The civil war in Libya appears to have reached a stalemate after three
months of conflict between Muammar Qaddafi's forces and rebels who seek
to end his 40-year rule. Throughout that time, thousands of rebels,
government forces, mercenaries, civilians, and journalists covering
these events have paid with their lives. NATO forces have been involved
for over two months now, carrying out hundreds of airstrikes and
delivering aid and assistance to rebel forces. Just Tuesday, NATO
unleashed its heaviest airstrikes yet, dropping bombs on several targets
in Tripoli, including Qaddafi's compound. Rebel forces have firm
control over the eastern part of Libya and recently gained control of
the port city of Misrata, after street-by-street battles and a long
siege by Qaddafi's military. Collected here are images from the past
several weeks in war-torn Libya. [45 photos]
Libyan men react as the main fuel depot in Misrata, Libya burns after a
bombing by pro-Qaddafi forces early Saturday, May 7, 2011. Witnesses
say Qaddafi forces have bombed the main fuel depot in Misrata,
intensifying the regime's campaign against the rebel-held city that has
been under siege for over two months. (AP Photo/ Ricardo Garcia Vilanova) 
The besieged city of Misrata, Libya is seen from a high building on
Saturday, April 23, 2011. Government troops retreated to the outskirts
of Misrata under rebel fire Saturday and the opposition claimed victory
after officials in Tripoli decided to pull back forces loyal to Muammar
Qaddafi following nearly two months of laying siege to the western city.
(AP Photo) #
Libyan volunteers work to recover and bury dead bodies for health and
religious reasons in Misrata, Libya, on May 4, 2011. Misrata doctors
estimate that more than 1,000 people have been killed in their city in
the two months of fighting between rebels and government forces. Most of
the bodies the recovery team finds are soldiers from Qaddafi's regime.
"When a fighter gets killed, his friends take his body away," said a
team member. He added that Qaddafi's troops didn't seem to do the same. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue) #
Young women look at bullet casings and weapons used during the fighting
between the rebels and Muammar Qaddafi forces in Misrata, Libya,
Sunday, May 22, 2011. The European Union established formal diplomatic
contact with the Libyan opposition on Sunday by opening an office in the
rebel stronghold of Benghazi. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
A man maneuvers in a narrow street in the old city of Benghazi, Libya,
on Saturday, May 14, 2011. Libyans, some deep in mourning others
invigorated by the spirit of the new free Libya, contemplate their past
and hopes for the future in the hiatus between the Feb. 17 uprising that
helped liberate Benghazi and uncertainty surrounding prolonged fighting
for the rest of the country. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
The port area of Misrata, Libya, seen across the troubled choppy seas
just outside the port, from a boat rented by International Organization
for Migration (IOM) carrying food, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO)
workers and journalists towards Misrata, Libya, Saturday, May 21, 2011.
