Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Foes of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi claimed successes Saturday on two key battle fronts, preventing pro-government forces from taking Zawiya near the nation's capital and capturing the strategic eastern oil town of Ras Lanuf.
They announced on opposition-controlled radio the seeds of an alternative government in the form of a National Transitional Council and declared it to be the country's sole legitimate representative.
The council held its first meeting Saturday in the eastern city of Benghazi. The council called Benghazi its temporary location until the "liberation" of the capital, Tripoli, according to a decree it issued late in the day.
The strife engulfing the besieged North African nation is reverberating across the country, the region and the world. Death toll estimates range from more than 1,000 to as many as 2,000, and the international community has been pondering strategies on how to end the violence and remove the Gadhafi regime.
The government has been reviled across the globe for violence against civilians, and the International Criminal Court this week launched an investigation of Gadhafi, some of his sons and other leaders for possible crimes against humanity.
Protesters face rubber bullets 
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Libya weapons available on black market The opposition and government forces have battled in recent days for full control of Zawiya, which sits in the shadow of the nation's power center about 30 miles west of Tripoli.
The pro-Gadhafi forces earlier withdrew from Zawiya's Martyrs' Square and returned to their positions on the outskirts of the city after intense clashes with rebels, according to a witness who is serving as a rebel spokesman.
He reported heavy gunfire and mortar shelling and saw the bodies of three slain opposition members carried in the square en route to burial.
The witness said pro-Gadhafi forces entered a residential area in the city and shot live ammunition and automatic weapons at residents in the streets. The sounds of automatic weapon fire and people yelling could be heard during a telephone interview with the witness.
After a lull in fighting, clashes erupted again Saturday evening.
Another eyewitness said security forces on the eastern and western sides of the city remain intent on advancing inside the city, and clashes have occurred in both areas.
The pro-Gadhafi security forces are using tanks, armed vehicles and heavy weapons, and the anti-Gadhafi forces are well-armed, the second witness said. Many deaths and injuries have occurred in the latest round of fighting, and protesters managed to seize tanks and weapons from the security forces.
Rebels captured the strategic oil town of Ras Lanuf on Saturday -- one day after pro-Gadhafi forces fought with opposition members there, fighters and commanders said.
The development appeared to embolden opposition members, who prepared to advance west to Gadhafi's birthplace of Sirte.
Government forces, however, worked to thwart their push. CNN reporters following the movement of rebels in As Sidr, just west of Ras Lanuf, saw an air force helicopter pound opposition positions. There was no word on casualties.
Rebels near Ras Lanuf said they shot down a Libyan air force plane, a Russian-made Sukhoi Su-24MK that crashed in the desert. The debris was spread over a kilometer (about half a mile) and the headless bodies of two pilots were found at the site.
Libya resident describes fighting 
End of Gadhafi's rule 'pre-ordained' 
Gallery: Rebellion in Libya 
Gallery: The Gadhafi family Meanwhile, the new National Transitional Council announced its new leader is former Justice Minister Mustafa Abdeljeleel, who it said had tried to resign from Gadhafi's government several times.
The council also named a representative for military affairs and established a military council to oversee the "liberation" of Libya and reconstruct the armed forces, according to an announcement on opposition-controlled radio.
That announcement said the council had reinstated ambassadors who resigned from the Gadhafi government and contacted the envoys to ask for their recognition.
The council -- which has 31 representatives for most of the regions in Libya -- also plans to call existing ambassadors to join the movement.
The council said its main missions are to represent all of Libya internationally, liberate the country, draft a constitution and hold elections.
In Benghazi, witnesses said forces loyal to Gadhafi pounded a weapons depot, an airstrike that caused casualties and widespread damage.
One witness said the airstrike there was powerful enough "to destroy a whole city." News footage showed the remains of buildings and debris and ambulances arriving.
Such aerial attacks have prompted the West to step up discussions about imposing a no-fly zone over the North African country. U.S. military and diplomatic officials have said such a zone would be complicated and risky, and international support for it is not strong.
"If it's ordered, we can do it," U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said earlier this week, but imposing a no-fly zone "begins with an attack on Libya to destroy the air defenses."
The Arab League has rejected international intervention, saying Libya is facing "an internal affair that is decided by the people and their governments." However, the league cannot ignore the suffering of civilians and would consider the imposition of a no-fly zone in coordination with the African Union if fighting were to continue, said Hisham Yousef, chief of staff of the Arab League, on Wednesday.
