Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have addressed a rapturous crowd in the eastern town of Benghazi, a former rebel stronghold. The leaders received a hero's welcome at Liberty Square, a symbolic site for the rebels, in jubilant scenes that seemed to move both men.
Cameron said that it was great to be "in a free Benghazi. People in Britain salute your courage... you showed the world you can get rid of dictator".
"Colonel Gaddafi said he would hunt you down like rats," Cameron said. "But you showed the courage of lions and we salute your courage. Now just as your courage has written the last chapter of Libyan history, so it must write the next one.”
Sarkozy said that "you have shown us your courage. We need a new courage for forgiveness and reconciliation".
“Young people of Libya, young people of Benghazi, France are your friends," he said. "You wanted to be free, you wanted a free economy, France, Great Britain, Europe is with you. We want a united, not a divided Libya.”
Both men were presented with pin badges representing the flag of the new country before Sarkozy went into the crowd, to the visible concern of his security team. More than 160 security officers are travelling with the French leader, it has been reported.
At an earlier press conference in Tripoli, Cameron announced that the UK has unfrozen £600m of Libyan assets and will push the UN for a new resolution to release another £12bn.
Speaking alongside Sarkozy, chairman of the National Transitional Council Abdul Jalil and Prime Minister Mahmoud Jabril, Cameron said he was "proud of the role Britain played. But this was your revolution, not our revolution."
Some £600,000 of unfrozen cash would be given to the Mines Advisory Group to help clear landmines, Cameron's spokesman confirmed, while 50 places at specialist UK hospitals were being offered to those seriously wounded in the conflict.
Cameron arrived in Tripoli Thursday morning with Foreign Secretary William Hague and Sarkozy in a show of support for the NTC.
He began the trip by visiting a hospital in the capital, where he was received with jubilant cheers and applause. The prime minister also held talks with Jalil and Jabril.
Speaking at a press conference following the meeting, Cameron said it was an "honour" to see the Libyan people "taking their country back".
Adding that the mission in Libya "is not finished", Cameron said that Colonel Gaddafi, who still remains at large, must be brought to justice. He also said that Nato would continue its mission until all civilians were safe and said the UK would help to remove mines and other dangerous weapons from the country.
President Sarkozy said that he was "touched by the welcome the Libyan people have shown towards us" and added that "as long as peace is threatened France will be on your side".
"Gaddafi should be arrested and all those involved and caught by the international court should be held to account for what they have done," Sarkozy said.
The BBC reported that the visit had been planned for many weeks, and was brought forward to show support for the NTC.
The trip came as the foreign secretary announced some slight relaxing of the travel restrictions to parts of the country.
Hague said: "In light of the improving security situation on the ground I have decided to change our Travel Advice to advise against all but essential travel to Zuwarah, Az Zawiyah, Tripoli, al Khums, Zlitan and Misratah, and the coastal towns from Ras Lanuf to the Egyptian Border, including Benghazi. We still advise against all travel to all other areas of Libya."
Fighting continues in areas of the country still held by pro-Gaddafi forces. Parts of Bani Walid, a town to the south-east of Tripoli, and Jufra are still held by fighters loyal to the former leader.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said on Wednesday that 13 mass grave sites have been found in Libya over the past three weeks (warning, graphic photos). More than 125 bodies were found at 12 sites in and around Tripoli, while the remains of 34 people were recovered from a site in western Libya.