibrahim told Reuters in Tripoli.

"This is a dirty trick to cover up their crime in Zlitan and the killing of the al-Marabit family (a Libyan family)."

Saif al-Arab Gaddafi, the Libyan leader's youngest son, was killed in a NATO bombing in May. Gaddafi had a total of eight children, including seven sons and a daughter.