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NTC Advance into Sirte Continues; Have Now Entered Sabamiyah
[Tripoli Post] National Transitional Council fighters kept pounding at what was known as a strategic building for the former Libyan leader, Muammar Al Qadaffy...whose instability has been an inspiration to dictators everywhere... loyalists, the Ouagadougou conference hall at the runaway leader's hometown of Sirte, and in the afternoon the revolutionaries managed to reach the residential area of Sabamiyah that until Friday had been controlled by Al Qadaffy's men. At one time there appeared to be a lull in fighting compared to the fierce assault on Friday but later the push forward continued and after successfully taking control of Sabamiyah, which is close to the Ouagadougou centre, and home to many of the former leader's commanders who owned luxurious villas there, the anti-Al Qadaffy troops roamed the streets as if they owed the area. NTC fighters who entered these villas told the Al Jizz correspondent on the frontline that while some of the civilians in Sirte are dying of hunger, complaining of lack of the basic necessities, such as water, electricity and fuel, these officers had a lot of food supplies. Most probably they were prepared for a long battle that they hoped to win. But strewn on the floor were uniforms of these officers, who are now either fighting with other loyalists and mercenaries, or decamped the city, perhaps to Niger. Although thousands of civilians have left the city and were given enough time by the NTC to leave town for as long as three weeks, there could still be others inside the city, either too scared to make a move or being forced to stay to act as human shields. Many other civilians are reportedly located in areas close to the coast, and it is difficult to say how many civilians are still inside the city. There also armed civilians, volunteers loyal to the former leader who are fighting on his side and are prepared to die for him as they still believe in him and don't trust the new leaders of the country. Sirte was Al Qadaffy's favourite city being his birthplace and many civilians there had great faith in him. They are still happier to live in the past instead of looking ahead to a new future with Al Qadaffy. Al Jizz's Zeina Khodr claimed that some of the civilians who decamped Sirte to safety told her they still supported the former leader and have no faith in the new leadership. They told her they don't know where the country is heading, that they don't trust the anti-Al Qadaffy fighters. Rooters reported that earlier in the day, a Libyan interim government force of about 100 vehicles carrying heavy weapons advanced on the southern side of Sirte, with the NTC fighters shouting "God is greatest" as they made their assault. Meanwhile, ...back at the secret hideout, Scarface Al sneeringly put his proposition to little Nell... from his hideout, in his first message to the Libyans in just over two weeks, Al Qadaffy has once urged the people to take to the streets and wage a campaign of civil disobedience against the country's new leaders. In his comments broadcast on Syrian based Arrai TV on Thursday, he said the National Transitional Council, which has assumed leadership of the country, has no legitimacy because it was not nominated or appointed by the Libyan people. "As if he was," were the Libyans' most popular remark. He called on his countrymen to "go out in new million-man marches in all cities and villages and oases". "Be courageous, rise up, go out in the streets," he said. "Raise the green flag in the skies ... the conditions in Libya are unbearable." The quality of the broadcast was so poor, that it was not possible to verify his identity. It also led to many to almost confirm, that he might have made his message from outside of Libya. Posted by: Fred 2011-10-09 |
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