Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi tried to retake a town near the capital that is under opposition control but were repelled, an opposition leader in the town told CNN Tuesday.
The source said pro-Gadhafi troops with tanks and anti-aircraft guns attacked Zawiya from both east and west as night fell Monday, but did not capture the town, which is a short drive from the capital, Tripoli.
A senior official in Gadhafi's regime denied that government forces attacked rebels in Zawiya.
Senior members of the government told CNN the towns of Zawiya and Misrata are particularly important in their effort to regain control of the country. The officials insisted they want a peaceful resolution.
But witnesses have described repeated violent efforts by the regime to take back control of areas Gadhafi has lost. More parts of the regime have broken off, joining calls for Gadhafi to halt the violence.
In London, the Libyan Embassy said it was siding with the opposition, condemning what it called "all acts of murder and terror" taking place in Libya.
Zawiya was calm Tuesday, but Gadhafi's troops remained nearby, the opposition leader and another source in the town said. CNN is not naming them to protect their safety.
A witness in Misrata on Tuesday said that city also was calm. But many Misrata residents make their living traveling to farmlands about 10 kilometers from the city, and they are being attacked by pro-Gadhafi forces when they try to access their lands, the witness said. On Monday, two people were killed, the witness said.
Tripoli remained quiet Tuesday as more people tried to resume normal life. Prices of basic goods have increased, greatly exacerbating the situation. A Tripoli resident said she cannot receive her salary this week due to unspecified problems in the bank. Some residents of the city have told CNN they want to protest but fear being killed.
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, the leader's 38-year-old son who has spoken on behalf of the regime during the protests, told CNN his talks with the opposition are in "chaos" because the opposition is divided with no clear leaders.
Many Libyans have rejected the younger Gadhafi's remarks during the uprising.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday that Libya's future is unclear. "In the years ahead, Libya could become a peaceful democracy, or it could face protracted civil war," she told the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. "The stakes are high. And this is an unfolding example of how we use the combined assets of diplomacy, development, and defense to protect our interests and advance our values."
"We have joined the Libyan people in demanding that Gadhafi must go -- now, without further violence or delay -- and we are working to translate the world's outrage into action and results," she said.
The United States has said all options are "on the table" with respect to Libya.
A top U.S. general said Tuesday that any effort to establish a no-fly zone over the country would be a military operation that would include eliminating Libya's air defenses. It would be "challenging," U.S. Central Command leader Gen. James Mattis told the Senate Armed Services committee.
Clinton said a no-fly zone is one idea under consideration.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley sent a tweet citing Gadhafi's remarks in an interview with ABC and the BBC.
"Qaddafi tells ABC News: All my people with me, they love me. They will die to protect me. The Libyan people tell Qaddafi: You go first!" Crowley wrote.
Gadhafi, in the interview Monday, denied using force against his people and even denied the existence of the protests.
"No demonstration at all in the streets," the 68-year-old ruler said, speaking at a restaurant in Tripoli.
Told by the BBC's Jeremy Bowen that he had seen demonstrators in the streets that morning, Gadhafi asked, "Are they supporting us?"
"They love me, all my people with me, they love me all. They will die to protect me, my people," said Gadhafi, who has controlled Libya for nearly 42 years.
As the world has stepped up pressure on Gadhafi, several countries have frozen assets belonging to him and his family. Austria's central bank said it was freezing all assets held by the family, while Germany said it was freezing 2 million euros ($2.76 million) belonging to one of Gadhafi's sons, without specifying which.
Pearson, the company that owns Penguin Books and the Financial Times, said it was freezing shares held by the Libyan Investment Authority.
Over the past two weeks in Libya, government forces have repeatedly clashed with demonstrators, fired on crowds and at times shot indiscriminately at people in the streets, numerous witnesses have told CNN.
It is unclear how many people have died. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said deaths have topped 1,000, while Libya's ambassador to the United States estimated Monday that the death toll was about 2,000.
The ambassador, Ali Suleiman Aujali, told CNN the figure is based on information from Tripoli and telephone calls. He described Gadhafi's regime as "very cruel."
"I think we realize that he's crazy," said Aujali, who has worked as a diplomat for Gadhafi for 40 years. "But we have no alternative. We have no ways to get rid of him until now," he said, referring to protests inspired by the successful ousters of leaders in Tunisia and Egypt.
A Libyan woman said she believes protesters will eventually succeed in ousting Gadhafi because "too much blood has been shed."
Soon after Gadhafi's interview, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said the Libyan strongman sounded "delusional."
"And when he can laugh in talking to American and international journalists while he is slaughtering his own people, it only underscores how unfit he is to lead and how disconnected he is from reality," she said.
A witness in Misrata, who is not being identified for security reasons, said Gadhafi's claims are inconsistent and nonsensical.
"Gadhafi has been making all kinds of things ... at one moment, he's saying that all of the Libyan people are taking hallucinogens. Another moment he's saying that we're all members of al Qaeda and that we're extremist Muslims. He's all over the place," she said.
"Libyans are not members of al Qaeda -- that's absolutely ridiculous. And not everyone's on drugs here. We're fighting for our basic rights -- the right to freedom, the right to education, the right to health care, the right to clean water. The right to -- just basic human rights, and that we will continue to fight until this regime falls."
Aujali is among sever Libyan officials around the world have defected, joining calls for Gadhafi's ouster.
