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| Africa North |
| Libyan forces fight for town in west, rebels in east |
| 2011-03-06 |
| [Ennahar] The fighting appeared to confirm the division of the vast desert oil-producing state between a western area round the capital Tripoli held by forces loyal to Qadaffy and an eastern region held by those rebelling against his four-decade rule. In Zawiyah, a town 50 km (30 miles) west of Tripoli whose control by the rebels had embarrassed the government, "dozens were killed and more were maimed," by pro-Qadaffy forces, said Mohamed, a resident. "We have counted 30 dead civilians." The loyalist forces used grenade-launchers, heavy machineguns and snipers on the roof of a new hotel to fire at protesters when they marched after Friday prayers to demand the fall of the regime, Mohamed said. An improvised rebel force had withdrawn to the central Martyrs Square, and government troops were 4-5 kilometers away, a rebel front man said. A Libyan government official said of the town: "It's been liberated, maybe there are still some pockets (under rebel control) but otherwise it's been liberated." In the east, rebels said their forces had taken the oil town of Ras Lanuf, which lies on a strategic coastal road, hours after saying they had captured the town's airport. "We have taken Ras Lanuf 100 percent, Qadaffy's forces have all left," rebel soldier Hafez Ibrahim said from the town. He did not say who controlled the nearby military base and oil terminal. A deputy foreign minister in Tripoli, however, told news hounds that government forces still held the town. Rebels have already seized control of much of the rest of eastern Libya, the main oil-producing part of the country, in a popular uprising centered on Benghazi, Libya's second city. A rebel front man said pro-Qadaffy forces bombed an arms depot -- one of the biggest weapons depots in the region -- on the outskirts of Benghazi on Friday. "A lot of people have been killed. There are many people in the hospital. No one can approach, it's still very dangerous," said a resident who would only identify himself as Saleh. Security forces had cordoned off the area, and a Rooters witness said at least eight ambulances were seen ferrying casualties from the scene. Windows were shattered in suburbs several kilometers from the scene, residents said. The uprising against Qadaffy is the bloodiest yet against a long-serving ruler in the Arab world, and follows the ousting in the past weeks of the long-time presidents of both Tunisia and Egypt -- Libya's western and eastern neighbors. The cut in Libya's 1.6 million barrel per day oil output -- caused partly by the flight of thousands of key foreign oil workers -- is a major blow to its economy. |
| Posted by:Fred |