Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi has made his first public appearance since air strikes on his forces began, pledging that he will not surrender and calling the international coalition against him a "bunch of fascists".

The speech came after Barack Obama warned the Libyan leader may try to hang on to power despite the military intervention. But the U.S. secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, said she understood people close to Gaddafi were in touch with other countries asking for advice on exile options.

Gaddafi appeared outside his Tripoli compound early on Wednesday, March 23 morning, to speak to supporters who have formed a human shield to protect him, The Guardian reports.

"We will not surrender," he said. "We will defeat them by any means ... We are ready for the fight, whether it will be a short or a long one ... We will be victorious in the end," he said in comments carried live by state television. "This assault ... is by a bunch of fascists who will end up in the dustbin of history," he added, to the approving roar of the crowd.

Gaddafi seemed aware of growing rumors about his whereabouts after two strikes on his Bab al-Aziziya compound – with one opposition source reporting him at a hideout deep in the Sahara. "I am here, in my modest tent," Gaddafi said. "I am here."