Libyan rebels push west

Libyan rebels pushed west yesterday to recapture more territory abandoned by Muammar Gaddafi's retreating forces, weakened by Western air strikes.
They seized the eastern coastal towns of Ras Lanuf, Brega, Uqayla and Bin Jawad after pro-Gaddafi forces -- under pressure from allied air strikes withdrew.
Emboldened by their capture of the strategic town of Ajdabiyah with the help of foreign warplanes on Saturday, the rebels advanced unchallenged to Ras Lanuf, a rebel fighter told Reuters on the road toward the oil terminal town.
The speed of the rebel advance suggests a rapid retreat by Gaddafi's forces after they lost Ajdabiyah, which had been an important gateway for the better-armed government troops to the rebel-held east.
In Brega, an oil town west of Ajdabiyah, rebel fighters were distributing water from trucks to residents or picking over debris of ammunition boxes and tank parts abandoned by the Gaddafi forces. There were long queues at fuel stations.
A man who said he worked for the state-owned Sirte Oil Company but refused to give his name said Gaddafi troops had passed through without stopping and there had been no fighting.
The rebels' advance is a rapid reversal of two weeks of losses and indicates that Western air strikes are shifting the battlefield dynamics in their favour.
As the front line moved toward the heartland of Gaddafi's support, government forces pounded Misrata in the west with tank, mortar and artillery fire on Saturday. Witnesses said the shelling halted after coalition aircraft appeared overhead.
A Misrata resident told Reuters by phone the humanitarian situation in the city was very bad, but that rebels had said they would fight until the city was freed from Gaddafi.
"It is quiet right now, apart from occasional exchanges of fire... In comparison with yesterday it is calm. Yesterday we had western coalition bombing of Gaddafi's positions, particularly near the air base about 10 km (six miles) from the city," a resident called Sami said.
"Misrata has been under siege for 38 days. Not much food, water is a rarity and people are obliged to use wells to get water. We have problems with medicines."
A rebel in Misrata told Reuters Gaddafi was putting all his weight into attacking Misrata so he could control the whole of the west of the country after losing the entire east.
Libyan government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim told reporters in the capital Tripoli that Gaddafi was directing his forces but appeared to suggest the leader might be moving around the country so as to keep his whereabouts a mystery.
"He is leading the battle. He is leading the nation forward from anywhere in the country," said Ibrahim.
"He has many offices, many places around Libya. I assure you he is leading the nation at this very moment and he is in continuous communication with everyone around the country."
Asked if Gaddafi was constantly on the move, Ibrahim said: "It's a time of war. In a time of war you act differently."
"NOWHERE TO HIDE"
Capturing Ajdabiyah was a big morale boost for rebels a week after air strikes began to enforce a UN-mandated no-fly zone.
"This is a victory from God," said Ali Mohamed, a 53-year-old teacher in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.
"Insha'allah, we will be victorious. After two days, we will be in Tripoli," he said.
Fouzi Dihoum, a catering company employee, said the rebels could push forward because the area between Ajdabiya and Sirt was desert in which Gaddafi forces were easy targets for planes.
"There is nowhere to hide. It's an open area," he said.
Internet social networks and some Arabic-language media have reported that Khamis, commander of the elite 32nd brigade, was killed by a disaffected air force pilot who, according to the reports, flew his plane into the Gaddafi compound in Tripoli.
There has been no confirmation and Libyan officials say such reports are part of a deliberate campaign of misinformation.
Last week Libyan officials said nearly 100 civilians had been killed in coalition strikes, but US Defence Secretary Robert Gates dismissed the assertion.
COALITION OPERATIONS
US, French, British and other allied aircraft started attacking Libyan government troops eight days ago.
French fighters destroyed at least five warplanes and two helicopters from pro-Gaddafi forces in the Zintan and Misrata regions on Saturday, the military said in a statement on the French armed forces website, reports AFP.
British warplanes destroyed five Libyan armoured vehicles in air strikes on Ajdabiya and Misrata on Friday, the defence ministry in London said.
British Defence Secretary Liam Fox has told the BBC that coalition countries attacking targets in Libya will not supply arms to anti-Gaddafi rebels, despite reports that this is being actively considered.
Dr Fox said there was a UN arms embargo across the entire country, adding "We have to accept that."