Gadhafi Forces Drive Rebels From Key Oil Town
VOA News
March 30, 2011
Photo: Reuters
Wounded rebel fighters are treated in a hospital in Ajdabiyah after being brought in from the road to Ras Lanuf, in Libya, March 30, 2011
Libyan rebels are frantically fleeing eastward after forces loyal to leader Moammar Gadhafi drove them Wednesday from a key oil port.
Western news reports from outside Ras Lanuf say rebels are retreating amid intense fighting with pro-government forces shelling them and firing rockets.
The reports said large numbers of rebels fled in pickup trucks, giving up nearly all the ground they had taken since a weekend push westward.
On Tuesday, pro-Gadhafi troops reversed the rebel's push, hammering them with tank and artillery fire and forcing a panicked retreat to Ras Lanuf. Opposition fighters pleaded for allied air strikes as they fled.
Loyalist troops also continued to besiege Misrata on Wednesday, the last significant rebel holdout in the west.
Western nations began enforcing a United Nations-authorized no-fly zone over Libya on March 19. On Wednesday, NATO member states begin enforcing all military operations in the North African nation.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
Those fighting Gadhafi are islamist insurgents and should not be assisted in any way, and they certainly should not be supplied with better armament. They are the same sort as those that are killing American troops in Afghanistan.
Your proof? Is it possible that people who want nothing but basic human dignity and justice may be willing to fight for it? I am not sure that increasing armaments is the solution, but when you have women, children and the elderly being quite literally slaughtered in the streets by a government's forces, then basic humanity requires a just response.
philip...that's why you live in that parking lot of a country called nerdway. you know about as much of what is going on in lybia as a box of rocks. go tie a couple huge bricks to your feet and jump in a river
...just let them take out each other and we can go in and finish them all off
Why do medias keep reporting rebel's claims of alleged regular militia crimes (e.g. firing randomly in town) when we know the rebels themselves already lied countless times? Why do most rebel leaders come from US and UK?
So?! nothing new here, they (the so called rebels) might as well be declared terrorists (not saying they are), i'm sure somehow they're gonna get all the help they need. I think Gaddafi is bad news, still.. this way of forcing change by external intervention is not a good idea. Anyhow, whatever, everything is OK.
Peter, you rabble raiser, how can you possibly know that? American troops shouldn't be there in any case. Gaddafi needs to leave, one way or another and America should hang her head in shame at the number of populations that it has conveniently kept repressed. Is that how American freedom is bought? It's always better to let your enemies see daylight, in any case.
please support Gaddaffi, he is a patriot; moreover, if Libya goes to foreign hands, the armies will take the Libyan women & girls to their camps & will do with them openly. Coz Libyan girls & women r very hot & beautiful.
Ras lanuf already under government control
How do you know this Philip? What is your evidence? I am interested by must have the facts.
on mans terrorist is another mans freedom fighter.
Libyans were dancing in the streets after 911 and the Lockerbie airline slaughter. Now Sec. of State Hillary-Bilary says we are just "getting to know" who the insurgents are. Let the Libyans duke it out with each other...it's a win-win situation for the USA.
Why not supply the rebels with the arms that the United Nations confiscated sent by Iran ? How about the illegal arms that the Israelis stopped from being shipped into Gaza. No need to spend money, the arms are already there.
I expected this scenario previously . Gaddafi will turn into his tribes which could do anything for wealth and throne because he knew extremely well nothing could help him to stay on his throne more then civil war . It seems this story will be protracted widely . Coalition should rush to arm rebels , if they want to prevent Gaddafi loyalists from committing real bloodshed .
The pro-Gaddafi trolls are especially out in this article's comments.
Someone seriously needs to teach these rebels how to dig fox holes. I was watching Al Jazeera and as soon as a few mortars landed they fled. There was no "heavy fighting". They run away as soon as they hear something go boom. Its a simple truth. They don't know how to fight a battle. Just how to aimlessly fire guns in the air and occasionally in the general direction of the enemy.
Gaddafi and his sons have not had anything to lose therefore , they are ready to turn Libya into hell and battlefield without any mercy . Republicans are still delving into any plea to criticize this humanitarian operation which is saving many souls of innocent civilians but won t wash . In contrary , they give whole impression about their intentions and morals .
Plea of terrorists is not mandated international society to condone human rights or violate international law under any circumstance .
It seems the rebels are made up of Lybian civilians. The US and UK look for opportunities to quash Gaddafi forces, on the premis they are attacking civilians. Are those people who are repelling the rebels, not Lybian civilians? The US and UK insist Gaddafi is recruiting civilians to fight for his (their) cause. Being loyal to the government in Lybia, does not make a person not a civilian. Therefore, the US and UK are attacking the very people whom they claim to be protecting.
I believe that Gaddaffi needs to be removed from power due to his many violations of human rights and blatant terrorisim activity over the years. However we do need to look into who we are assisting before we blow holes in another country. This "The enemy of my enemy is my friend" concept can bite us in the end.
