Rare morning blasts heard in Tripoli; official: NATO hits compounds

A compound belonging to embattled Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was hit by explosions on Saturday morning.

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — A series of explosion rocked the Libyan capital of Tripoli on Saturday morning, including blasts at a compound belonging to ruler Moammar Gadhafi and one on a nearby tribal compound, a government official said.

The official said one strike occurred on Bab bin Ghashir, a tribal compound near Gadhafi’s Bab al-Aziziya compound, where the other strikes occurred. The official believed the strikes were NATO attacks.

No casualties were reported.

Morning strikes in Tripoli are rare. NATO confirmed one of the attacks — a press officer said the strike on Bab bin Ghashir was timed to minimize civilian casualties.

NATO said it targeted a vehicle storage area at Bab bin Ghashir.

The tribal compound is used by people who volunteer as support forces for Libyan authorities. A decade ago, the compound was used as a military station.

NATO is operating under a U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing the use of any means — with the exception of foreign occupation — to protect civilians from attack or the threat of attack. It has been conducting airstrikes targeting Gadhafi’s military resources.

The alliance said Saturday that it struck targets in several areas in Libya on Friday, including a command-and-control facility in Tripoli.

The unrest in Libya has persisted for months as opposition members demand an end to Gadhafi’s nearly 42-year rule.

Intense fighting took place Friday, when at least 10 people were killed and more than 40 were wounded in Dafniya, outside the hotly contested coastal city of Misrata.

CNN’s Raja Razek, Nima Elbagir and Ben Wedeman contributed to this report.