Deaths mount in Misrata, Libya

Libyan rebels rest close to a building where pro-Gadhafi forces are reportedly holed up in Misrata on Sunday.

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Amid reports that pro-government forces have withdrawn from the besieged Libyan port city of Misrata, at least four people were killed there Sunday, a local resident told CNN.

Two people were killed after pro-Gadhafi forces shelled their home and two others were killed in clashes with remnants of pro-government forces, said the source, who declined to be named because of fear of reprisal.

CNN could not immediately verify the deaths.

A Libyan government spokesman explained the army came under rebel attack as it withdrew from Misrata, so the army simply fought back as it continued withdrawing.

“Our army will always attack back, if it is attacked,” said the spokesman, Musa Ibrahim. “We cannot just ask them to die and not fight back.”

Ibrahim said the army’s withdrawal was continuing.

According to medical sources in Misrata, 11 people have been killed and 50 wounded in shellings and clashes with remnants of pro-Gadhafi forces. Sporadic shelling continued from the outskirts of the city, the local resident said.

Misrata, a rebel stronghold in western Libya, has been the scene of some of the most prolonged fighting in the current conflict.

Rebels “liberated” the main market in the city and the central hospital, the local resident said, but the city remained unsafe and not under complete rebel control.

Ibrahim said tribal chiefs are moving to Misrata’s outskirts and negotiating peace with the rebels and city inhabitants, but an opposition leader denied those claims.

“There are no tribes, and there are no negotiations. It’s only Libyan people fighting against Gadhafi’s forces,” said Col. Ahmad Bani, a rebel military spokesman.

Ruler Moammar Gadhafi is “lying to say to the world that he’s looking to find a solution,” Bani said. “These are Gadhafi dreams and they will never happen.”

The regime had earlier said it was calling on the tribes to deal with the rebels in Misrata, whether by negotiation or force.

Ibrahim said the tribes are armed and “prepared to defend their land.”

He said, “The rebels have two options: either to escape the country and leave Misrata and go somewhere else, or to give up their arms. And as we have promised before, a general pardon will be issued for everyone.”

The rebels, under the umbrella of the Transitional National Council, received a pledge Sunday from Kuwait for about $180 million. The announcement came during council chief Mustafa Abdel Jalil’s visit to Kuwait, Kuwaiti state-run television reported.

Ibrahim responded to that report by questioning why Kuwait was seeking to help one side rather than helping to resolve the conflict.

“We know that some countries are not interested in Libyan peace, democracy and the future of this country,” Ibrahim said. “Why is it that some governments jump on the opportunity to make the Libyan crisis even worse … instead of helping all parties establish peace?”

In his Easter message Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI urged an end to fighting in the North African nation.

“In the current conflict in Libya, may diplomacy and dialogue take the place of arms, and may those who suffer as a result of the conflict be given access to humanitarian aid,” the pope said.

Hundreds have been killed in the battle for Misrata under a bloody siege from Gadhafi’s forces for seven weeks.

It is the scene of some of the deadliest battles of the war as the rebels attempt to oust Gadhafi, who has been in power for 42 years.

Human Rights Watch has said Gadhafi was using internationally banned cluster bombs and other lethal munitions indiscriminately to kill civilians.

Meanwhile, the United States conducted its first Predator drone airstrikes Saturday afternoon, said Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Darryn James.

Keeping with U.S. practice not to comment on drone strikes, the Pentagon offered no other information.

CNN’s Kareem Khadder, Hamdi Alkshali, Reza Sayah, Saad Abedine, Frederik Pleitgen and Barbara Starr contributed to this report.