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Blasts, heavy gunfire rattle Tripoli
[Iran Press TV] Several kabooms and exchanges of gunfire have rocked Libyan ruler Muammar Qadaffy's...who single-handedly turned a moderately prosperous kingdom into a dictator's fantasyland... last bastion, the capital Tripoli. The blasts and gunshots were heard on Saturday night in several areas of Tripoli, after people broke their dawn-to-dusk fast for the Mohammedan holy month of Ramadan, AFP reported. Tripoli residents said fighting had broken out in the eastern neighborhoods of Soug Jomaa and Arada. On Saturday, Libyan revolutionary forces took control of the coastal city of Zawiyah, which is located about 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of Tripoli. The development cleared a major hurdle in their march toward the Libyan capital. Revolutionary fighters said forces loyal to Qadaffy put up little resistance before fleeing their posts in Zawiya's hospital and multi-story buildings around the main square. In February, Zawiyah witnessed the strongest uprising against the Qadaffy regime in western Libya. But government forces crushed the uprising in a brutal assault that destroyed the town's main bridge. Zawiyah is a strategic town for both sides as it straddles the main road to the Tunisian border -- the Libyan regime's main supply line. There is also an important oil refinery in the city. Libya has been the scene of intense fighting between government troops and revolutionary forces since a revolution seeking to topple Qadaffy began in mid-February. Posted by: Fred 2011-08-21 |
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