stand". another saying it could put civilians in the cross hairs. both officials say they don't know what form a final offensive might take. recent nato air strikes are clearly upping the ante. our people there telling us they are under way again tonight, loud explosions being heard in tripoli within the past hour. opposition forces telling us they're making use of the air attacks to try to make progress on the ground. those forces now in the middle of a major push on zawhi, the keyport city on tripoli's doorstep. fierce artillery fire could be heard today. opposition fighters telling our sara sidener they could become moving on the capital within a matter of days. that could just be optimistic talk on their part. meantime the opposition says a orm libyan prime minister has defected, fleeing tripoli with his family. no sign, though, that his former boss, muammar gadhafi, is going anywhere. and that's the potential problem. a potentially very violent and bloody problem. joining us now, sara sidner with opposition forces, matthew chance in tripoli and from aspen, colorado, retired allied commander wesley clark. sir, you've been with the opposition forces. how close are they to tripoli, and how much trouble is gadhafi in right now? >> reporter: anderson, they're just 30 miles from tripoli. we're talking about nothing, basically. but what we are seeing in the city of zawhi very strategically important, there is an oil refinery that rebels now have a hold of. they gave us a tour of the refinery. it's in perfect condition. it's one of the only functioning refineries left in the country. and for them it's very important that they're able to cut off that oil supply to tripoli. so they're very happy about that. and they say they have now gotten control of 8 of 0%, 80% of the city, but they are still battling it out in 20% of the city. we've heard heavy, heavy gunfire, mortars, artillery rounds, going on in just 20% of the city. they feel like we're going to end this thing in the next day or so, and then they tell us they plan on pushing forward to tripoli which is just about a 40-minute drive away. >> so sara, are they in control of zawhi? >> reporter: they're not in complete control. we were in the middle of the fire fight today. we got so close and suddenly we found ourselves having to run out of the area because of all of the mortarses that were coming in and the shelling that was happening. we made it out safely. the fire fight was continuing to go on throughout the day. so 20% of that city is still being battled over. but they did take control of 80% of the city. you can see that city is mostly abandoned but there are still a few residents around who have decided to stick it out. what you're seeing is rebel tanks, tanks that they have taken from gadhafi forces, they're now using against gadhafi forces in the city. >> matthew chance, what's it like there now. does it feel like a city preparing for the worst? >> reporter: well, it feels like they're a city which is under pretty intensive air strikes by the nato war planes that have been circling the skies above tripoli for the past several hours, particularly but over the past several days as well we've seen an intensification of the strikes. there's also i think when you speak to residents in the city a sense that they're very much under siege. the fact that zawhi is here for the most part fallen to the rebels and the road to the west tripoli to tunisia has been cut off by that military action has had a big psychological impact on the people here. they really have taken on this siege mentality. it's been compounded by the fact that we're hearing air strikes every couple of minutes now, perhaps every half an hour or so, in the libyan capital, anderson. >> general clark, if gadhafi does make his last stand in tripoli, doesn't try to escape somewhere else or flee or give up, knowing what we know about him, his military capabilities and the potential for urban fighting, what could a last stand there look like? >> well, if he has disciplined forces and ammunition, it could be ugly there. and it could go on for days just like the fighting in the sarato went on for days and days. but my guess is that's unlikely to happen. i if i if muammar gadhafi goes into tripoli and pulls in there as soon as it starts to go against him he's going to be struggling for a way out. once he goes into tripoli, there's no -- other than just saying, okay, we surrender. we lay down our arms and give us some kind of a political solution, he's lost his bargaining position by going into tripoli. so my guess, he's not going in. and b, if he does, that it's not going to end up in a months-long combat. >> if gadhafi decides to make a stand in tripoli, what do you think it would look like? do you think he has those loyal organized forces, or do you think as many have hoped for all along his inner circle might turn on him in the final push? >> reporter: yes, anderson, i think what's most likely is those force that is remain around him will melt away. and in fact, i think something that i learned from a very senior western european intelligence official is indication that gadhafi is preparing for the last stand. we had heard reports that he had some plan to flee to tunisia, and this senior intelligence official with first-hand knowledge said to me, no, that's not right. this was his -- the women and friends were seeking permission to land a plane in tunisia. why a plane? because rebel forces have that western border, they couldn't travel by land. tunisia denied permission to bring a plane in with his family. i think he is wants his family out, because he's prepared to have that last stand, to have that battle there and to die there. he's said that he will become a martyr and let his blood flow on libyan soil. and i think that's in his mind if he's got to go, that's his plan. >> sara, in terms of the opposition forces, for so long they were completely disorganized. we talked about this the other night. you said they have made some improvements. but in terms of -- i mean, how much of a disciplined fighting force do they have? do we know of what percentage of the forces are actually have actual training, have actual experience, and in a fight, in a city would be able to fight effectively if it came to that? >> reporter: that's a really hard question to answer but a very good question, anderson. i can tell you from what we have seen of the few months that we've been inside of this country, what we've seen is there was continuing and is continuing to be training. and so there is something