Libyan rebels moved to encircle cities loyal to Muammar Qaddafi, threatening to attack unless they surrendered by next week while the search for the leader and his closest associates continued.
Elsewhere in the Middle East yesterday, a car bomb killed five Yemeni soldiers, according to al-Masdar, an independent news website. In Syria, government forces killed at 11 protesters, al-Jazeera reported, citing activists.
Libyan National Transitional Council head Mustafa Abdel Jalil said yesterday its forces will pressure the cities of Sirte, Bani Walid, Jufra and Sabha until they give up while continuing to supply them with humanitarian aid. Rebel fighters said they will begin attacking Bani Walid this morning if the city doesn’t surrender, Agence France-Presse reported.
“We are by the grace of God in a position of strength, capable of entering any city,” Jalil told reporters in Benghazi. He said the rebels were extending the deadline for surrender by a week “in our desire to avoid bloodshed and to avoid more destruction.”
The Misrata Military Council said it deployed its most powerful unit, the Halbus Brigade consisting of 500 men, around Beni Walid and it has observed that defensive positions that were held by government troops have been abandoned.
