THE DOMINO EFFECT IN THE MIDDLE EAST

LIVE: Libyan Unrest: Al Jazeera confirms Revolutionaries in Tobruk intercepted Gaddafi fuel tanker coming from Greece which was headed to Zawiya
Posted on March 15, 2011 by s0urce

All times are in Libyan local time GMT +2

23:16 Update: A trusted source has confirmed to us this story: The pilot who flew his plane into Baab Al Aziziyah took off as part of a 2 plane team with the mission of bombing strategic points in Al Guradibya base in Sirte. Their orders were to return immedietly after completing the mission. One pilot followed orders while the other flew to Tripoli where he emptied what he had left of ammunition on Baab Al Aziziyah and then crashed his plane into it

23:13 Al Manara Media reports that 6 cars filled with troops from the Khamis battalion have surrendered themselves to the revolutionaries in Tobruk

22:13 BREAKING from Al Jazeera Arabic The revolutionaries in Ajdabiya have captured 7 tanks in very good condition and have handed them over to the defected 36th battalion.

22:04 Al Jazeera Arabic Libyan revolutionaries captured a Greek ship loaded with fuel headed to the port of AzZawiya off the coast of Tobruk. They have since redirected the ship to the port of Tobruk and have renamed the ship “The revolution of 17th February”.

21:45 The Independent reports that four men have been arrested in Ajdabiya with evidence linking them to the murder of Ali Hassan Al Jaber. Opposition officials claim that evidence has emerged that Muammar Gaddafi’s regime is sending undercover squads to carry out assassinations. Read more here.

On Tuesday 15th March 2011, @feb17libya said:

Kamikaze reports were confirmed by our contacts on the ground. We have appointed and trusted points through out #Libya.Of course few media outlets would have this information as any journalists in #Tripoli are confined to their rooms and highly guarded, they wouldn't be allowed to cover such an event. Be assured we ONLY tweet 100% confirmed and true reports.

00:44 Reports from numerous sources that the Libyan Flag of Independence is fluttering over Sirte tonight! Many are reporting the news as confirmed and we most certainly hope so!

00:33 @ShababLibya tweet: The Pilot who flew his jet into Bab Azizia was the martyr Muhammad Mokhtar Osman from Benghazi. May God have mercy on your soul dear brother, your sacrifice has not gone in vain and we will continue with this till our country is free.

@@AndrewSmith09 Beginning to get credible confirmations that #Sirte (Qadaffi hometown) is flying Independence flag. #Libya
less than a minute ago via web

Local time = GMT+2

11:32am
The Associated Press is reporting that the government forces have been hammering Ajdabiya with nonstop shelling in a bid to rout rebels holding out in the strategic eastern city.

The city's fall would open the way for Gaddafi's forces to advance farther into the long stretch of eastern Libya that has been in the control of the opposition throughout the month long uprising.

Residents say pro-Gaddafi troops also cut off communications on Wednesday and began shelling Misurata, the last rebel-held city in the western half of the country.

Saadoun al-Misrati, a rebel spokesman from Misurata says shelling started at 7:00am.

11:06am
Ali Tarhouni, member of the Economic and Oil Committee in liberated Libya says pro-democracy Libyans want a no-fly zone.

Voice of America reports that the opposition member says Libyans will remember those who supported them in their time of need.

10:54am

The Reuters news agency is reporting that the residents of western Libyan city of Misrata say that Gaddafi forces have launched heavy bombardment on the city.

10:49am
Several Arab nations are prepared to take part in a military operation in Libya to stop the advance of Gaddafi's forces, Alain Juppe, French foreign minister, wrote on his blog on Wednesday.

7:40pm
The New York Times says that four of its journalists reporting in Libya have gone missing from the port town of Ajdabiyah, where fierce fighting has been reported today.

Editors at the paper say they were last in contact with the journalists on Tuesday morning, New York time.