The source said pro-Gadhafi troops with tanks and anti-aircraft guns attacked Zawiya from both east and west as night fell Monday, but did not capture the town, which is a short drive from the capital, Tripoli.
A senior official in Gadhafi's regime denied that government forces attacked rebels in Zawiya.
Senior members of the government told CNN the towns of Zawiya and Misrata are particularly important in their effort to regain control of the country. The officials insisted they want a peaceful resolution.
But witnesses have described repeated violent efforts by the regime to take back control of areas Gadhafi has lost. More parts of the regime have broken off, joining calls for Gadhafi to halt the violence.
In London, the Libyan Embassy said it was siding with the opposition, condemning what it called "all acts of murder and terror" taking place in Libya.
Zawiya was calm Tuesday, but Gadhafi's troops remained nearby, the opposition leader and another source in the town said. CNN is not naming them to protect their safety.
A witness in Misrata on Tuesday said that city also was calm. But many Misrata residents make their living traveling to farmlands about 10 kilometers from the city, and they are being attacked by pro-Gadhafi forces when they try to access their lands, the witness said. On Monday, two people were killed, the witness said.
Tripoli remained quiet Tuesday as more people tried to resume normal life. Prices of basic goods have increased, greatly exacerbating the situation. A Tripoli resident said she cannot receive her salary this week due to unspecified problems in the bank. Some residents of the city have told CNN they want to protest but fear being killed.
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, the leader's 38-year-old son who has spoken on behalf of the regime during the protests, told CNN his talks with the opposition are in "chaos" because the opposition is divided with no clear leaders.
Many Libyans have rejected the younger Gadhafi's remarks during the uprising.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday that Libya's future is unclear. "In the years ahead, Libya could become a peaceful democracy, or it could face protracted civil war," she told the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. "The stakes are high. And this is an unfolding example of how we use the combined assets of diplomacy, development, and defense to protect our interests and advance our values."
"We have joined the Libyan people in demanding that Gadhafi must go -- now, without further violence or delay -- and we are working to translate the world's outrage into action and results," she said.
The United States has said all options are "on the table" with respect to Libya.
A top U.S. general said Tuesday that any effort to establish a no-fly zone over the country would be a military operation that would include eliminating Libya's air defenses. It would be "challenging," U.S. Central Command leader Gen. James Mattis told the Senate Armed Services committee.
Clinton said a no-fly zone is one idea under consideration.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley sent a tweet citing Gadhafi's remarks in an interview with ABC and the BBC.
"Qaddafi tells ABC News: All my people with me, they love me. They will die to protect me. The Libyan people tell Qaddafi: You go first!" Crowley wrote.
Gadhafi, in the interview Monday, denied using force against his people and even denied the existence of the protests.
"No demonstration at all in the streets," the 68-year-old ruler said, speaking at a restaurant in Tripoli.
Told by the BBC's Jeremy Bowen that he had seen demonstrators in the streets that morning, Gadhafi asked, "Are they supporting us?"
"They love me, all my people with me, they love me all. They will die to protect me, my people," said Gadhafi, who has controlled Libya for nearly 42 years.
As the world has stepped up pressure on Gadhafi, several countries have frozen assets belonging to him and his family. Austria's central bank said it was freezing all assets held by the family, while Germany said it was freezing 2 million euros ($2.76 million) belonging to one of Gadhafi's sons, without specifying which.
Pearson, the company that owns Penguin Books and the Financial Times, said it was freezing shares held by the Libyan Investment Authority.
Over the past two weeks in Libya, government forces have repeatedly clashed with demonstrators, fired on crowds and at times shot indiscriminately at people in the streets, numerous witnesses have told CNN.
It is unclear how many people have died. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said deaths have topped 1,000, while Libya's ambassador to the United States estimated Monday that the death toll was about 2,000.
The ambassador, Ali Suleiman Aujali, told CNN the figure is based on information from Tripoli and telephone calls. He described Gadhafi's regime as "very cruel."
"I think we realize that he's crazy," said Aujali, who has worked as a diplomat for Gadhafi for 40 years. "But we have no alternative. We have no ways to get rid of him until now," he said, referring to protests inspired by the successful ousters of leaders in Tunisia and Egypt.
A Libyan woman said she believes protesters will eventually succeed in ousting Gadhafi because "too much blood has been shed."
Soon after Gadhafi's interview, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said the Libyan strongman sounded "delusional."
"And when he can laugh in talking to American and international journalists while he is slaughtering his own people, it only underscores how unfit he is to lead and how disconnected he is from reality," she said.
A witness in Misrata, who is not being identified for security reasons, said Gadhafi's claims are inconsistent and nonsensical.
"Gadhafi has been making all kinds of things ... at one moment, he's saying that all of the Libyan people are taking hallucinogens. Another moment he's saying that we're all members of al Qaeda and that we're extremist Muslims. He's all over the place," she said.
"Libyans are not members of al Qaeda -- that's absolutely ridiculous. And not everyone's on drugs here. We're fighting for our basic rights -- the right to freedom, the right to education, the right to health care, the right to clean water. The right to -- just basic human rights, and that we will continue to fight until this regime falls."
Aujali is among sever Libyan officials around the world have defected, joining calls for Gadhafi's ouster.
1 comment:
Do you know that this will give Qaddafi more support among Libyans who will see this as outside interference and it will prove Qaddafi's point that this whole thing is a conspiracy by the west to take over the country.
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