Dozens killed as Gadhafi's forces attack
Source: Agencies |
March 23, 2011, Wednesday
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Moammar Gadhafi's forces yesterday attacked two west Libyan towns, killing dozens while rebels were pinned down in the east.
Meanwhile, NATO was trying to resolve a heated row over who should lead the Western air campaign.
With anti-Gadhafi rebels struggling to create a command structure to capitalize on airstrikes against Libyan tanks and air defences, Western nations have still to decide who will take over command once Washington pulls back in a few days.
In the first apparent air force casualty of the campaign, a US F-15E crashed in Libya and its two crew members were rescued, the United States military said. The crash was likely caused by mechanical failure and not hostile fire, it said.
The plane came down in field of wheat and thistles outside the town of Bu Mariem, about 38 kilometers east of the rebel capital of Benghazi.
By yesterday afternoon, the plane's body was mostly burned to ash, with only the wings and tail fins intact. US officials said both crew members were safe in American hands. One was picked up by a rebel force and the other by a Marine Corps Osprey search and rescue aircraft.
Explosions and anti-aircraft rounds rattled Tripoli for a third time overnight, and Libyan state television said several sites in the capital had come under attacks by what it called the "crusader enemy."
The Al Jazeera news network said Gadhafi forces were trying to seize the western rebel-held town of Zintan near the Tunisian border in an attack using heavy weapons. Residents had already fled the town centre to seek shelter in mountain caves.
Security analysts say it is unclear what will happen if the Libyan leader digs in, especially since Western powers have made clear they would be unwilling to see Libya partitioned between a rebel-held east and Gadhafi-controlled west.
Rebels in east Libya were positioned just outside Ajdabiyah yesterday, making no further advance on the strategic town despite a third night of Western airstrikes.
At the frontline in the desert scrub about 5 kilometers outside the town located at the gateway to the rebel-held east, fighters said airstrikes were helping to cripple Gadhafi's heavy armor. But there was no sign of a swift drive forward.
Asked why rebel units had not advanced towards their objective, the eventual taking of Tripoli, Ahmed al-Aroufi, a rebel fighter, said: "Gadhafi has tanks and trucks with missiles."
Commenting on the air campaign to protect civilians in this uprising against Gadhafi's 41-year rule, Aroufi said: "We don't depend on anyone but God, not France or America. We started this revolution without them through the sweat of our own brow, and that is how we will finish it."
The US expects to hand over command in "a matter of days" but has not said who would take charge.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said the intention was to transfer command to NATO, but France said Arab countries did not want the US-led alliance in charge.
Meanwhile, NATO was trying to resolve a heated row over who should lead the Western air campaign.
With anti-Gadhafi rebels struggling to create a command structure to capitalize on airstrikes against Libyan tanks and air defences, Western nations have still to decide who will take over command once Washington pulls back in a few days.
In the first apparent air force casualty of the campaign, a US F-15E crashed in Libya and its two crew members were rescued, the United States military said. The crash was likely caused by mechanical failure and not hostile fire, it said.
The plane came down in field of wheat and thistles outside the town of Bu Mariem, about 38 kilometers east of the rebel capital of Benghazi.
By yesterday afternoon, the plane's body was mostly burned to ash, with only the wings and tail fins intact. US officials said both crew members were safe in American hands. One was picked up by a rebel force and the other by a Marine Corps Osprey search and rescue aircraft.
Explosions and anti-aircraft rounds rattled Tripoli for a third time overnight, and Libyan state television said several sites in the capital had come under attacks by what it called the "crusader enemy."
The Al Jazeera news network said Gadhafi forces were trying to seize the western rebel-held town of Zintan near the Tunisian border in an attack using heavy weapons. Residents had already fled the town centre to seek shelter in mountain caves.
Security analysts say it is unclear what will happen if the Libyan leader digs in, especially since Western powers have made clear they would be unwilling to see Libya partitioned between a rebel-held east and Gadhafi-controlled west.
Rebels in east Libya were positioned just outside Ajdabiyah yesterday, making no further advance on the strategic town despite a third night of Western airstrikes.
At the frontline in the desert scrub about 5 kilometers outside the town located at the gateway to the rebel-held east, fighters said airstrikes were helping to cripple Gadhafi's heavy armor. But there was no sign of a swift drive forward.
Asked why rebel units had not advanced towards their objective, the eventual taking of Tripoli, Ahmed al-Aroufi, a rebel fighter, said: "Gadhafi has tanks and trucks with missiles."
Commenting on the air campaign to protect civilians in this uprising against Gadhafi's 41-year rule, Aroufi said: "We don't depend on anyone but God, not France or America. We started this revolution without them through the sweat of our own brow, and that is how we will finish it."
The US expects to hand over command in "a matter of days" but has not said who would take charge.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said the intention was to transfer command to NATO, but France said Arab countries did not want the US-led alliance in charge.
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