Forces loyal to fugitive Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi have been decimating residents of his hometown Sirte, according to sources from the Libyan rebels' Transitional National Council.

The Gaddafi loyalists have been executing residents suspected of sympathizing with Libya's new rulers, Al Jazeera reported citing witness accounts.

Sirte is one of the last three spots in Libya under the control of the Gaddafi loyalists, located 450 km east of Tripoli.

Sirte has been besieged by the Libyan rebels but their forces have decided to put off their anticipated assault on the loyalists for another week. In the meantime, many civilians remain trapped inside the besieged area.

Hundreds of civilians are said to have been slaughtered by the Gaddafi forces, according to reports in the international media, citing rebel commanders.

Humanitarian groups have expressed concern about the situation in Sirte, and the fears have been compounded by reports from rebel fighters who say their family members inside have been prevented from leaving.

At the same time, a spokesman for Gaddafi, who contacted Reuters on Thursday, said it was the anti-Gaddafi forces, and NATO warplanes, which were killing people in Sirte, not the other way around.

"Between yesterday and this morning, 151 civilians were killed inside their homes as the Grad rockets and other explosives fell upon their heads," the spokesman, Moussa Ibrahim, said in a satellite phone call to Reuters in Tunis.

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