20110305
reuters

ZAWIYAH/BIN JAWAD, Libya (Reuters) - Libyan government forces launched a second attack on the western town of Zawiyah on Saturday after rebels drove them out in a morning of fierce fighting, while in the east, opponents of Muammar Gaddafi pushed towards his home town.

"The fighting has intensified and the tanks are shelling everything on their way. They have shelled houses. Now they are shelling a mosque where hundreds of people are hiding, Abu Akeel, a Zakiyah resident, told Reuters. "We can't rescue anyone because the shelling is so heavy," he said.

Another resident in the main square told Reuters by telephone: "The attack has started. I see more than 20 tanks." Gunfire could be heard in the background.

It was the second attempt by Gaddafi's forces to win control over the town in a matter of hours. Rebels pushed back an early morning attack in which residents said the government forces had fired high explosive rounds at civilians and dragged people from their homes.

"We captured 3 APCs, two tanks and one pick-up after an hour and a half of fighting," Youssef Shagan, the rebel force spokesman in the town, 50 km (30 miles) west of the capital, told Reuters after the first battle.

People opposed to Gaddafi's 41-year rule have been fighting his forces in Zawiyah for more than a week, after rebels took over large parts of eastern Libya in an uprising inspired by the overthrow of veteran rulers in Egypt and Tunisia this year.

Residents said Gaddafi forces stormed residential buildings and killed people inside to secure the rooftops for snipers.

A doctor in Zawiyah told Reuters at least 30 people, mostly civilians, had been killed during the morning clashes on Saturday, bringing to 60 the death toll from two days of battles for control of the coastal town.