Libyan rebels try to regain momentum

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Opposition members in Libya said Wednesday their fighters are working to regain momentum in the face of punishing assaults by forces loyal to leader Moammar Gadhafi.

After days of dramatic advances by rebels, government forces have cranked up their firepower, pushing from Bin Jawad to Ras Lanuf, a key eastern oil town that the opposition seized Sunday, and launching escalated strikes in the western town of Misrata.

Despite reports that Ras Lanuf had been retaken by government forces, an official from the opposition’s Transitional National Council wouldn’t confirm that rebels have lost the city.

“The front line is fluid right now,” the official said.

The rebels have been demanding an end to Gadhafi’s almost 42-year rule in Libya. While they have gained ground in some areas, a hail of artillery and rocket attacks have beaten them back in others while allies mull the possibility of arming the rag-tag rebel forces.

This comes as NATO is getting in gear to fully take command of the military operation in Libya under the U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing force, including a no-fly zone, to protect civilians.

In an address to the House of Commons Wednesday, British Foreign Secretary William Hague also called the situation on the ground “fluid.”

“Regime forces have intensified their attacks, driving back opposition forces from ground they had taken in recent days,” Hague said.

“Misrata also came under heavy attack yesterday, with further loss of civilian life, including children, from mortars, sniper fire and attacks on all sides from regime tanks and personnel carriers,” Hague said.

“One obstacle to humanitarian support for the people of Misrata has been regime vessels trying to blockade the port. These vessels were attacked by coalition aircraft yesterday. Four of them were sunk and one vessel was beached.”

CNN’s Nic Robertson said there are reports of fighting in Bin Jawad, Ras Lanuf, and Misrata, where rebels are enduring “sustained attacks in the face of the coalition bombing.”

In the outskirts of Ajdabiya — which was recently taken over by opposition forces — Gadhafi’s regime planted several dozen land mines, Human Rights Watch said in a statement Wednesday.

“Given the pedestrian and vehicular traffic in the area, the mines were clearly laid while government forces were in Ajdabiya,” the group said.

In London, Hague detailed the Tuesday meeting of international diplomats coordinating their response to the Libyan crisis.

Envoys from more than 40 countries and organizations attended the conference and agreed to establish a “Libya Contact Group” to coordinate the international response to the crisis. The first contact group meeting will be held in Qatar.

The group also agreed to push for more international pressure and additional sanctions on Gadhafi’s regime.

Hague also said the “transition to full NATO command is under way.”

“The North Atlantic Council will provide executive political direction for the military operations and is meeting later today. I hope the whole House will welcome the speed at which NATO has moved to put in place the planning and launch of these three demanding operations, more quickly than was the case for Bosnia or Kosovo,” Hague said, a reference to NATO’s Balkan operations in the ’90s.

Hague said there are 16 nations contributing assets to coalition operations, including countries from the Middle East region. More than 340 planes from 14 nations have been involved, and vessels from 10 nations are supporting the arms embargo.

Britain has launched air missions, including the patrol of the no-fly zone, with aircraft destroying battle tanks and armored vehicles near Misrata over the weekend, Hague said. They also took part in a “successful” effort “against an ammunition storage facility store near Sebha early on Monday morning.”

Addressing the specter of civilian casualties during warfare, Hague said he received a letter from the local council in Misrata thanking the allies for the targeted strikes and the no-fly zone, and he said the body confirmed “that there has been not a single case of civilian injury let alone death in and around Misrata.”

In diplomatic moves, Hague said a British diplomatic mission also visited the rebel stronghold of Benghazi Monday and Tuesday and met opposition leaders. He also said that five Libyan diplomats have been expelled from Britain because they could pose a threat to security.

As for providing weaponry to the rebels, British Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons Wednesday that he has not ruled out arming the Libya opposition but added that Britain has not taken the decision to do so. In interviews Tuesday with the three major U.S. television networks, U.S. President Barack Obama said he was open to arming the rebel fighters.

CNN’s Reza Sayah, Arwa Damon, Nic Robertson, Amir Ahmed, Paula Newton and Yousuf Basil contributed to this report