Fugitive Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has been killed by Rebel Forces. (Warning: Graphic Proof Pic)

Fugitive Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi died today from wounds sustained during capture near his hometown of Sirte, according to reports that were confirmed by Libyan transitional authorities and independent journalists.

Amateur video broadcast on TV channels showed Gadhafi’s purported corpse: a man who appears to be the deposed leader lying in the street, stripped half-naked and splattered with blood. Bystanders, who are chanting, “God is great!,” kicked him.

The 20 seconds of footage became instantly iconic for the Arab Spring protests: a despotic Middle Eastern ruler forced out of power after a popular uprising that turned into an armed rebellion. The image of Gadhafi’s bloody face is sure to send chills among other besieged Middle Eastern rulers such as Syria’s Bashar Assad and Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Saleh.