Under-fire rebels fail to break Libya stalemate

REBELS came under fire on the outskirts of Ajdabiya, hemming them in to their eastern outpost and denting their hopes of pushing west to try to end a stalemate in the Libyan war.

Witnesses saw around a dozen rockets land around the western entrance to the town, which rebels wanted to use as a staging post to retake the oil port of Brega. Many fled the attack as loud explosions boomed across the town.

“There are still some guys out there at the western gate but the situation isn’t very good,” said Wassim el-Agouri, a 25-year-old rebel volunteer waiting at Ajdabiya’s eastern gate.

Rebels on Saturday made it into the outskirts of Brega, 80 kilometres to the west, but many fled back to Ajdabiya after six were killed by rockets fired by Gaddafi loyalists on the exposed coastal road joining the two towns.

Yesterday marked a month since the UN Security Council passed a resolution authorising force to protect civilians in Libya, leading to an international air campaign.

But despite NATO air strikes against Gaddafi’s forces, rebels have been unable to make or hold their gains in weeks of back-and-forth fighting over the coastal towns in eastern Libya.