BENGHAZI - Head of Libya's rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) Mustafa Abdul Jalil said on Wednesday that those who kill or catch Gadhafi will be pardoned for crimes of the past.

The rebel leader told a press conference that businessmen in Benghazi had offered a reward of two million Libyan dinars ($1.3 million) for anyone who turns in Gadhafi, dead or alive.

"The NTC announces that any of his inner circle who kills or captures Gadhafi, will be given amnesty or be pardoned for crimes he has committed," Jalil said.

Meanwhile, Jalil noted that the international recognition of the NTC is key at the moment.

Denying negotiations with Gadhafi forces in Sirte, Jalil said some rebel fighters from eastern Libya had already penetrated into the hometown of the Libyan top figure, who has ruled the Northern African nation for over four decades.

NTC military spokesman Colonel Ahmed Omar Bani said at a press conference earlier that Gadhafi might have hidden in the desert areas between Sirte and Sabah.

"We will trace him down and catch him as long as he appears," said Bani.

Libyan rebels Tuesday captured Gadhafi's Bab al-Azizya compound in capital Tripoli after heavy fighting, while, the whereabouts of the embattled Libyan leader and his sons remain unknown to the moment.

Early on Wednesday, Gadhafi said his withdrawal from Bab al- Azizya was a tactical move, local al-Orouba TV reported.

The defiant Libyan leader said the compound was levelled to the ground by as many as 64 NATO airstrikes, the TV said, adding Gadhafi vowed death or victory in fight against the "aggression."