Libyan provisional government forces entered the Muammar Gadafy stronghold of Sirte today and came under heavy sniper fire as Nato planes roared overhead.
Huge plumes of black smoke rose over the town as National Transitional Council (NTC) forces massed in Zafran Square about 1km from its centre. Gunfire could be heard from the town centre as NTC fighters moved tanks and mortars into the square.
Pick-up trucks mounted with machineguns and loaded with NTC fighters raced into the town. NTC forces also advanced from the south of Sirte, the deposed leader's hometown.
"They have snipers above the mosques, above the buildings. They're using the houses and public buildings," NTC fighter El-Tohamy Abuzein told Reuters from his position on a roundabout in Zafran Square.
Nato would not comment on its operations in Sirte. It said its planes hit a number of targets yesterday, including an ammunition depot and an anti-aircraft gun.
Several NTC fighters said they had orders to hold back on an advance on the town centre because of the possibility of Nato attacks.
A large cloud of smoke over the town was the result of a strike on an ammunition dump, fighters said.
At the western gate, gunners fired artillery towards the town. Both sides exchanged volleys of rockets.
NTC forces have previously retreated from Sirte and the other final Gadafy stronghold, Bani Walid, after poorly organised assaults met fierce resistance from loyalists.
Meanwhile, the NTC found weapons believed to be banned internationally near Sabha and Wadan today.
"There are weapons believed to be internationally forbidden, and they are under our control," the head of the NTC Abdel Jalil told a news conference in Benghazi.
"We will seek help from local experts and the international community to get rid of
these weapons in a suitable way," he added.
Reuters