Libya: rebels consolidate eastern Libya

Libya's opposition consolidated its hold on the country's east on Friday after launching a lightening attack on a major oil port controlled by Col Muammar Gaddafi's retreating troops.

Libyan rebels who are part of the forces against Col Gaddafi stand with an anti-aircraft gun near Ras Lanuf Photo: AP

Advancing rapidly through the desert, a motley army of poorly armed civilian volunteers appeared to have captured the outskirts of Ras Lanuf on Friday night, bringing the uprising to within 150 miles of Sirte, the Libyan leader's birthplace and a major loyalist stronghold.

On Col Gaddafi's eastern front, the revolution has achieved a spate of unlikely victories with apparent ease, giving it vital momentum against an increasingly demoralised enemy.

In the west by contrast Col Gaddafi is reasserting his grip, apparent taking the town of Zawiya, just 30 miles west of Tripoli, on Friday night. In the capital his militia are able to roam between positions and on Friday staged a show of force to lock down the capital for Friday prayers, a traditional starting-point for protest.

Just two days before, the men advancing on Ras Lanuf, 410 miles east of Tripoli, had succeeded in recapturing the town of Brega, securing its vital oil refinery and airport after a fierce battle in the desert dunes.

Many in the east had been bracing themselves for a renewed onslaught on Brega by Col Gaddafi's army, which had retreated to Ras Lanuf to await reinforcements.