Embattled Libyan leader Mr Muammar Gaddafi has threatened to send hundreds of people to launch attacks in Europe to avenge NATO strikes against his regime.

“Hundreds of Libyans will martyr in Europe. I told you it is eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. But we will give them a chance to come to their senses,” Mr Gaddafi said yesterday in an audio speech on Libyan television.

Mr Gaddafi, whose forces have been battling rebel fighters and NATO warplanes, was speaking in the desert town of Sabha, 500 miles south of Tripoli.

Large number of people turned out in Sabha in an apparent attempt to show that Mr Gaddafi still enjoys support in the areas of Libya he still controls, al-Jazeera reported.

His comments came as NATO forces increased their strikes in the country.

Meanwhile, thousands of Gaddafi supporters rallied in the Green Square in Tripoli, Libya’s capital, for Friday prayers, underscoring his refusal to step down after four decades in power and five months of fighting.

Mr Gaddafi last week had also threatened retaliation against Europe unless NATO ceases its operations.

The uprising to oust Gaddafi, who has been in power for 42 years, began in mid-February. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant against him for alleged crimes against humanity.

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