{"id":400610,"date":"2011-04-26T20:47:54","date_gmt":"2011-04-26T20:47:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/04\/26\/rebels-battle-gaddafi-forces-in-western-libya\/"},"modified":"2011-04-26T20:47:54","modified_gmt":"2011-04-26T20:47:54","slug":"rebels-battle-gaddafi-forces-in-western-libya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/04\/26\/rebels-battle-gaddafi-forces-in-western-libya\/","title":{"rendered":"Rebels battle Gaddafi forces in western Libya"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Libya’s opposition fighters are battling Muammar Gaddafi’s forces in the\u00a0country’s western border, while fighting still continues in besieged city of Misurata.<\/p>\n

Fierce fighting is going on for the control of Misurata port in which three local people have been killed, a rebel spokesman called Reda told the Reuters news agency by phone on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

“Gaddafi’s troops are still positioned on the outskirts of the city,” he said before the line was cut.<\/p>\n

While government forces pulled out of the city over the weekend under pressure from NATO air attacks, they have since unleashed a heavy bombardment on the city, the only major western city in rebel hands.<\/p>\n

“It was horrific, like a scene from World War II,” Saddoun el-Misurati, a resident, said who was waiting to evacuate his mother from the port when the rockets began to fall. “I stopped counting after nine.”<\/p>\n

Government forces bombarded on Tuesday the port, which is the sole lifeline of\u00a0Misurata’s battered population, news agencies said.<\/p>\n

“Another development which is rather disturbing is that there has been shelling in the docks area, which is the lifeline to opposition forces and indeed the civilian population here,” Al Jazeera’s Andrew Simmons reported from Misurata.<\/p>\n

“Reports from opposition spokesperson say pro-Gaddafi troops are intent to cut the main road from city to the port.\u00a0If the lifeline is cut then everyone is in a desperate situation.<\/p>\n

“Though Gaddafi troops have left the city everybody is under threat of shellfire. The whole city centre has been destroyed and needs to be rebuilt.”<\/p>\n

Shelling Berber towns<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a separate move, Gaddafi’s forces shelled Berber towns in Libya’s western mountains with artillery, rebels and refugees said.<\/p>\n

Al Jazeera’s Anita McNaught, reporting from the Nafusa mountain range, said the rebels claimed to have gained ground in their fight against Gaddafi’s army after NATO’s recent\u00a0air raids.<\/p>\n

With fears of a stalemate in the Libyan conflict looming,\u00a0Liam Fox, British defence secretary, met Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, in Washington on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

“We discussed how situation is progressing. Thanks for Predator drones made available by the United States. Also there has been progress in Misurata and the Gaddafi regime is on the back foot,” Fox said.<\/p>\n

“We’ve seen some momentum gained in the last few days.”<\/p>\n

Libya, for its part,\u00a0has urged Russia to call an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss what it called “Western aggression”.<\/p>\n

Earlier Vladmir Putin, the Russian prime minister, criticised the NATO-led coalition no-fly zone over Libya and said it had no mandate to kill Gaddafi.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘Gaddafi not targeted’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gates said the coalition was not targeting Gaddafi specifically, despite hitting one of his compounds with a recent air strike.<\/p>\n

“The same values and principles apply to all countries. Our response to each country has to be tailored on the prevailing situation in each country,” he said.<\/p>\n

“There was a degree of international support for the Libya air strikes. Arab League passed resolution in support of no-fly zone and later UN also backed it.”<\/p>\n

Separately, Italy and France called on the international community to stop shipping oil products to the Libyan government and urged market operators not to buy\u00a0its crude oil.<\/p>\n

“Italy and France will not accept hydrocarbons sold by Gaddafi and his regime,” read a joint statement issued after a summit in Rome on Tuesday\u00a0between Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister.<\/p>\n

“We urge all countries and oil market operators to reject any type of trade or transport of hydrocarbons that could benefit Gaddafi’s regime.”<\/p>\n

In\u00a0a related\u00a0development, Italy said it would join the British and French in carrying out bombing attacks on Libya.<\/p>\n

Geographically the closest major NATO member state to Libya, Italy had until Monday only provided bases and reconnaissance and monitoring aircraft. The rebel-led the Libyan National Transitional Council [NTC] welcomed the Italian decision.<\/p>\n

Abdul Hafeedh Ghoga, vice chairman of the council, said: “The Gaddafi regime has demonstrated time and again that it cannot be trusted. Its continued shelling of Misurata, despite claims of a withdrawal, makes that very clear. Italy’s help during Libya’s time of need is greatly appreciated.”<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

More:
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