The resilience of Qaddafi’s forces in the face of the
insurrection which started in mid-February and their ability to counter-attack
has raised the prospect that this oil exporting nation is heading for
protracted conflict. But after what residents said was fierce fighting on
Sunday with artillery, rockets and mortar bombs, rebel forces announced they
had fought off Qaddafi’s forces in the towns of Zawiyah, to the immediate west
of Tripoli, and Misrata to the east.
Residents of the rebel-held eastern Libyan oil town of Ras
Lanuf, however, fearing assault by government forces, were leaving in cars
laden with belongings on Monday and rebels said they had moved weapons into the
desert for safekeeping.
There was little sign of rebels on the main road heading
eastwards out of Ras Lanuf, 660 km ((410 miles) east of Tripoli), a day after
they retreated to the town from Bin Jawad, the next town to the west, under
heavy artillery fire from the counter-attacking government army.
“We heard our positions would be bombed, so we took our
weapons away,” one rebel told Reuters on the windswept highway on Monday.
Another said: “We took them out into the desert.”
A third rebel said the insurgents were redeploying into the
desert to prepare for an attempt to wrest back Bin Jawad, which is on the main
coastal highway to Qaddafi’s hometown of Sirte, a prize the rebels aim to take.
Saudi Arabian Airlines has evacuated Saudis living in Libya as well as the families of Saudi Embassy staff in the country following instructions from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
Moejib Al-Dossary, Saudia’s manager for Tunisia and Libya, said the evacuation was carried out in coordination with the Civil Aviation Authority in Libya.
“We have airlifted more than 90 passengers in record time despite a lack of human and technical capabilities at Tripoli International Airport,” he said.
But rebels at checkpoints were nervous rather than confident
as before, saying families were fleeing Ras Lanuf and Bin Jawad to get out of
possible harm’s way.
“We are leaving simply because it will be safer,” said the
head of one family in a car stuffed with household belongings.
As the conflict escalated in Libya, US crude oil rose to a
2-1/2-year high on Monday, while investors kept a close eye on top exporter
Saudi Arabia, home to most of OPEC’s spare capacity.
US crude for April rose as much as $1.90 to $106.32 a
barrel, the highest price since September 2008, heightening concerns that high
energy prices may derail the global economic recovery. The US government
reiterated that it could tap its strategic oil reserves to safeguard economic
growth.
The UN chief on Sunday demanded an end to “indiscriminate”
attacks against civilians in Libya and warned Tripoli anyone who violates
international law will be brought to justice.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke with Libyan Foreign
Minister Musa Kusa on Sunday and told him that Tripoli must “uphold their
responsibility to protect the country’s citizens and to heed the Libyan
people’s legitimate aspirations.”
Misrata, with a population of 300,000, is the largest town
controlled by rebels outside the rebel-held east of the country.
If rebel soldiers were able to push their fitful advance
westwards, Misrata could be a stepping stone to reaching the capital, Tripoli,
Qaddafi’s principal powerbase.
Rebel council spokesman Hafiz Ghoga told a Benghazi news
conference late on Sunday: “We would like to put the people of this great
nation at ease ... because the regime is spreading rumours. Both Zawiyah and
Misrata are secured, liberated cities.”
Qaddafi’s troops, backed by tanks, artillery, warplanes and
helicopters, had attacked positions near the oil port of Ras Lanuf. “Qaddafi’s
cut us to pieces. He’s firing on us with tanks and missiles. I don’t know what
we’re going to do now,” Momen Mohammed told Reuters.
One fighter returning wounded to Ras Lanuf from Bin Jawad
was asked what he had seen. “Death,” he replied, too distraught to say any
more.
Rebels said they planned another attack on Bin Jawad, which
is only 160 km (100 miles) from Sirte, on Monday morning but this was cast in
doubt by the apparent retreat from Ras Lanuf.
Rebel commanders told Reuters that Qaddafi’s forces were
reinforcing Sirte, where they had more than 20,000 fighters. They said the city
houses the Saadi (a son of Qaddafi) battalion which includes four brigades, as
well as armed tribe members.
Loyalists had poured into the streets of Tripoli at dawn on
Sunday firing into the air and holding portraits of Qaddafi, who has ruled the
OPEC oil and gas producer for 41 years.
Rebels surrounded by troops near the center of Zawiyah, 50
km (30 miles) west of Tripoli, had faced another attack after repelling two
assaults by tanks and infantry the day before.
“This (Sunday) morning, there was a new attack, bigger than
yesterday. There were one and a half hours of fighting ... Two people were
killed from our side and many more injured,” spokesman Youssef Shagan said by
telephone.
Elite brigades under Qaddafi’s son Khamis also launched an
assault on Misrata, 200 km (125 miles) east of the capital.
“The brigades tried to reach the center of the town but
revolutionaries managed to repel them. They retreated to the air base,” said a
resident who declined to be named.
At least 18 people, including a baby, were killed in the
fighting in Misrata on Sunday, a doctor told Reuters by phone.
Doctors at Ras Lanuf hospital said two dead and 22 wounded
had arrived from the fighting. A French journalist was shot in the leg, a
doctor said, and four rebels were seriously wounded and unlikely to survive.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Sunday that
what he called a UK diplomatic team that had been seized in the eastern city of
Benghazi had now left Libya.
The Sunday Times earlier reported a British Special Air
Service (SAS) unit had been captured during a secret diplomatic mission to make
contact with opposition leaders backfired.
“They
(the rebel army) did capture some British special forces. They could not
ascertain if they were friends or foes. For our safety we are holding them and
we expect this situation to be resolved soon,” a rebel source in Benghazi said
earlier.
