London: A fortified Tripoli compound that once belonged to slain Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi is to be turned into a public park, a media report has said.
'Bab al-Azizya', or Splendid Gate, the compound belonging to Gaddafi that was stormed in a turning point of the struggle to rid Libya of the dictator will be turned into "a green area to be enjoyed by the people of Tripoli", The Independent reported quoting a Libyan Minister.
The compound was originally built by King Idris, whom Colonel Gaddafi toppled before expanding it with a long web of tunnels spreading across the city.
In the centre of the capital, it was a staunch fortress throughout Gaddafi's 42-year autocracy, which was ended by a popular uprising in August 2011.
One of the key moments was when rebels penetrated the compound, after a fierce firefight with loyalists.
Once inside, rebels were photographed smashing windows, kicking around the head of a Gaddafi statue, and piercing his pictures with bayonets, the report said.
Ikram Bash Imam, the country's Tourism Minister, said "preliminary works" had begun to turn the centre into a park.
Gaddafi died two months later as he was killed unceremoniously by rebels in Sirte.
"We are now trying to return this area to what it was before, so it will be a green area to be enjoyed by the people of Tripoli," Imam was quoted as saying by the paper.
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