Anderson Cooper 360

Gadhafi timeline: A long 8 months in Libya

(CNN) - Fighting in Libya started with anti-government demonstrations in February and escalated into a civil war.

Libyan fighters announced the fall of the last stronghold of former leader Moammar Gadhafi, and reports have since surfaced that Gadhafi was killed in the fighting.

International powers have accused Gadhafi's regime of committing human rights violations and killing civilians.

Here are some key points CNN has reported in the conflict.

February 14

Three days after the fall of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, calls go out on Facebook for peaceful demonstrations in Libya against leader Moammar Gadhafi. The Libyan leader, who ruled over the country for more than four decades, voiced support for Mubarak during the Egyptian crisis.

February 16

About 200 demonstrators protesting the arrest of a human activist take to the streets in the coastal city of Benghazi, witnesses say. Several of them are arrested amid confrontations with police. A highly placed source close to the Libyan government tells CNN, "There is nothing serious here. These are just young people fighting each other."

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