Rebels Claim Gadhafi's Son Khamis Killed in NATO Airstrike

A rebel spokesman claimed that Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi's youngest son, Khamis, was killed in a NATO airstrike on the Western town of Zlitan.

However, the Libyan government has denounced the report, calling it "false news" and an attempt by the rebels to cover the death of civilians in Zlitan.

According to Al Jazeera, Mohammed Zawawi, a spokesman for the rebels, said: "Overnight there was an aircraft attack by NATO on the Gadhafi operations room in Zlitan and there are around 32 Gadhafi troops killed. One of them is Khamis."

NATO has not confirmed the death of Gadhafi's son, but is currently looking into the report.

The Libyan government has accused NATO of bombing civilian sites at Zlitan.

Khamis Gadhafi, 27, commands the Libyan army's 32^nd Brigade, which is a band of well-equipped 10,000 soldiers.

This is not the first time Khamis has reportedly been killed. In March, it was reported that Khamis was killed when a Libyan Air Force pilot crashed his jet into Gadhafi's compound in Tripoli. However, the report was denied after a footage showed pictures of Khamis greeting supporters.

The Daily Mail had earlier reported that Khamis was on a four-week U.S. State Department approved tour of America during the time when the recent Libyan crisis commenced. The tour was organized by AECOM, an American global infrastructure company.

Gadhafi lost his nine-year-old adopted daughter Hana in a 1986 U.S. airstrike.

Gadhafi has seven sons from his second wife, Safia al-Gaddafi. He also has son named Muhammad from his first wife, Fatiha.

His eldest son from the second marriage, Saif Al-Islam, has been a key spokesperson for the Libyan leader. He is an architect by profession. His other sons include Moammer Gadhafi, a football lover who has former Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson as his personal trainer.

Gadhafi's eldest son Mohammed Muammar al-Gaddafi holds a PhD in Engineering and Management from Liverpool University, UK.

His other sons who have made news are Saadi Gadhafi, a shareholder in soccer club Juventus, and Hannibal Gadhafi, who along with his wife was arrested in Geneva on charges of ill treatment of servants -- a situation that later escalated into a diplomatic issue between Tripoli and Switzerland.