We could do the unspeakable and land a force outside of Tripoli with regular US Marines and take it ourselves, that would be, however crazy as it may sound, the quickest solution to end this thing as fast as humanly possible, while retaining every single senior Libyan officer, soldier and policemen to keep the peace. A Western coup de'tat as it were, but the Iraq experience has left me weary of policing a whole nation, if the Libyan state apparatus should, for any reason, totally collapse.
Problem here people--YOU KNOW what this clown has done..YOU KNOW what he is capable of..This will help send a msg we will no longer put up with it...ENOUGH is ENOUGH.. TAKE HIM OUT...
C'mon folks... the media reports, on both sides, are rarely fact.... from slightly slanted to blatant propaganda... 'nuff said there. USA, acting WITH UN FORCES, is attempting to prevent thousands of deaths of innocents... this is obviously what's happening, because if if the USA was going to HELP the Lybian people get rid of Gaddaffi, he and his regime would be GONE.
I won't comment on weather UN military intervention in Libya is a good idea or not. I'd just like people to know: Norway is part of the coalition bombing in Libya; people in Norway know just as much about what's going as anyone in the United States.
All this has been prophesized. Natural disasters, wars, it's all part of the birth pains of a renewal. What is right becomes wrong, what is wrong becomes right, homosexuality, abortions. It's all part of the end. I know many won't believe and that's OK. You too have been prophesized and are fulfilling it. God bless us all. I believe and am ready. God knows my heart.
The West need to stop thier support to insurgents around africa.we need peace and united in africa. The intended of the west is to kill the DREAM THE AFRICAN UNITY. So please leafe us alone.
VOA you post people talking of the rape of Libyan woman and edit posts that actually may encourage thought? Nice - how does this support freedom – what type of freedom does VOA support - the rape and violation of people?
Gadhafi must stop killing civilians and must leave Libya immediately. the Libyan people need a more stable government nor a corrupt government. and that now heavy fighting is taken place. Thank you.
Well... It surely looks like Ghadaffi called Obama's bluff. When he retreated his troops from towns the rebels previously held, he had given weapons to the residents of those towns for forced them to use tose weapons after brainwashing them for weeks the the rebels were under influence of drugs etc... and would kill them. Now he's been coming back catching rebels between the scared armed residents and his military., right after Obama's speech.
That norvegian guy Philiph is just a blood-thirsty genocidal monster who enjoys seeing thousands of women raped and dismembered and babies tortured and boiled. He is just a multigenocidal monster, please somebody go and kill that assassin. He lives in Oslo.
The east of Libya is a minority of the population of Libya. The Tripoli area alone has almost three times the population of Benghazi. Im not sure that the majority of the Libyan population prefer armed rebels/ insurgents to the Gaddaafi regime. Gaddaafi empowered and gave rights to southern libyan tribes that were basically slaves during the Benghazi kingdom rule.
The UN should know whether civilians or pro Gaddaffi or rebels are all libyan people. continued fighting is leading to loss of lives in all partys therefore my humble appeal is dialogue. the pro gaddaffi solidiers also have families people who they take care of. thats why the west and moslem's relationship will take alot more to sober up
In Libya, Arabs are killing Arabs including women and children. This is not that unusual. They blow up people in markets and mosques. Killing civilians is "business-as-usual for them and culturally acceptable.f. These are a people who kill over cartoons, suspected adultery and to gain political power. "Freedom" means substituting their clan, tribe or coalition for the ruling one. They really get upset when infidels, especially Westerners, try to join the slaughter.
if i put al- qa'ada as an excuse for not boosting the rebels that means libyan people will suffer for along time by gaddafi regime , so the ashamed interfere of the allied should be changed.
Philip Smeeton: It's going over the top to say they are (all) Islamist insurgents, but the fact is that a substantial number of the rebels will have encouraged, supported, incited and even spearheaded the revolution, and will not be without honor in any new government that the West will have to deal with. I also object to VOA's ridiculous 500 char rule. It's very unusual in media comment boxes, and makes it impossible to give a complete thesis.
a nation of Libya, with over million inhabitants,can not be a property of one man or a family. Gaddaffi must relinquish power now after over 40 years if he truly care for his people
Why is America and Europe always at the neck of maummar el gadaffi , news lampudesia Italy the way they are treating arriving immigrants in the Island .their threats of repitration on the immigrants shows how wicked the west are especially when AFRICANS are concerned,libya has oil and is in conflict men and women including children are running herter sketer in your house they are not welcome but only their oil.
Are you removing Gadhafi to seat al-Qaida and Hezbollah supporters?
This is a civil war between Gadafi and one of his Ex Minister and all this talk about saving civilians and humanity is nothing but cover to get rid of Gadafi. Please call and spade and spade and stop pretending and finally backing a rebel group headed by an Ex minister of Gadafi is like sleeping with Gadafi wife so make sure both hands dont have a club and knife..Remember Cleopatra and Anthony and all the backstabbing, betrayal, and lying. Be careful
Arm the rebels. I encourage bombing the hell out of dictators wherever they are including most of Africa. AU fat cows all supported Kaddafi, because they are all like him. I say bomb them all.
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