TRIPOLI: Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi on Wednesday urged residents to cleanse Tripoli of "rats", after rebels overran his compound in the centre of the capital.

In an audio message on Syrian-based Arrai Oruba television station and rebroadcast by satellite channel Al-Arabiya, Kadhafi also said he had walked incognito through the streets of Tripoli.

"I walked incognito, without anyone seeing me, and I saw youths ready to defend their city," the strongman said, without specifying when he took to the streets. He also urged residents to "cleanse Tripoli of rats."

On the other hand,Libyan rebels hunted Wednesday for Moamer Kadhafi and battled the remnants of his forces after overrunning his Tripoli compound, as the strongman urged residents to cleanse the capital "of rats." Two powerful blasts thought to be caused by an air attack rocked the capital early in the morning as a NATO warplane flew overhead. The explosions came during a night of shooting as fighting continued following the storming of Kadhafi's Bab al-Azizya compound by rebel fighters on Tuesday.