Relief finally came to Benghazi (more or less) in time.
The French air force managed to destroy the column of Gaddafi forces heading for Benghazi. Considering the size and type of equipment this column was made of, if it had not been stopped, many believe a good part of Benghazi would have been flattened. It is reported to have included close to 100 tanks, a similar number of multiple rocket launchers, and artillery units, in addition to a large number of 4WD pickup trucks armed with anti-aircraft guns and automatic weapons.
Gaddafi forces managed, however, to get some units inside Benghazi: a few tanks and a few hundred persons in civilian cars and pickup trucks with light weapons. These seemed to have been joined with a few hundred people who were hiding inside the.
Several tanks started firing haphazardly destroying some houses and killing and injuring some people.
At the same time, mercenaries and Gaddafi loyalists started trying to create panic and chaos in the city by also firing haphazardly and throwing hand grenades in the streets while speeding around the city in civilian cars.
The revolutionaries confronted these people and many firefights erupted all around the city.
It turned out that these groups were using schools, which are not open during this period, as hideouts, and storing weapons and ammunition in them. Military confrontations took place around many schools resulting in the neutralization of most of the groups found there. There are some still loose in the city, and some firefights erupt once in a while.
Gaddafi also succeeded in bringing some units, probably sharpshooters and assassination squads into the city on helicopters that were seen dropping these people off. Several assassinations and assassination attempts have taken place in the city. A young man who installed a livestream transmission of events in Libya on the internet was shot dead. A doctor who is managing the distribution of medical resources in the liberated areas almost had a hand grenade thrown into his car, but was saved by revolutionaries who shot the assassins.
In the mean time, Gaddafi’s vicious attack on cities in the west of Libya continues.
Misurata has been without water for almost a week now. News came today, that water was admitted into the city, but after being contaminated with sewage! Incredible power of imagination for evil ends. The revolutionaries have finally succeeded in pushing back an attacking force that occupied for a couple of days the main street and main square in the city, and which in the mean time succeeded in bringing a lot of destruction to the city center, with tanks firing haphazardly at residential buildings, and sharpshooters on rooftops shooting to kill anybody that comes into their line of sight.
Gaddafi security battalions also laid siege to Zentan in the Western Mountain, firing artillery at the city.
Tripoli, Zawiya and Zwara continued to suffer the reign of terror that is imposed upon them by Gaddafi’s security forces.
Gaddafi continued in playing deadly games with the lives of Libyan citizens.
A few dozen of his supporters were brought into his military headquarters at Bab Al Aziziya in Tripoli, to claim that their lives are being put in danger by the coalition protecting the safely of Libyan citizens by neutralizing some of Gaddafi’s forces and command and control centers. Rumors have been rife from several weeks that Gaddafi has brought the families of many of his top aids into these headquarters, alleging that it is to protect them, but actually holding them as hostages to ensure the continued loyalty of these aids. It is also rumored that he is holding large numbers of the leadership of some of the important tribes that have not yet taken a strong position with the revolution, most notably Wefalla, as hostages to ensure their continued neutrality.
Gaddafi also announced another ploy, that he wants to send a demonstration of “civilians” from Tripoli to Benghazi, allegedly to pray on the lives of his dead soldiers. It is certain that Gaddafi would use this occasion, if he is allowed to go through with it, to carry the military conflict to a higher level.
As the clock continues to tick on Gaddafi, and as he is running out of tricks after loosing all credibility with the international community, after he’d lost it a long time ago with his own people, fear is rising that he will get even more vicious and murderous. A quick end to this his reign is becoming more and more of a necessity.
