ARE GADAFFI'S DAYS NUMBERED? – AT 8:04 A.M. ET:  NATO's slow-motion military campaign in Libya has been widely criticized – and we're joined in here – and we're still not sure exactly who the rebels are, but there is clear military movement in the country, and it's toward the rebel side.

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Five loud explosions have shaken the Libyan capital's city center.

The thunderous blasts on Thursday afternoon could be felt at a hotel where foreign journalists stay in Tripoli.

NATO jets were heard minutes after the blasts exploded. It wasn't immediately clear what was hit or if there were civilian casualties.

NATO has been bombarding military targets in Libya since a no-fly zone was instituted in March.

Rebel fighters are closing in on the capital from the west and the south, while NATO controls the seas off the north of Tripoli.

Hundreds of miles away from Tripoli, the opposition controls of most of eastern Libya, and has a transitional leadership council in the rebel de facto capital of Benghazi.

COMMENT:  There's been a great deal of reporting in the last few days pointing to major advances by the rebels, and boastful predictions by some rebel leaders that Gadaffi will be gone by the end of August.  Obviously, that can't be guaranteed, but for the first time the rebel claims are being taken seriously. 

If it does happen, you may be sure that President Obama will issue an appropriate statement from his vacation hideaway in Cape Cod, while holding an ice cream cone in one hand.

At the same time, Syrian President Assad, under increasing international pressure, including pressure from the Arab League, claims that the clampdown against his own people has been stopped.  We'll see about that tomorrow, the traditional day for protests in the Muslim world.  If the crackdown is over, it doesn't in any way guarantee reforms in Syria, but it could buy a lease on life for Assad, a very bad outcome.

August 18, 2011