Moussa Ibrahim, Muammar Gaddafi's spokesman, has reportedly told the Associated Press news agency that the toppled Libyan leader is ready to negotiate with the rebels to form a transitional government.
Ibrahim called AP headquarters in New York late on Saturday, and told them he was calling from Tripoli, the Libyan capital, and that Gaddafi was still in Libya.
Ibrahim said Gaddafi had appointed one of his sons, al-Saadi, to head the negotiations with the rebel forces, according to AP who said it identified Ibrahim from his voice.
Ibrahim has been the most public face of the Gaddafi government in recent weeks, regularly addressing television cameras and journalists in Tripoli.
The phone call appears to represent a change of policy by Gaddafi who last week referred to the rebels as "thugs" and "rats" and urged loyalists to continue fighting even as his opponents seized control of Tripoli.
Gaddafi's whereabouts remains unknown and rebels have offered a reward for his capture or killing.
Al Jazeera's correspondent James Bays reporting from Tripoli said: "the hunt for him [Gaddafi] goes on and one of the places that is still in the hands of Gaddafi forces is his hometown of Sirte."
Sirte is considered the last remaining bastion of support for the man whose decades-long rule of Libya is effectively over, with the rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) now widely recognised as the country's legitimate government.
On Saturday the Arab League became the latest international body to recognise the NTC as it turned over the country's seat in the regional bloc to the rebel leadership.
Rebel claimed victory in Bin Jawad late on Saturday, advancing in their push towards Sirte.
Reporting from the city, Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland said: "If, in fact, it is proven that the rebels are able to hold the town of Bin Jawad, then certainly they will have removed a major obstacle on the way to Sirte."
Mustafa Abdel Jalil, chairman of the NTC, said at a news conference on Saturday that rebel commanders were negotiating with Gaddafi loyalists in Bin Jawad to try to persuade them to surrender control over the city.
Vital supply route
Elsewhere, Libyan rebels have defeated Gaddafi loyalists in skirmishes over a key border checkpoint with Tunisia, opening up a vital supply route into the war-ravaged country.
Gaining control of the Ras Ajdir crossing allows rebels to channel fresh supplies and aid to Tripoli, amid fears of a developing humanitarian crisis in the capital and elsewhere.
Al Jazeera's Sue Turton, reporting from Tripoli on Saturday, said the capture was an "incredibly important" gain for the rebels.
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