| Submit your comments on this article |
| Africa North |
| Libyan rebels make fresh advances |
| 2011-06-15 |
| [Al Jazeera] Pro-democracy fighters have made fresh advances in both the east and the west of Libya, gaining ground against forces loyal to the Libyan leader, Muammar Qadaffy, reports say. During NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the style of the American pants... air raids after a quiet day in the capital, a loud blast rocked eastern Tripoli on Tuesday night, as plumes of smoke and a fire lit up the sky. In the west of the country, the fighters managed to to force government troops into retreat from the town of Kikla, about 150km southwest of the capital, Tripoli, on Tuesday, news agencies said. And in the east, they launched more attacks against Qadaffy forces near the oil town of Brega, where fighting on Monday killed at least 25 fighters and maimed dozens more. The maimed were transferred to a hospital in Ajdabiya, 160km south of Benghazi, the de facto capital of the rebels who have been fighting to overthrow Qadaffy since mid-February. The rebels have spent months trying to seize the strategic oil hub of Brega, which would open the road to Sirte, the Libyan leader's home town, and from there to Tripoli. Strategic town Brega boasts an important oil refinery which, once operational, could supply the east of the country with much-needed fuel to produce electricity. Youssef Boudlal, a Rooters photographer, said that pro-Qadaffy forces had retreated to positions about 9km from the town of Kikla. The rebels were in control of the town and were setting up defensive positions in case of a counterattack, Boudlal said. The push by the rebels came as the US House of Representatives voted to stop funding military operations in Libya. Monday's motion still requires senate approval, but it shows a growing disapproval of US involvement in Libya. A number of members of congress have expressed their dissatisfaction at Barack B.O.Obama's decision to go ahead with operations in Libya in March and to continue without congressional authorisation. According to US law, the president must seek congressional authorisation to send US troops into combat and must withdraw the forces within 60 days if congress has not authorised the military action. Shock for White House Al Jizz Patty Culhane, reporting from Manchester in New Hampshire state, said: "This is going to be a bit of a shock for B.O. regime as the vote was so overwhelmingly against allowing him to use the fund in Libya." The vote came came as Libyan troops fired several grad rockets from positions controlled by Qadaffy over the border into Tunisia, witnesses said. No damage was done, but it could escalate tensions between the neighbours. "At least five rockets fell on Tunisian soil today in the Mrabeh. It was a heavy bombardment from Qadaffy's side of the mountains," Mohammed Nagez, a local trader, said. Al Jizz's James Bays, reporting from the western town of Jadu, said that rebel fighters were in high spirits as they edged forward. "We were in Zintan and it was clear, as we wandered around the town a few hours ago, that rebel fighters had taken over," our correspondent said. Government forces posted a few miles east of Zintan fired Grad and Katyusha rockets at the town. Battles were also being fought in the Berber mountains southwest of Tripoli, in nearby Yafran, and at Dafnia near Misrata, rebel sources said. Meanwhile, ...back at the barn, Bossy had come up with a new idea... NATO has continued with air attacks in Tripoli to put pressure on Qadaffy. On Tuesday, it targeted the area near his compound in Tripoli. A column of grey smoke could be seen rising from the area around Qadaffy's Bab al-Aziziya compound before dawn on Tuesday. Libyan officials didn't immediately comment on the strike. The latest bombing comes hours after a number of foreign anti-war activists appeared onstage at the compound. |
| Posted by:Fred |