like a boot camp, i guess you could say, in places like benghazi and here in the western mountains where people who have never held a gun before will go, they will get intensive training for example a week or two weeks' time. but because the force isn't that big, what you're seeing is sometimes people coming in that have very little knowledge of how to deal with this. never mind strategically trying to figure out what the right thing to do is. just like you mentioned, when you talk about urban warfare, you really need to be trained. it's one of the most dangerous kinds of warfare that there is. because something could be just around the corner and you have to be trained for these things and have the right equipment. and i can't say that they do. but i can tell you this. when we asked them, are you planning to push into tripoli, and if so what is the plan? is there a plan that has been set out for coordination for all of these different groups and brigades that are coming in? and the answer was, well, we have a plan. and i said what is it? he goes, well, we have a plan sort of. so if that is what's going on, this will be a very, very difficult fight. and if gadhafi decides that he really wants to make a last stand, this could get really, really bloody, aernz aernlz. >> the other question is how many forces loyal to the opposition may still be in tripoli laying low in the event that opposition forces did enter tripoli whether they would be joined by people who are actually living there. a lot we don't know. matthew chance, appreciate it. stay safe. sara sidner as well, general clark thank you. fran townsend. let us know what you think. we're on facebook. i'm on twitter @ anderson cooper next a deadly day in the streets of syria. it has been yet another deadly day. government protestors targeting -- government forces targeting protestors later three young men convicted of murdering a second grader. the crime drew natural attention, so did developments today. the west memphis three they've been known as. all three are out of prison today. one was on death row. were they wrongly convicted or wrongly freed? crime and punishment the west memphis three tonight. first isha sesay. >> reporter: you have to see it to believe it, and even then a baby in a sfroeler in the back of a pickup. and wait until you hear what the babysitter said about it. that and much more when 360 syria today, 23 killings syria today, 23 killings today alone. in a moment you'll hear from a top syrian diplomat who says that security forces are there to protect protestors, not mo them down with gunfire. he says we have it all wrong tharkts world has it all wrong. we're keeping them honest tonight the best possible way with a first-hand account from somebody who says syrian authorities are hunting us like animals. he spent the day not in hiding but in this. [ screaming ] [ gunfire ] >> just as you see it here. wave after wave of gunfire directed at people chanting "god is great "and throwing rocks shouting "unbeliever" the people target them. syrian state tv says armed men opened fire on friday worshippers with peacekeeping forces and were arrested. that's been the standard story. the protesters are armed sunni muslim fa nat ticks the government says. but the people look to be ordinary syrians. the protesters themselves say that's what they are. the only weapons you see, and you rarely see them anywhere, are stones. the weaponry you hear belongs to syrian authorities. in other new video also posted today, also apparently taken today shows what these so-called protecters are actually doing to people. the beating not unusual. we've seen people clubbed, people stuffed into the trunks of cars. we've seen victims of all ages gunned down, murdered, some of them only children. like this little girl 2 years old, shot through the eye, shot down as she and her family were reportedly trying to flee a neighborhood under attack by government forces. as always what you see here cannot be independently verified. we're not allowed to see it for ourself. every day, though, fresh evidence arrives posted on youtube by people risking their freedom and their lives to document what they are seeing, what they are experiencing. again, the syrian government has a very different explanation for what you just saw and what we've all been seeing for months now. last night we played a portion of my interview with bashar ja'afari ambassador for the united nations. >> the government allows peaceful demonstration toss take to the street, and they are protected by the police. >> sir, that's not true. you know that's not true. you're a very educated man. you simply know that is not true. when people were asking for children to be released you're telling me they weren't fired upon, they weren't killed? >> you don't know all the faces of the story, anderson. >> you're not allowing us in. you're not allowing reporters to actually go to the frontlines and see. this you're restricting reporters. so it's a little disingenuous to say you don't know the truth when you're not allowing the international community to seat truth. >> this is wrong, too. we have allowed three big delegations of journalists and reporters to enter the country. >> and you keep them in damascus or control them very carefully. >> no, we don't control anybody. we are there to protect them from the armed groups. >> sir, i reported in damascus. and i had a minder with me who watched everything i did and every single person i talked. to and that was at a time when you didn't allegedly have armed groups going around. so to say that you're allowing free rein for reporters is simply not true. >> anderson, you are biased and taking sides. and you shouldn't do that because you are a seasoned reporter. >> i think what you're saying, you have not offered any proof. >> this is not the truth. i am afraid this is not the truth. you are reporting what somebody told you. this shouldn't be done on cnn. >> sir, i'm reporting what i have seen with my own eyes and i have seen the corpses of little children with their penises cut off, broken, battered bodies and protesters trying to get the dead bodies and wounded bodies of their friends and family members and complete strangers and people being shot at while they're trying to retrieve bodies. >> you wouldn't be more sorry than us seeing these victims. they are our own people. >> is there anything that you would say that your government has done wrong in the last five months in terms how they have dealt with your own citizens? >> you know what? in all military and police