A Nato air strike on Tripoli has killed Saif al-Arab Qaddafi, the youngest son of Muammar Qaddafi.

Libyan government spokesman, Moussa Ibrahim told reporters the 29 year old was killed along with three of Qaddafi’s grandsons in a one story house in a residential neighbourhood of the capital city. The Libyan leader who was in the building at the time was unharmed.

Although it could not Nato confirm the death of Qaddafi’s son, Nato says it had struck a “command and control building in the Bab al-Aziziya neighborhood”.

Nato forces have been carrying out airstrikes in Libya for the past month, under UN resolution 1973, which was passed in March to protect Libyan civilians. This airstrike marks the first time Qaddafi’s family has been directly targeted (MEED 3:3:11).

On 25 April, UK Defense Minister Liam Fox and US Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters in Washington that Nato planes were not targeting Qaddafi specifically, but would continue to attack his command centres.

Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard, the commander of the Nato operation, insists all its targets are military in nature. “All loss of life, especially the innocent civilians being harmed, are as a result of the ongoing conflict,” he says.