"We have talked with officials of the Libyan government in Tripoli, and they tell us they are attempting to ascertain the whereabouts of our journalists," Bill Keller, the paper's executive editor, said.

He added that the govenment had indicated that if the journalists were captured they would be released "promptly and unharmed".

The four missing journalists are: Anthony Shadid (Beirut bureau chief), Stephen Farrel (a reporter and videographer), Tyler Hicks (a photographer) and Lynsey Addario (also a photographer).

7:24pm
Hillary Clinton says that she hopes a vote on a "broad range of actions, not just a no-fly zone by other actions as well" will be taken at the UN "no later than tomorrow".

7:14pm
In Ajdabiyah, fighting rages on, with a rebel commander saying that pro-Gaddafi forces were employing a "scorched earth policy".

Jamal Mansur, the rebel commander in the town, said his forces had won back control of the road north to Benghazi, still held the route east to Tobruk and the Egyptian border.

There's heavy fighting around Ajdabiya, they're carrying out a scorched earth policy ... There's heavy, sustained tank shelling and earlier there were air strikes, but now the revolutionaries managed to take seven tanks from those dogs and, God willing, we will succeed."

Khaled al-Sayeh, says the rebels still hold the town and the road to Benghazi.

Abdelkarim Mohammed, a doctor, told AFP that clashes broke out inside Ajdabiya at about 5pm local time, and that residents are now hiding in their homes.



7:11pm
Libyan soldiers near the Tunisian border have reportedly fired heavy weapons on rebels who were attempting to flee by boat with their families, the AFP news agency reports, citing witnesses and coastguard officials.

"We heard heavy weapons fire around four or five kilometres from the border," said Rodolphe Avenel, a member of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

Avenel said the Tunisian coastguard had told him this mroning that the shooting was targetted at "one or more Libyan opposition families trying to flee by sea aboard boats".

Tunisian soldiers told AFP the gunfire off Zouara on Tuesday lasted about half an hour in the late afternoon.

8:23pm
More on the fighting in Ajdabiyah, where Reuters reports that "weary" government soldiers returning from the front lines told journalists that they were meeting "renewed resistance" from the rebels.

The rebels, meanwhile, appear confident of turning the tide, warning of "surprises".

"The fighting is fierce. His supply lines are stretched so he can't push on from Ajdabiyah. We've got some surprises in store. We're going to fight on and we're going to win," said Mustafa Gheiriani, a rebel spokesman in Benghazi.

Reinforcements from Benghazi are said to be heading to Ajdabiyah to help rebels there.

Witnesses describe a violent government crackdown from the city.

Idris Omar says he saw government soldiers kill his neighbour when they entered the town on Tuesday.

"They stopped his car and saw the flag sticker. They asked, 'what's this?' He replied, 'the flag of Libyan independence'. Then they shot him dead," Omar told Reuters.

A Reuters correspondent reported seeing 50 government trucks loaded with food, weapons and petrol parked along a coast road near the city, along with a number of tanks and empty tank carriers returning from the front.

Rocket launchers, armoured personnel carriers and about 20 ambulances were also seen along the highway.

Panda wrote:
Brit being interviewed in Bahrain says there is a curfew now and the City is very tense. He says the Rebels have always used peaceful means but
the Gaddaffi Soldiers and Police are now fully in charge.

Badboy wrote:

Panda wrote:
Brit being interviewed in Bahrain says there is a curfew now and the City is very tense. He says the Rebels have always used peaceful means but
the Gaddaffi Soldiers and Police are now fully in charge.

SO GADDHAFI FORCES ARE IN BAHRAIN,THOUGHT IT WAS SAUDI FORCES

0:00am
Reuters news agency has reported that the Libyan army has set an ultimatum to clear Benghazi by 2200 GMT, Libyan television reported.

A text on the screen of Al-Libya television addressed the residents of Benghazi saying:

"The army is coming to support you and to cleanse your city from armed gangs.

"It urges you to keep out by midnight of areas where the armed men and weapon storage areas are located."