AJDABIYA: Hard-pressed Libyan rebels rushed reinforcements to the oil town of Ras Lanuf on Friday to counter a major offensive by Moammar Qaddafi’s troops that had driven them back.
Fighting continued after a fierce battle the day before, and rebel fighters delayed journalists from heading towards the area from the town of Ajdabiya, so it was unclear how far Qaddafi’s men had pushed east along the coast.
"We don’t know exactly what is happening in Ras Lanuf, but we’ve heard there is still fighting," said Salem Abdulrahman, a bearded young fighter in fatigues and a keffiya scarf, driving a pick-up carrying an anti-aircraft gun.
"So we’re going up there. We’re going to fight, and we’re going to win," he declared, as cars and pick-ups ferried fighters to the front, hoping to stop Qaddafi consolidating a hold on the town and its key oil facilities.
An AFP reporter saw about two dozen trucks heading towards Ras Lanuf after rebels finally allowed journalists to leave Ajdabiya, initially restricting their access for "security reasons."
"We didn’t get any orders to come up, but we’re coming anyway. There are some of Qaddafi’s guys in Ras Lanuf and we hope to get them out," said Saleh Massoud, in a truck of rebels with an anti-aircraft gun mounted on the back.
One rebel commander claimed his troops had already driven the army from Ras Lanuf, but a medic in contact with fighters on the ground said they were outgunned there and down to isolated pockets of resistance.
"At the moment it’s 10 dead and dozens injured from Thursday’s fighting, and that’s likely to rise significantly. We believe there are many more bodies in the area," Doctor Salem Langhi told AFP from the front line town of Brega.
"Ambulances have not been allowed to go there to Ras Lanuf; the army is blocking the road," he said, referring to Qaddafi loyalists, which shelled the town on Thursday and drove off rebels who overran it a week ago.
"We have been told by the rebel fighters that there are still pockets of resistance in Ras Lanuf, and there is still some fighting, but as of now the army is in control of the area," Langhi said.
"They have total supremacy. They have been firing with ships and they have control of the air," he said, following Thursday’s major offensive by the Tripoli regime, which sent rebels into a hasty retreat.
State television said Thursday that loyalists had "purged" Ras Lanuf. AFP journalists in the town saw rebel forces in full retreat and army tanks advancing five kilometres (three miles) east of the city.
But a rebel commander claimed his men had counter attacked overnight.
"The army was kicked out of Ras Lanuf overnight by our fedayeen. There is a no-man’s land there now; no-one is there," Colonel Bashir Abdulkader told AFP.
In rebel-held Benghazi the opposition "government" — the interim national council — described the situation in Ras Lanuf as "fluid", and argued that Qaddafi does not have enough troops to hold any territory he might capture.
"The front line is changing on an hourly basis," said Mustafa Gheriani, a media organiser at the rebels’ headquarters.
"In Ras Lanuf this morning, our fighters are spread so when there’s heavy bombardment we don’t get a lot of casualties," he said, confirming that regime forces had entered the area, but claiming they had quickly withdrawn.
"Whenever they bombard an area very heavily, Qaddafi fores can go in, but they can’t hold it. Then they go back when they lose air cover. No one can really claim control of this 10 inches of area or that 10 inches of area."
Gheriani said fighting was continuing and Qaddafi’s troops were using artillery, air strikes and a naval bombardment.
