Muammar Qaddafi and his sons have raised a new army of 12,000 soldiers - all fighters of loyal Tuareg tribes of the Sahara, DEBKAfile’s military sources report.

Saturday, Sept. 24, Libyan rebel troops reportedly clashed with his diehards after entering the town of Sirte from the west. Two thousand kilometers to the south, in Niger, the ousted Libyan ruler won a guarantee of protection and alliance from the Touareg tribal council and their declaration of war on his enemies.