Defiant Gaddafi vows 'decisive battle'

Libyan leader promises to wrest town of Misurata from rebels as UN plans vote on imposing no-fly zone. Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 09:00

Benghazi residents remain defiant and vow to fight on to defeat Gaddafi's troops [Al Jazeera] A defiant Muammar Gaddafi has promised a "decisive battle" to recapture the rebel-held town of Misurata, undaunted by growing international pressure for a UN-sponsored no-fly zone over Libya to rein him in. "The battle continues at Misurata on Thursday, that will be the decisive battle," state television quoted Gaddafi as saying on Thursday. "You are going to be called to take up arms and on Thursday you will take part in the battle," he added, addressing a group of young people from Misurata. Gaddafi urged his audience "not to leave Misurata hostage in the hands of a handful of madmen". On Tuesday, Libyan state television said the army would soon move against the rebel-stronghold of Benghazi, while a day before Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam had predicted that everything would be over within 48 hours. Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from Benghazi, said the Libyan people hope a no-fly zone will be enforced, however, "they are feeling more and more that basically everything lies in their own hands". "What they are calling for now is weapons and money to bolster and train their forces and to make a credible defense. "They are still holding out, so fears that Benghazi is just going to fall are unfounded at the moment," he said. Stung by an uprising against his more than 41-year-old rule, Gaddafi has unleashed his forces to wrest control of territories seized by the rebels. Though his well-trained and heavily armed forces have registered significant successes in recent days, a rebel spokesman in Misurata, which lies 150km from the capital Tripoli, said on Wednesday they had beaten back an attack by loyalist forces on the city, killing 80 of Gaddafi's men. Meanwhile, fighting is raging for the control of Ajdabiya, the gateway to Benghazi. A doctor told the AFP news agency that fighting was still going on in and around the town, which also guards the road to Tobruk and the Egyptian border in the rebel-held east. "We received four bodies today, all rebel fighters," Abdelkarim Mohammed said, adding that 22 bodies, mainly civilians killed by artillery or air strikes, had been brought in on Tuesday. UN vote The battles raged as the United Nations Security Council planned to vote on Thursday on a draft resolution that would not only introduce a no-fly zone over Libya but may also authorise the use of air strikes to stop the advance of forces loyal to Gaddafi. Martin Nesirky, a spokesman of Ban Ki-moon, said the secretary-general was "gravely concerned" about signs that Gaddafi was preparing to attack Benghazi. "A campaign to bombard such an urban centre would massively place civilian lives at risk," he said. "The secretary-general is urging all parties in this conflict to accept an immediate ceasefire and to abide by Security Council resolution 1970." "In the coming hours we will see a real genocide if the international community does not act quickly" Ibrahim Dabbashi, Deputy Libyan UN ambassador UN passed a resolution on February 26 which called for an end to Gaddafi's onslaught against his opponents and imposed sanctions against his regime. Ibrahim Dabbashi, the deputy Libyan UN ambassador, warned that, "in the coming hours we will see a real genocide if the international community does not act quickly." Dabbashi, who defected early on from the Gaddafi regime, said "about five" Arab states were ready to help police the no-fly zone if it was adopted. In Cairo on Wednesday, Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, said: "We want to do what we can to protect innocent Libyans against the marauders let loose by the Gaddafi regime. "And yes, time is fast upon us. There is an urgency to it," she said. Clinton stopped short of explicitly backing a no-fly zone, saying only that it was one of several options under consideration. Washington joined Britain and France in pressing for a Security Council vote Thursday on a no-fly zone to halt Gaddafi's attacks. Britain, France and Lebanon, on behalf of the Arab League, have been seeking to overcome resistance to a no-fly zone.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies