Gaddafi army penetrates rebel areas Government forces bomb Ajdabiya, the last town before rebel stronghold as state TV says Gaddafi offers amnesty to rebels Last Modified: 14 Mar 2011 11:47 GMT
The town of Ajdabiya is seen as the last defence against Benghazi, the rebel capital [EPA] As Muammar Gaddafi's forces ratchet up their military offensive against the rebels, shells have fallen six kilometres west of the key Libyan town of Ajdabiya, which the rebels have vowed to defend against government forces. Journalists for AFP news agency saw two craters of some four metres across and five metres apart near a road junction, after Monday's shelling. Rebels said there had been no casualties, but the attack on Ajdabiya is seen, from the rebels' viewpoint, "as the last line of defence," said Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from Benghazi. Meanwhile, Gaddafi has reportedly offered an amnesty to rebel fighters if they agree to lay down their arms, Libyan state television reported on Monday. Al Jazeera's correspondent in the capital Tripoli said the offer will play on very anxious rebel forces who don't know how they are going to be able to put up a fight against Gaddafi's forces, given the overwhelming superiority of his military forces. "There is an enormous degree of anxiety. It's an all or nothing game now," Anita McNaught said. "If the rebels do not manage to hold out against Gaddafi and establish some kind of protective zone in the east of the country it is almost certain there would be in the wake of this some dreadful purge of those who dared to raise their hands against the Gaddafi administration. "People know that unless they are able to in some way keep Tripoli at bay that the alternative is almost too awful to contemplate. Those fears apply equally in Tripoli; they are just not expressed as openly as they are in the east." 'Final phase' On the battle field, rebel fighters say they have re-taken parts of the oil town of Brega and captured Gaddafi troops - but government forces contest that claim, saying that they are now in control of it. Fighting has also reportedly resumed in the towns of Ajdabiya and Zuwarah. General Abdel Fatah Yunis, a rebel commander who resigned as Gaddafi's interior minister soon after the uprising began in mid-February, said that Ajdabiya, little over 100 kilometres to the west, was "a vital city". "It's on the route to the east, to Benghazi and to Tobruk and also to the south. Ajdabiya's defence is very important... We will defend it," he told reporters. >From Ajdabiya one road runs north along the coast to Benghazi, Libya's second >city, with a population of one million, which the rebels have made their >capital. Another road goes straight across the desert eastward to the oil port of Tobruk, which to date has given rebels full control up to the Egyptian border. Al Jazeera's Birtley said "Gaddafi forces are advancing and It seems that fighting is carrying on and coming close to Benghazi. "It seems like we are entering the final phase of the conflict but whether this revolution will fail or succeed, that will only be determined in the coming weeks." International pressure France has said it will push G8 foreign ministers meeting in Paris to agree action on Libya, and back its efforts to speed up a UN Security Council decision on imposing a no-fly zone in Libya sought by anti-Gaddafi rebels. The foreign ministry said Libya would be a priority during talks on Monday and Tuesday between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the foreign ministers of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia. The Arab League's weekend call on the United Nations to impose such a zone satisfies one of three conditions set by NATO for it to police Libyan air space. The UN Security Council is meeting on Monday to consider options on Libya but no resolution is expected yet. Scott Heidler, Al Jazeera's correspondent at the UN headquarters in New York, said the Security Council is going to be discussing a viewpoint on the no-fly zone resolution - that they don't yet have a draft resolution. "They are taking the temperature of the other members to see what kind of draft they can put together now," he said. "The French and the British are behind this resolution. They are saying because of the Arab League resolution encouraging the UN Security Council to pass a resolution calling for a no-fly zone - that it's not just coming from them now, it's also coming from these 22 Arab nations... "These discussions will go on at least for today, maybe in couple of days we will see some kind of draft resolution but there are still a lot of hurdles to overcome." Britain has also been pushing for the imposition of a no-fly zone to shield Libyans from Gaddafi's air power. William Hague, British foreign secretary said that international powers should consider the option of arming Libyan rebels and take swift action to prevent Gaddafi forces from crushing a popular rebellion. Hague said it would be a nightmare for Libya's people if Gaddafi managed to hold on to power. Of the UN's veto-yielding members, China has been against the imposition of a no-fly zone, while Russia has appeared reluctant and the United States, Germany and Italy have taken a cautious line on intervention. NATO has set three conditions for the policing of Libyan air space: regional support for the motion, proof outside help is needed and a UN Security Council resolution. 'Slow diplomacy' Analysts say that by the time the international community agrees on a response to Gaddafi's onslaught against a popular revolt, it could all be over. "The international community is dragging its feet," Saad Djebbar, a London lawyer and expert on Libyan affairs, told the Reuters news agency. "The diplomatic pace is very slow. There is an urgency to act quickly before those people are finished off by Gaddafi's forces." "The international community has to act now - not only to protect Benghazi from an onslaught but because of what it means for the rest of the world if Gaddafi is allowed to remain the leader of Libya," said Geoff Porter, a US-based political risk consultant who specialises in North Africa. Speaking to Al Jazeera, Tarik Yousef, a senior research fellow at the Dubai school of government said that, "What has been missing is a strong sense of what the US wants to do. ------------------------------------ Post message: prole...@egroups.com Subscribe : proletar-subscr...@egroups.com Unsubscribe : proletar-unsubscr...@egroups.com List owner : proletar-ow...@egroups.com Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! 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