So the rebels have Gaddafi's compound. But NATO air strikes continue around Tripoli and even in the compound, snipers are still taking potshots at rebels - or should we call them "government forces" now?

BBC:

Wednesday morning saw what appeared to be new Nato air strikes in and around Tripoli, our correspondent adds.

Known pockets of resistance in the capital include the Abu Salim and al-Hadba districts, and near the Hotel Rixos, where 35 foreign nationals, most of them journalists, have been confined by pro-Gaddafi forces.

Fighting has also been reported in the southern desert city of Sebha which has strong Gaddafi family connections.

In a radio speech rebroadcast on a Libyan satellite TV channel, Col Gaddafi pledged "martyrdom or victory" in the fight against Nato and the Libyan rebels.

He said his compound had already been destroyed by what he said were 64 Nato air strikes.

Gaddafi spokesman Moussa Ibrahim also spoke to Al-Urubah TV, saying 6,000 volunteers had arrived in Libya to fight for Col Gaddafi. There was no independent confirmation of the report.

This report from BBC reporter Matthew Price would seem to suggest Gaddafi's soldiers are still active in the city:

This is day five now of what you might call the siege of the Rixos Hotel and it is a desperate situation for about 35 foreign nationals here including Britons, a US congressman and other Americans, and an Indian MP.

The situation deteriorated massively overnight when it became clear that we were unable to leave the hotel of our own free will. Gunmen were roaming around the corridors, some of them, it seemed, trained professional Gaddafi soldiers.

We believe there are still snipers on the roof of the hotel and effectively our movements are curtailed. The ITN cameraman just had an AK-47 pulled on him - a guard approached him and pushed him back, pointing the gun towards him.

He is okay but still there is a huge amount of apprehension and nervousness among the journalists stuck here in this hotel.

Here's a news flash for you; nobody knows what is going on in Tripoli - probably not even NATO commanders. The rebel propaganda operation is in full bloom and there are still plenty of Gaddafi fighters alive and kicking - and shooting. It will be a hard, slogging, messy, bloody fight to dislodge them. This is especially true for untrained rebel troops who have never carried out an urban operation like this one.

Gaddafi, now relieved of having to defend urban centers, can concentrate on trying to destabilize the new government. He is the insurgency now.

Question: How long will NATO planes hang around to support the new government?