The boat landed and unloaded its cargo amidst tight security at the
port. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
Teenagers stand in front of a graffiti that reads in Arabic: "Big
thanks to the hero Mahdi Zew" in Benghazi, Libya, on May 8, 2011. Mahdi
Zew blew himself up February 19th, after crashing with his car in the
front gate of Kateba, the biggest military camp of Muammar Qaddafi's
forces in Benghazi. The new spirit of freedom has brought an almost
tangible air of excitement to Benghazi, energizing people who see
endless possibilities for a better life in the future. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
U.S. reporter Clare Gillis (right) and James Foley (center) arrive at
Rixos hotel after they were released by the Libyan government in Tripoli
May 18, 2011 . Libya freed four foreign reporters on Wednesday who had
been charged with entering the country illegally and said it was hard
for its army to distinguish between journalists and people working with
rebels. They were given a one-year suspended jail sentence and each
fined 200 dinars. Clare Gillis recounts her detention in an article here. (Reuters/Louafi Larbi) #
This undated file photo shows photojournalist Anton Hammerl, who went
missing in Libya in early April 2011. His death was later confirmed by
fellow journalists who witnessed his killing in the Libyan desert at the
hands of Muammar Qaddafi's forces. (AP Photo/Saturday Star - Independent Newspapers Ltd) #
Bullet casings cover a desk on a rooftop where a sniper loyal to
Muammar Gaddafi took position during a fierce battle with rebels on
Tripoli street in central Misrata, on May 22, 2011. Residents of the
battle-scarred city of Misrata in west Libya searched for food from
poorly stocked shops on Sunday and rebels stripped weapons from the
carcasses of Qaddafi's armor. Distant blasts rumbled through the eerily
quiet roads of Misrata, Libya's third biggest city and the scene of some
of the fiercest fighting since an uprising began in mid-February. (Reuters/Zohra Bensemra) #
Rebel fighters aim their machine guns towards Muammar Qaddafi's forces
in the front line, 25 km west of Misrata, Libya, on Monday, May 23,
2011. The head of Libya's opposition has arrived for talks with Turkish
leaders in a sign of improving ties after Turkey urged Muammar Qaddafi
to step down and withdrew its diplomats from Tripoli. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
Ramzy Elshahiebi, 39, uses a knife to cut explosive material while
working to assemble homemade bombs in Benghazi, Libya, on May 4, 2011.
Elshahiebi claims he used to fish with dynamite and so knows the
assembly of bombs that serve the rebel army fighting against Muammar
Qaddafi's troops. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
Flames engulf a ship in the port of the Libyan capital Tripoli
following NATO air strikes on May 19, 2011. Tripoli is targeted nearly
daily with air raids by the international coalition, which launched
strikes on March 19 to prevent Libyan strongman Muammar Qaddafi's forces
from attacking civilians. (Mahmud Turkia/AFP/Getty Images) #
A cameraman works near destroyed Libyan warships at the sea port in
Tripoli May 20, 2011, seen during a guided government tour given to
journalists. NATO is bombing Libya under a U.N. mandate to protect
civilians and says it strikes only military targets. The warships were
damaged by NATO airstrikes, according to the Libyan government. (Reuters/Louafi Larbi) #
Street vendors wait for customers in front of graffiti depicting Libyan
dictator Muammar Qaddafi in Benghazi, Libya, on May 10, 2011. After
more than 40 years under Qaddafi, Libyans in the rebel stronghold of
Benghazi have taken to mocking the Libyan dictator with colorful
caricatures. Before residents in the rebel-held east ripped themselves
free from Qaddafi's rule, drawing such satirical pictures of the leader
in public was unthinkable, and the regime would have severely punished
anyone caught doing so. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
Badly injured Rebel fighter Mussa Mohammed Mussa, 31, recovers in the
bed of a public hospital in Benghazi, Libya, Tuesday, May 10, 2011.
Mussa Mohammed was injured in Misrata May 1. during a fierce firefight
against Muammar Qaddafi's troops and brought to Benghazi on a fishing
boat. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) #
Libyan rebel fighters mourn for their comrades who were killed earlier
in the morning, at Misrata's hospital, on May 23, 2011. Forces loyal to
Muammar Qaddafi shelled neighborhoods in the west and south of Misrata
on Monday, a rebel spokesman and a witness said, adding that explosions
were also heard in the port area. (Reuters/Zohra Bensemra) #
Rebel fighters step on a carpet with a picture of Muammar Qaddafi in
the Libyan town of Kabaw in the Western Mountain region, about 230 km
(140 miles) southwest of the capital Tripoli, on May 11, 2011. Fighting
in the Western Mountain region, home to the Berber ethnic minority, has
intensified since the rebels seized the Dehiba border crossing into
Tunisia last month, opening a key artery for supplies. (Reuters/Zohra Bensemra) #
A Super Etendard fighter jet dumps fuel before landing after a mission
over Libya on France's flagship Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, in
the Gulf of Sirte, off the Libyan coast, on Wednesday, April 13, 2011.
The missions are aimed at enforcing the no-fly zone and suppressing any
attacks by Qaddafi's forces against civilians and rebels in eastern
Libya. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) #
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.