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| Africa North |
| Revolutionaries Try to Regroup After Setbacks in Bani Walid, Sirte |
| 2011-09-18 |
| [Tripoli Post] The Libyan revolutionaries trying to take control of two of runaway leader Muammar Al Qadaffy's ...Custodian of Wheelus AFB for 42 long years... last three remaining strongholds were pushed back from both key Al Qadaffy bastions, Bani Walid and Sirte and even suffered severe losses, with about seven of the fighters killed and around 50 injured. The had expected to be celebrating their triumphant capture Saturday morning, but despite escalating their offensives on Friday, they were pushed back. However, some people cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go... a day after the anti-Al Qadaffy fighters retreated from chaotic, fierce street fighting in the city, on they have been trying to regroup and are prepare for another assault against the diehard Al Qadaffy loyalists, knowing full well that in Sirte particularly, almost every house seems to be armed with snipers on their roofs. The NTC fighters have reportedly entered Al Qadaffy's hometown, Sirte by convoys on Saturday. At least 100 cars were seen entering Sirte as they try to take it, knowing fully well, that controlling it, and the other strategic mountain town of Bani Walid, 140 kilometres south of the capital, are vital to consolidate the grip of the post-revolutionary regime. Friday pro-Al Qadaffy forces fired barrages of rockets and mortars to repel the assault by the Libyan revolutionaries and also held off an advance on the other town. Therefore, an attack that began Friday morning was petered out in disarray and frustration by the time the evening drew near. According to the Misrata Military Council, during the fighting Friday, a brigade of fighters from Misrata wrested control of the Al-Gurdabia military base and a civilian airport near the western edge of Sirte. Expected support from residents of Sirte did not materialise as loyalists fought house to house with an intensity that had not been anticipated. Reports indicate that almost every house in Sirte is armed and ready to fight the revolutionaries. Al Jizz reported about "a propaganda campaign" by Al Qadaffy forces that seems to be working well for their camp. It is against the NTC fighters, with the residents seemingly scared of the revolutionaries. According to Alm Hashi, a revolutionary fighter, one of Al Qadaffy's sons, Muatassim, the regime's national security adviser, may have been coordinating the fighting in Sirte. He said Muatassim's voice crackled on the radio with orders for troops loyal to his father. In the other town, Bani Walid, Al Qadaffy snipers are using the roofs of Mosques and almost every house in Sirte to repel the rebels who in the end have also found out to their cost that Al Qadaffy's men have much heavier fighting equipment than they had imagined The NTC fighters know that the two towns of Bani Walid and Sirte are still out of reach, and the fight to secure Libya's future is not yet over. So after turning back to reassemble five kilometres away from Sirte they prayed and packed their pick-up trucks with weapons ahead of another day of fighting on positions whose control is vital to consolidate the grip of the post-revolutionary regime. The tough defence in these towns displayed the firepower and resolve of the Al Qadaffy loyalists and is a clear indicated that the country's new rulers may not easily break the back of regime holdouts. Meanwhile, ...back at the sandwich shop, Caroline was experimenting with ingredients of increasing volatility... from his hiding place, the whereabouts of which, like his master are not known, Al Qadaffy's front man, Moussa Ibrahim, told Syria-based Alrai TV channel about the revolutionaries' retret and again warned that pro-Al Qadaffy forces were gathering arms and equipment in preparation for what he said is a "long war". He said: "The battle is far from over. We assure everybody that the Sirte and Bani Walid fronts are strong, despite the heavy, unbelievable and merciless 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 cut of the American pants... bombardment on hospitals, families and schools." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 Sounds like they could use a little air support, eh? |
| Posted by: Abu Uluque 2011-09-18 09:04 |