a hospital physician said, Libyan government forces have pounded the outskirts of the rebel-held city of Misrata, killing at least 22 people, .
The doctor at Hikma Hospital,who only give his first name, Ayman, said Moammar Qaddafi's forces used tanks, artillery and incendiary rockets on Friday in the bombardment of Dafniya, about 30 kilometers west of Misrata. He said at least 61 people were wounded in the attacks which began about 10 a.m. local time.
Qaddafi forces had renewed their shelling near Misrata on Wednesday. The city is one of the few footholds rebels have in western Libya and controls the country's largest port.
The doctor said residents had reported no sign of NATO aircraft in the Misrata region. There also were no reports NATO strikes in Tripoli, the capital. NATO had been pounding Tripoli and environs in recent days, stepping up backing for the four-month-old rebel uprising that seeks to oust Qaddafi from power after four decades.
Rebels have taken control of swaths of eastern Libya, although fighting has since come to a stalemate even with NATO support. Misrata remained one of the most important rebel footholds in the Qaddafi controlled west.
Government forces are surrounding Misrata on all sides but the north, where the city has access to the Mediterranean Sea for supplies and food through Libya's major port. Rebels have beaten back several government attempts to retake the city.
The Qaddafi forces are pushing back on rebel forces trying to break out of Misrata to the west toward Tripoli, where Qaddafi is increasingly cornered under NATO bombardment in the capital.
A rebel fighter in Misrata who identifies himself only as Abdel-Salem said Qaddafi's sons, Khamis and al-Moatassem, and top aid Abdullah al-Senoussi are in command of the operation in Zlitan, about nine miles (15 kilometers) from Dafinya. They are dug in trying to stop the rebel advance out of Misrata.
"The situation is very bad there. Qaddafi sent huge forces to Zlitan to fortify the city because he knows that if Zlitan falls in the hands of the rebels, the way to Tripoli will be wide open," Abdel-Salam said. "Now the ball is in the court of NATO, but we have not seen any NATO planes flying over despite the fierce battle."
According to Abdel-Salam, a bulk of Zlitan residents are Ghadafi loyalists.
U.S. Sen. Carl Levin spoke of the degradation of Qaddafi's forces Friday after a classified briefing by senior Pentagon officials in Washington. The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said Qaddafi's military and political standing had been weakened by NATO air attacks.
Levin said administration officials offered no predictions on how long the war would last or when Qaddafi might go. He said NATO helicopters, likely British and French, have been taking out tanks without collateral damage.
Turkey's prime minister said in a TV interview broadcast Friday that his country has offered Qaddafi guarantees if he were to leave Libya but has received no response. He did not detail what sort of guarantees.
"He has no other option but to leave Libya, with the condition that he is given certain guarantees. That's the picture," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in the interview with the NTV channel.
"We have given him these guarantees; we said we will help you leave for wherever you would like."
The doctor at Hikma Hospital,who only give his first name, Ayman, said Moammar Qaddafi's forces used tanks, artillery and incendiary rockets on Friday in the bombardment of Dafniya, about 30 kilometers west of Misrata. He said at least 61 people were wounded in the attacks which began about 10 a.m. local time.
Qaddafi forces had renewed their shelling near Misrata on Wednesday. The city is one of the few footholds rebels have in western Libya and controls the country's largest port.
The doctor said residents had reported no sign of NATO aircraft in the Misrata region. There also were no reports NATO strikes in Tripoli, the capital. NATO had been pounding Tripoli and environs in recent days, stepping up backing for the four-month-old rebel uprising that seeks to oust Qaddafi from power after four decades.
Rebels have taken control of swaths of eastern Libya, although fighting has since come to a stalemate even with NATO support. Misrata remained one of the most important rebel footholds in the Qaddafi controlled west.
Government forces are surrounding Misrata on all sides but the north, where the city has access to the Mediterranean Sea for supplies and food through Libya's major port. Rebels have beaten back several government attempts to retake the city.
The Qaddafi forces are pushing back on rebel forces trying to break out of Misrata to the west toward Tripoli, where Qaddafi is increasingly cornered under NATO bombardment in the capital.
A rebel fighter in Misrata who identifies himself only as Abdel-Salem said Qaddafi's sons, Khamis and al-Moatassem, and top aid Abdullah al-Senoussi are in command of the operation in Zlitan, about nine miles (15 kilometers) from Dafinya. They are dug in trying to stop the rebel advance out of Misrata.
"The situation is very bad there. Qaddafi sent huge forces to Zlitan to fortify the city because he knows that if Zlitan falls in the hands of the rebels, the way to Tripoli will be wide open," Abdel-Salam said. "Now the ball is in the court of NATO, but we have not seen any NATO planes flying over despite the fierce battle."
According to Abdel-Salam, a bulk of Zlitan residents are Ghadafi loyalists.
U.S. Sen. Carl Levin spoke of the degradation of Qaddafi's forces Friday after a classified briefing by senior Pentagon officials in Washington. The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said Qaddafi's military and political standing had been weakened by NATO air attacks.
Levin said administration officials offered no predictions on how long the war would last or when Qaddafi might go. He said NATO helicopters, likely British and French, have been taking out tanks without collateral damage.
Turkey's prime minister said in a TV interview broadcast Friday that his country has offered Qaddafi guarantees if he were to leave Libya but has received no response. He did not detail what sort of guarantees.
"He has no other option but to leave Libya, with the condition that he is given certain guarantees. That's the picture," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in the interview with the NTV channel.
"We have given him these guarantees; we said we will help you leave for wherever you would like."
