Libyan prosecutors plan to charge rebel leaders with national security crimes, seeking to convict as traitors those leading the armed uprising against the Libyan leader, Muammar Al Qathafi that has plunged the country into civil war, officials have said.

A judge compiling the charges laid out his case against 21 rebel officials who are based in the eastern city of Benghazi, including the National Transitional Council's head, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil. Defendants will be tried in absentia.

The charges include facilitating foreign intervention in Libya, providing aid and military secrets to the enemy, and seeking to topple Al Qathafi's regime by force.

Judge Khalifa Isa Khalifa told reporters in the Libyan capital, Tripoli that he plans to present the case before a special court presided over by a three-judge panel next week. He said the evidence includes testimony from several witnesses.

The allegations "amount to treason of the homeland of Libya," government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said.

Khalifa did not specify what punishment the defendants could face, but Ibrahim said those found guilty of treason could face the death penalty under Libyan law.

If convicted, Libya will seek international help, such as issuing Interpol warrants, to "demand that they are brought to justice," Khalifa said.

There is little likelihood of that happening as long as fighting rages, however. The rebels enjoy significant support from allies in the West and among several oil-rich Gulf Arab states, and Al Qathafi himself is wanted under an international arrest warrant.

The International Criminal Court recently issued arrest warrants for Al Qathafi, his son Seif al-Islam and Libyan intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senoussi for crimes against humanity.

International prosecutors at the Netherlands-based court allege government troops fired on civilian protesters during anti-Al Qathafi street demonstrations earlier this year.

Libyan officials have rejected the ICC's authority. They say they established the special court set to try the rebel leaders in order to bring to justice anyone who committed crimes as part of the nearly five-month uprising.

Khalifa sidestepped a question of whether the court would examine allegations raised by the ICC against Al Qathafi and his inner circle, saying it is the responsibility of the attorney general to assign cases.

"We are ready and prepared to investigate any person in this country if there are people who are willing to come to the (attorney general) with accusations or complaints," he said.