Opposition makes gains in western Libya

07/07/2011| IslamWeb

Libyan opposition forces in the country's western mountains advanced a dozen kilometers on Wednesday, seizing a town in another step toward securing a key north-south road that would open the way to the capital.

After a roughly six-hour battle that lasted throughout the morning, opposition forces drove forces loyal to leader Muammar Gaddafi from the town of al-Qawalish.

The two sides fought mostly at a distance, using heavy artillery, and black plumes of smoke could be seen rising from al-Qawalish in the afternoon, Al Jazeera's Jonah Hull reported.

"Gaddafi forces have fled the town and [the opposition forces] have now gone in on foot to try and make sure that that is the case, to try to clear it, to move house by house and see that in fact the area is clear of Gaddafi forces," Hull said.

Al-Qawalish is around 50km west of Gharyan, the last city in the Nafusa Mountain range, which runs east from the border with Tunisia and has been controlled mostly by opposition forces since the uprising against Gaddafi broke out in mid-February.

Gharyan - still controlled by the regime - lies astride a major north-south highway that connects Tripoli, the coastal capital, with Sabha, a town in the southern desert that is held by Gaddafi's forces and has been used to supply his troops and regime-held areas.

The opposition fighters in the Nafusa hope to take Gharyan and cut off Gaddafi's supplies. From Gharyan, they can also mount an advance on the capital.

"The capture of the town of al-Qawalish is an important step in that direction," Hull said. "The overall strategy of these fighters is clearly to reach Tripoli."

But while opposition forces' advance in tha Nafusa has been steady, they have also been slow, and the fighters must now take 50km of Gaddafi-held territory to reach Gharyan.

Largest demonstration yet held in Benghazi

As opposition scored military victories in the western mountains, their compatriots in the opposition-held cities of Misrata and Benghazi staged huge demonstrations to show their support.

Tens of thousands of opposition supporters filled the streets of Benghazi, holding anti-Gaddafi caricatures and shouting "Go Gaddafi go" and "God is great".

A helicopter, its shiny surface plastered with Libya's monarchy-era tricolor flag, hovered low above the crowd. Some fired their AK-47 rifles into the air in jubilation.

A smaller demonstration was held in Misrata, which broke out of a loyalist siege in May but still endures near-daily rocket attack.

The coordinated shows of support were meant to counter a pro-regime demonstration held in Tripoli last Friday, which saw an enormous crowd take to the capital's streets waving Gaddafi's all-green flag.

Civilians killed in Misrata

East of Tripoli, in the opposition-held city of Misrata, at least 11 people were killed and dozens more wounded on Tuesday in an artillery barrage launched by Gaddafi forces, according to opposition sources.

The shelling marked another bloody day for a city that has been bombarded continually since March.

Sources said five opposition forces were killed in fighting at the western entrance to the city earlier in the day.

As the opposition fought in Misrata, French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet appeared to question their chances of defeating Gaddafi's troops while also saying they no longer needed help.

The opposition forces have a "growing capacity to organize politically and militarily" but are "currently not in a stabilized, centralized system", Longuet said.

Yet Longuet said opposition forces were no longer in need of controversial French weapons drops.

"There is emerging a political order distinct from that of Tripoli. The [opposition] territories are organizing their autonomy... That is why the parachute drops are no longer necessary," he said.

On the conflict's eastern frontline, an opposition representative said nine Gaddafi soldiers were captured between Ajdabiya and Brega.

PHOTO CAPTION

Libyan children play in Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, June 30, 2011.

Al-Jazeera