JOIN USLibyan rebels converge on Gadhafi stronghold
Thousands of rebels have now reached on Bani Walid, a desert town some 140 kilometres southeast of Tripoli. Gadhafi himself has been on the run since losing his capital last month.
Rebel forces, who control most of Libya and are setting up a new government, can’t declare total victory until Gadhafi is caught and areas like Bani Walid are subdued. So they have shown they are willing to be patient, perhaps hoping to avoid a bitter inter-tribal fight that could create lasting divisions.
The rebels have extended to Saturday a deadline for the surrender of Gadhafi’s hometown of Sirte and other loyalist areas, but some have warned they could attack Bani Walid sooner because many prominent former regime officials were believed to be inside.
The scene was calm early Monday, with rebels brewing tea and lighting morning cigarettes, at a checkpoint about 70 km from Bani Walid’s center. Then a convoy of nine trucks arrived, flying the independence-era tricolor the rebels have adopted. As his men fired rifles into the air and shouted “God is great!” commander Ismail al-Gitani said they were part of a larger force and that he was ordered to reinforce the northern approaches to Bani Walid.
“We won’t go inside Bani Walid unless the Warfala tribe invites us,” he said, referring to Bani Walid’s main tribe. “The Warfala have to lead us into Bani Walid. Hopefully no one will be shot. We don’t want to use our weapons. But if the Gadhafi loyalists shoot at us, of course we will return fire.”
The Warfala are believed to be about 1-million-strong, one-sixth of Libya’s population.
Rebel commanders have said the door was still open for more talks about a surrender, but rebel negotiator Abdullah Kanshil said on Monday that “there are no negotiations”.
China clueless about arms talks
Chinese arms firms held talks with representatives of Gadhafi’s forces in July over weapons sales, but behind Beijing’s back, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. The revelation is nonetheless likely to deal a fresh blow to China’s already delicate relations with Libyan rebels.