Los Angeles Times: Libyan Rebels Meet Resistance!

Rebel fighters tried to storm two strongholds of Moammar Gadhafi supporters Friday, but met stiff resistance and suffered casualties in urban battlefields by snipers firing from mosques and heavy weapons rattling main boulevards. The tough defense displayed the firepower and resolve of the Gadhafi followers, and suggested that Libya's "new rulers" may not easily push aside the remnants of the old government! At least 13 fighters were killed, and 25 wounded as they mounted a second day of attacks on Gadhafi's hometown, the Mediterranean coastal town of Sirte, said a spokesman for the s0- called "transitional government" based in Tripoli. The attack on Sirte involved several thousand fighters and 900 armed vehicles, officials said, including tanks, but mostly pickup trucks outfitted with machine guns, rocket launchers, and anti-aircraft weapons. "The Gadhafi loyalists have so many weapons," cried Maab Fatel, a 28-year-old revolutionary fighter on the front lines in Bani Walid. "This battle is really crazy." About 150 miles to the west, near Bani Walid, rebel fighters advanced into the desert city but were soon repelled by pro-Gadhafi forces, scattering in disarray and full retreat as evening approached. Rebel fighters found snipers thwarting their bid to advance into the city center, and rockets and mortars poured down on the upon the invading force. Commanders reported at least six dead and several dozen injured. Several fighters complained that residents of Bani Walid seemed to remain loyal to Gadhafi, who lavished financial largesse on the town and its principal tribe, the Warfalla.