CNN) -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte will fall soon, perhaps within days, commanders of the anti-Gadhafi operation told U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Friday, according to a senior U.S. defense official traveling with him.

CNN) -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte will fall
soon, perhaps within days, commanders of the anti-Gadhafi operation
told U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Friday, according to a
senior U.S. defense official traveling with him.

Panetta met during the morning with the commanders at the naval base
that hosts the U.S. Sixth Fleet in Italy, the official said.

The commanders said they have no reason to believe Gadhafi can
exercise command and control of those militia members who remain loyal
to him, the official said.

They further believe that, although the anti-Gadhafi forces are
gaining the ability to exercise control, they will likely need
training to develop their capabilities, the official said.

Still, no timetable has been drawn up for when commanders will
recommend that NATO forces end their involvement, the official said.

The fall of Sirte could not come soon enough for Libya's new leaders,
eager to declare liberation once the birthplace of Gadhafi is under
their control.

But battles for the coastal city southeast of Tripoli have raged for
weeks as Gadhafi loyalists dug in to put up stiff resistance.

Early Friday, hundreds of revolutionary fighters attacked from the
west, National Transitional Council military field commanders said.

Gadhafi's men control tall buildings in the city center, where they
fire on their foes from rooftops. They were striking with
rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, said the council's
commanders, Mohammed Ibrahim and Jamal al-Raeis, from the front lines.

At least 12 revolutionary fighters were killed and 193 others wounded
Friday, the Misrata Military Council said.

"The battle will be difficult, but we have to finish it," Ibrahim
said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross evacuated three wounded
people from Ibn Sina hospital in Sirte to a field hospital on
Thursday.

Dibeh Fakhr, an ICRC spokesman in Misrata, said Friday that the group
is committed to re-entering Sirte to evacuate more casualties.

The Red Cross said thousands of civilians remain inside Sirte and
waves of war-weary civilians were streaming from the coastal city
every day.

"We even saw entire families leaving on foot, bringing their small
children with them, without any food or water," Red Cross delegate
Ghafar Bishtawi said.

More than 18,000 people, including many women, children and elderly
people, are displaced east of Sirte and hundreds have moved to safer
locations west of the city, the Red Cross said.

Sirte is one of two contested cities remaining in Libya as the
National Transitional Council moves forward to form new governance in
the country.

The council's leader and the interim prime minister have promised to
step down to clear the way for a new government once Sirte is taken.

Gadhafi, wanted by the International Criminal Court in the Hague for
alleged crimes against humanity, has not been seen in public in
months. Syrian-based television aired an audio message Thursday that
was purportedly from the deposed leader. In it, the speaker urged
Libyans to protest the new leadership.

CNN) -- Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte will fall
soon, perhaps within days, commanders of the anti-Gadhafi operation
told U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Friday, according to a
senior U.S. defense official traveling with him.

Panetta met during the morning with the commanders at the naval base
that hosts the U.S. Sixth Fleet in Italy, the official said.

The commanders said they have no reason to believe Gadhafi can
exercise command and control of those militia members who remain loyal
to him, the official said.

They further believe that, although the anti-Gadhafi forces are
gaining the ability to exercise control, they will likely need
training to develop their capabilities, the official said.

Still, no timetable has been drawn up for when commanders will
recommend that NATO forces end their involvement, the official said.

The fall of Sirte could not come soon enough for Libya's new leaders,
eager to declare liberation once the birthplace of Gadhafi is under
their control.

But battles for the coastal city southeast of Tripoli have raged for
weeks as Gadhafi loyalists dug in to put up stiff resistance.

Early Friday, hundreds of revolutionary fighters attacked from the
west, National Transitional Council military field commanders said.

Gadhafi's men control tall buildings in the city center, where they
fire on their foes from rooftops. They were striking with
rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, said the council's
commanders, Mohammed Ibrahim and Jamal al-Raeis, from the front lines.

At least 12 revolutionary fighters were killed and 193 others wounded
Friday, the Misrata Military Council said.

"The battle will be difficult, but we have to finish it," Ibrahim
said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross evacuated three wounded
people from Ibn Sina hospital in Sirte to a field hospital on
Thursday.

Dibeh Fakhr, an ICRC spokesman in Misrata, said Friday that the group
is committed to re-entering Sirte to evacuate more casualties.

The Red Cross said thousands of civilians remain inside Sirte and
waves of war-weary civilians were streaming from the coastal city
every day.

"We even saw entire families leaving on foot, bringing their small
children with them, without any food or water," Red Cross delegate
Ghafar Bishtawi said.

More than 18,000 people, including many women, children and elderly
people, are displaced east of Sirte and hundreds have moved to safer
locations west of the city, the Red Cross said.

Sirte is one of two contested cities remaining in Libya as the
National Transitional Council moves forward to form new governance in
the country.

The council's leader and the interim prime minister have promised to
step down to clear the way for a new government once Sirte is taken.

Gadhafi, wanted by the International Criminal Court in the Hague for
alleged crimes against humanity, has not been seen in public in
months. Syrian-based television aired an audio message Thursday that
was purportedly from the deposed leader. In it, the speaker urged
Libyans to protest the new leadership.
.