In this June 12, 2010 file photo, Moammar Qadhafi talks during a ceremony to mark the 40th anniversary of the evacuation of the American military bases in the country, in Tripoli, Libya.—AP

MISRATA, Libya: Muammar Qadhafi's blood-streaked body was on display in a commercial freezer at a shopping center Friday as Libyan authorities argued about what to do with his remains and questions deepened over official accounts of the longtime dictator's death.

New video emerged of his violent, chaotic last moments, showing fighters beating him as they drag him away.

Nearly every aspect of Thursday's killing of Qadhafi was mired in confusion, a sign of the difficulties ahead for Libya.

Its new rulers are disorganised, its people embittered and divided. But the ruling National Transitional Council said it would declare the country's liberation on Saturday, the starting point for a timetable that calls for a new interim government within a month and elections within eight months.

The top UN rights chief raised concerns that Qadhafi may have been shot to death after being captured alive.

The fate of his body seemed tied up in squabbles among Libya's factions, as fighters from Misrata — a city brutally besieged by Qadhafi's forces during the civil war — seemed to claim ownership of it, forcing the delay of a planned burial Friday.

Also muddled was the fate of Seif al-Islam Qadhafi, the only Qadhafi son who stayed in Libya and reportedly survived after his father's Aug. 21 ouster.

It appeared Friday that he was still at large: some government ministers had said he was wounded and in custody in a hospital in the city of Zlitan, but a military official at the hospital, Hakim al-Kisher, denied he was there.

In Misrata, residents crowded into long lines to get a chance to view the body of Qadhafi, which was laid out on a mattress on the floor of an emptied-out vegetable and onions freezer at a local shopping centre.

The body had apparently been stowed in the freezer in an attempt to keep it out of the public eye, but once the location was known, that intention was swept away in the overwhelming desire of residents to see the man they so deeply despised.

Men, women and children filed in to take their picture with the body. The site's guards had even organised separate visiting hours for families and single men.

Qadhafi's 69-year-old body was stripped to the waist, his torso and arms streaked with dried blood. Bullet wounds in the chest, abdomen and left side of the head were visible.

The bloody siege of Misrata over the summer instilled a particularly virulent hatred of Qadhafi there — a hatred now mixed with pride because he was captured and killed by fighters from the city.

New video posted on Facebook showed revolutionary fighters dragging a confused-looking Qadhafi up the hill to their vehicles after his capture and less than an hour before he was killed.

The young men scream ''Muammar, you dog!'' as their former leader wipes at blood covering the left side of his head, neck and left shoulder.

Qadhafi gestures to the young men to be patient, and says ''What's going on?'' as he wipes fresh blood from his temple and glances at his palm.

A young fighter later is shown carrying a boot and screaming, ''This is Muammar's shoe! This is Muammar's shoe! Victory! Victory!''

In Tripoli, joy over Qadhafi's end spilled into a second day as thousands converged on central Martyrs' Square for Friday prayers and celebrations. Men danced and hoisted the country's new red-green-and-black flag.

''It's the start of a new era that everybody hopes will bring security and freedom,'' said Tarek Othman, a computer specialist. ''I hope democracy is the path we take so all of these Libyans who have sacrificed will really feel free.''

He stood with his wife —who wore a cap in the revolution's colors over her all—encompassing black niqab —in the square, which was formerly known as Green Square and was used by Qadhafi to stage rallies against the uprising.

Opinion

Editorial

When medicine fails
Updated 18 Nov, 2024

When medicine fails

Between now and 2050, medical experts expect antibiotic resistance to kill 40m people worldwide.
Nawaz on India
Updated 18 Nov, 2024

Nawaz on India

Nawaz Sharif’s hopes of better ties with India can only be realised when New Delhi responds to Pakistan positively.
State of abuse
18 Nov, 2024

State of abuse

DESPITE censure from the rulers and society, and measures such as helplines and edicts to protect the young from all...
Football elections
17 Nov, 2024

Football elections

PAKISTAN football enters the most crucial juncture of its ‘normalisation’ era next week, when an Extraordinary...
IMF’s concern
17 Nov, 2024

IMF’s concern

ON Friday, the IMF team wrapped up its weeklong unscheduled talks on the Fund’s ongoing $7bn programme with the...
‘Un-Islamic’ VPNs
Updated 17 Nov, 2024

‘Un-Islamic’ VPNs

If curbing pornography is really the country’s foremost concern while it stumbles from one crisis to the next, there must be better ways to do so.