- Title: LIBYA: Rebels under heavy bombardment outside the town of Bin Jawad
- Date: 9th March 2011
- Summary: PICK-UP TRUCK WITH MACHINE GUN IN BACK PLUMES OF BLACK SMOKE IN THE DISTANCE CAR COMING ALONG STREET WITH MAN WAVING LIBYAN FLAG MORE OF CARS SMOKE IN DISTANCE FROM MORTAR FIRE (AUDIO OF FIRING) VARIOUS OF REBELS ON ROAD REBELS ON ROAD/ MORTARS LANDING ON SIDE OF ROAD
- Embargoed: 24th March 2011 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Libya
- Country: Libya
- Topics: War / Fighting
- Reuters ID: LVA4PUD0Y88OD30PWU2DCCXB8XIW
- Story Text: There was heavy fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi on the outskirts of the town of Bin Jawad on Tuesday (March 8).
Television images from Bin Jawad showed rebels coming under attack from a barrage of mortar fire and one man who had his foot blown off after being hit by mortar.
Gaddafi's forces attacked rebels on the eastern front line with tanks, rockets and warplanes on Tuesday, said rebels who complained they could not match the Libyan leader's heavy firepower.
Rebel fighters are armed with heavy machineguns, rocket propelled grenade launchers and anti-tank and aircraft weapons, often mounted on 4x4 pick-up trucks, no match for Gaddafi's warplanes and heavy armour.
The battlefield has become mired in attack and counter-attack in a buffer zone of barren desert and scrub between east and west Libya.
Rebels, who have set their sights on Gaddafi's reinforced hometown of Sirte further west, said government forces had dug in their tanks near Bin Jawad.
The towns of Bin Jawad and Ras Lanuf, which are close to major oil export terminals, are 60 km (40 miles) apart on a strategic coastal road along the Mediterranean that leads to Gaddafi's stronghold of Tripoli. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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