Libyan forces battle to loosen grip on Gaddafi towns

(Reuters) - Libyan interim government forces charged a desert stronghold controlled by fighters loyal to Muammar Gaddafi and battled on the streets of the ousted leader's hometown as they struggled to quash his last pockets of support. Nearly a month since they drove Gaddafi's forces out of the capital Tripoli, transitional government fighters have become mired in sieges of his loyalists' remaining redoubts, raising doubt over whether they can quickly unite the vast country. Forces backed by Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) made little headway against stiff resistance in Gaddafi's birthplace Sirte on Saturday, but were able to celebrate the capture of the town of Herawa 60 km (40 miles) to the east. The fighters also stormed back into the desert town of Bani Walid, a day after diehard loyalists beat them into a retreat. An NTC spokesman said anti-Gaddafi forces also captured the small town of Birak as they advanced on the major loyalist stronghold of Sabha, deep in the remote southern desert. Gaddafi's spokesman said the ousted leader was still in Libya and leading resistance. Moussa Ibrahim also accused NATO of killing 354 people in a bombing of Sirte, an accusation Reuters could not independently verify. NATO said such reports in the past had been false. A column of NTC pickup trucks mounted with anti-aircraft machine guns and fresh ammunition rushed into Bani Walid as dusk fell across Libya's interior desert. "Gaddafi forces attacked the checkpoint so our troops went in. There is a lot of fighting inside the city right now," senior regional NTC official Abdullah Kenshil said. Ibrahim, the deposed leader's spokesman, contacted Reuters by satellite telephone to say Gaddafi was still in Libya, leading the "resistance" against his foes. "We will be able to continue this fight and we have enough arms for months and months to come," he said. He said NATO air strikes on Sirte had hit a residential building and a hotel, killin [...]

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