operations, all over the world, it happens that sometimes there are some mistakes. and the president himself acknowledged that there were some mistakes at the beginning. because we were not prepared, i mean our forces of police were not prepared for such an unexpected situation. so some people may have made some mistakes, anderson. we are not talking about the peaceful demonstrators. the peaceful demonstrators are aloud in syria according to the law. they have the police protection. >> that's untrue. >> this is your opinion. this is your opinion. >> i have talked to many -- i have talked to protestors. i've talked to human rights activists inside syria who say this is not true. a woman whose husband was arrested and kidnapped, taken away and held for weeks and weeks without her having any knowledge of what happened to him. i've talked to these people. >> you may have talked to one or three or ten or 100. but syria is 23 million. you would have to be more objective, more genuine in your approach in analyzing what's going on in syria. but please hear the syrian official point of view also. i'm not saying that you shouldn't listen to the other side. continue listening to the other side. but please reflect the syrian official point of view, and here i'm telling you, we have had 500 officers and soldiers killed so far. plus, of course, almost 1,000 civilian lives. >> the u.n. says that about 2,000 civilians have been killed by your government. about 2,000. and thousands more are being held in detention. >> this is wrong, anderson. this is wrong. the same way i am denying here with categorically unequivocally that other war ships shelled -- >> would you allow the international red cross, red crescent to go into your prisons? i've heard from many protesters whose loved ones get injured or shot, they can't go to hospitals because your security forces are inside the hospitals and will arrest anybody who's taken in. >> this is another lie, anderson. this is wrong. >> if that's a lie it means that virtually everyone except the assad regime itself is lying. u.n. lying, amnesty international lying, aliers, state department, u.s., britain, france, e.u., turkey, saudi arabia. is it possible? anything's possible. is it likely? you can ask yourself that. then having seen what you have seen tonight and night after night, ask yourself if your own eyes are lying, too. are they lying about this? well, the ambassador enjoys his diplomatic posting here in new york, a dissident who we're calling alexander to protect his identity is in damascus seeing it all up coast. he was in the crowds today as security forces opened fire. we spoke shortly afterwards. >> so alexander, what happened today after you attended friday prayers? what did you see? >> we were in the midan area in central damascus and a protest actually erupted inside the mosque, which is in the midan area. at least 2,000 to 2,500 people took part in the protest as it left the mosque. just as we were coming out of the mosque and pouring into the main street, suddenly the gunfire started. it was coming from different directions, really. but we did see the shooting coming from a certain direction where there were security forces and basically armed men in plain clothes. they were taking cover behind some transport buses. and the protesters actually defied them. what we did the second it started we started running away, but then we realized that some people stood still and actually got in a rock fight with the people who were armed and shooting at them. >> the syrian ambassador to the united nations told me that the government of syria, the regime in syria actually is protecting peaceful protestors, that they're not shooting at them, they're not killing them, they're protecting them. was that case today? has that ever been the case in any protest you have seen? >> that wasn't the case today. and that's, no, that's never been the case. that's just total nonsense. what the government is actually doing to these peaceful protestors is they're cracking down on them. they're chasing them down in the streets, hunting them like animals. they are detaining them and then torturing them for days on end. these people leave the security branches frightened to death, not able to take to the street again because of what they've done to them. they've humiliated them. they've killed people in the streets, women, children, just to stop the protest movement. and everything that's happening now in syria is obvious. anyone who comes and cease can see for themselves, they're basically slaughtering the protest movement. and not allowing anyone to take part in these protests. >> alexander, why is it that you are doing this? why is it so important for you to go out in the streets, to stand up, to use your voice and to call for change? why is it important for you to risk your life to demonstrate and also to talk to us? >> well, it's been 41 years that syria has witnessed this fascist regime that just treats people like dirt. and the syrian people want change. the syrian people want a different sort of life. a democratic life. where people respect each other. and that's what happened on the 15th of march in syria when people took to the streets, they decided that they will not take this anymore. and that's why this has happened. and i actually do my part by talking to international media, because i know we have to bridge that. i know that the people outside the country have to see what's happening. these are peaceful people, civil people who just want their universal right to have a democratic country where all civilians respect each other. >> alexander, stay safe. thank you for talking to us. >> thank you. thank you. still ahead, an american woman missing for weeks in aruba now but the prime suspect in the disappearance of robyn gardner is just beginning to talk. the new details he's sharing with police and a glimpse of his life behind bars also a gruesome crime revisited. the west memphis three convicted just when they were teenagers. you may remember the case with the brutal murders of three little boys in arkansas. today after nearly two decades behind bars they walked free. why they were released and the startling reaction from one and the pollen outside. but with 24-hour zyrtec®, i get prescription strength relief from my worst allergy symptoms. it's the brand allergists recommend most. ♪ lily and i are back on the road again. where we belong. with zyrtec®, i can love the air®. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? 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