[Costello:] Twenty-two minutes past the hour. Rebels in Libya are trying to consolidate their hold on Tripoli. But Gadhafi forces will not back down without a fight, apparently. Right now, we still don't know where the leader is, but one of his sons say Gadhafi is safe. Now, let's go around the world with Fred Pleitgen. He's live in Benghazi, the center of the rebels' political and military effort. I got to say, Fred, that when Saif Gadhafi turned up riding around Tripoli, that's just confusing.
[Frederik Pleitgen, Cnn Correspondent:] Yes, Carol, it is absolutely confusing. And then quite shocking, quite frankly, to a lot of people here. Of course, this city is the main one within the rebel-held territory. And there were rumors which were confirmed last night by the Transitional National Council, which is the head of the rebels, saying that Saif Gadhafi, Moammar Gadhafi's by far most prominent son, had been captured by them and was in their custody, along with two other of Moammar Gadhafi's sons. So, it now turns out late last night that, in fact, Saif Gadhafi is not and apparently has not ever been in the custody of the rebels, and that one of the other sons of Moammar Gadhafi called Mohammed, Gadhafi, who was actually his eldest son, also managed to escape from rebel custody. So, this is certainly something that somewhat undermines their credibility when they make statements like these. So far, we've not been able to get any reaction from the Transitional National Council as to why they put out these reports and to what exactly might have happened, whether or not he might have been in custody. But they are saying that this by no means undermines the momentum they have in the town of Tripoli. That they're pushing forward. And at this point in time, Carol, they're even talking about moving the wing of their political movement from here in Benghazi to Tripoli, quite soon. They say when the situation allows them to do that, when it is safe enough. Of course, it's anyone's guess at this point in time when that might be Carol.
[Costello:] Well, you talk about a credibility issue as far as these opposition forces are concerned. Saif was essentially running the country in place of his father. So, if he's running around town, you know, given the two fingers up signal, what can we really believe about who is in control of Tripoli?
[Pleitgen:] Well, it certainly seems at this point in time that no one is really in control of all of Tripoli. Sort of gist that we're getting, and also from our reports on the ground it seems as though the rebels seem to be in control of some neighborhoods in Tripoli, while Gadhafi forces still control other parts of Tripoli. Of course, especially the area around the Rixos Hotel where most journalists are staying is still in Gadhafi control. Gadhafi's main compound Bab al- Aziziya, also appears to be in Gadhafi control. It doesn't seem, as though, at this point in time, the rebels would be in the ones who are in control of all of that town. However, they do have plans, they say, on the shelf for when they do have full control to set up protection forces and other things to try and maintain peace in that town when, in fact, that happens to disarm militias and the like. Now, of course, it's anyone's guess whether or not that is actually going to happen, how much resistance Gadhafi forces are going to put up and how many neighborhoods the Gadhafi forces actually still control. One of the things that we've seen is that in the past, the rebel leadership has made claim that it's gained territory which, in fact, then turned out it hadn't. So, right now, it seems as though the situation in Tripoli is still very, very fluid and developments are happening quite quickly on the ground there Carol.
[Costello:] Fred Pleitgen, live in Benghazi, Libya, this morning thank you. It is 25 minutes past the hour. This is your A.M. WAKE-UP CALL. Here are three things to put on your radar today: Hurricane Irene gaining strength and is expected to become a category 3 storm by later today. Several computer models have it on a path moving towards the East Coast of the United States this weekend. At 10:00 a.m. Eastern today, investors checking out the new home sales report. Economists predict that sales will be down. And at 4:30 Eastern this afternoon, lawyers for match.com are expected in court. A judge has asked the Internet dating site to put in a screening system. A woman filed a lawsuit claiming someone she met on match.com sexually assaulted her. A chainsaw-toting, beer-guzzling, fish-kissing Florida man has been dubbed the worst neighbor ever by people in his neighborhood. They say he chased down a man in a wheelchair, and slapped him with a fish. Meet Dale McDaniel.
[Dale Mcdaniel, Pasco Co., Fla. Resident:] I drink from the time I get done drinking my last cup of coffee, I drink until I go to sleep. Get up in the morning if I want another drink I turn around and drink another beer.
[Costello:] He's such a charmer. McDaniel admits he's been arrested more than 30 times in Pasco County. He says he's not worried about complaints from the neighbors but some of them are working to get a restraining order against McDaniel saying he has get this a serious drinking problem. Keep hurricane Irene on your radar. It's now packing 100-mile-per- hour winds, heading toward the east coast. Our meteorologist, Jacqui Jeras, she's tracking the storm. She'll tell you when South Carolina residents should be on alert. We'll be back.