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, one of Gadhafi's sons who has spoken on behalf of his father's regime in recent days, told CNN on Friday that international efforts to persuade his father to give up power are "a big mistake" and that his father remains a popular figure in the country.
"Even if we were to hold tomorrow an election, my father would win with a big majority," he said.
The fierce fighting has sparked the flight of Libyans and foreigners out of Libya, with nations across the globe scrambling to help people leave.
Almost 200,000 people have fled Libya with nearly equal numbers going to Tunisia and Egypt, the United Nations refugee agency said.
The United States announced Saturday it is contributing $3 million to the International Organization for Migration to help return home thousands of non-Libyans who fled to Tunisia. Four U.S. military flights Saturday were taking hundreds of Egyptians home to Cairo, the U.S. State Department announced.
Thursday and Friday, about 1,800 people crossed from Libya to Tunisia, and about 3,000 crossed on Saturday, said Firas Kayal, spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
He said the situation at the border is "very calm."
A few thousand Egyptians are in Tunisia awaiting travel home, and more than 10,000 Bangladeshis are there awaiting evacuation with hundreds more still arriving, Kayal said.
They announced on opposition-controlled radio the seeds of an alternative government in the form of a National Transitional Council and declared it to be the country's sole legitimate representative.
The council held its first meeting Saturday in the eastern city of Benghazi. The council called Benghazi its temporary location until the "liberation" of the capital, Tripoli, according to a decree it issued late in the day.
The strife engulfing the besieged North African nation is reverberating across the country, the region and the world. Death toll estimates range from more than 1,000 to as many as 2,000, and the international community has been pondering strategies on how to end the violence and remove the Gadhafi regime.
The government has been reviled across the globe for violence against civilians, and the International Criminal Court this week launched an investigation of Gadhafi, some of his sons and other leaders for possible crimes against humanity.
Protesters face rubber bullets Rebels in eastern Libya continue fight Volunteers arm for Libya conflict Libya weapons available on black market The pro-Gadhafi forces earlier withdrew from Zawiya's Martyrs' Square and returned to their positions on the outskirts of the city after intense clashes with rebels, according to a witness who is serving as a rebel spokesman.
He reported heavy gunfire and mortar shelling and saw the bodies of three slain opposition members carried in the square en route to burial.
The witness said pro-Gadhafi forces entered a residential area in the city and shot live ammunition and automatic weapons at residents in the streets. The sounds of automatic weapon fire and people yelling could be heard during a telephone interview with the witness.
After a lull in fighting, clashes erupted again Saturday evening.
Another eyewitness said security forces on the eastern and western sides of the city remain intent on advancing inside the city, and clashes have occurred in both areas.
The pro-Gadhafi security forces are using tanks, armed vehicles and heavy weapons, and the anti-Gadhafi forces are well-armed, the second witness said. Many deaths and injuries have occurred in the latest round of fighting, and protesters managed to seize tanks and weapons from the security forces.
Rebels captured the strategic oil town of Ras Lanuf on Saturday -- one day after pro-Gadhafi forces fought with opposition members there, fighters and commanders said.
The development appeared to embolden opposition members, who prepared to advance west to Gadhafi's birthplace of Sirte.
Government forces, however, worked to thwart their push. CNN reporters following the movement of rebels in As Sidr, just west of Ras Lanuf, saw an air force helicopter pound opposition positions. There was no word on casualties.
Rebels near Ras Lanuf said they shot down a Libyan air force plane, a Russian-made Sukhoi Su-24MK that crashed in the desert. The debris was spread over a kilometer (about half a mile) and the headless bodies of two pilots were found at the site.
Libya resident describes fighting End of Gadhafi's rule 'pre-ordained' Gallery: Rebellion in Libya Gallery: The Gadhafi family RELATED TOPICS
The council also named a representative for military affairs and established a military council to oversee the "liberation" of Libya and reconstruct the armed forces, according to an announcement on opposition-controlled radio.
That announcement said the council had reinstated ambassadors who resigned from the Gadhafi government and contacted the envoys to ask for their recognition.
The council -- which has 31 representatives for most of the regions in Libya -- also plans to call existing ambassadors to join the movement.
The council said its main missions are to represent all of Libya internationally, liberate the country, draft a constitution and hold elections.
In Benghazi, witnesses said forces loyal to Gadhafi pounded a weapons depot, an airstrike that caused casualties and widespread damage.
One witness said the airstrike there was powerful enough "to destroy a whole city." News footage showed the remains of buildings and debris and ambulances arriving.
Such aerial attacks have prompted the West to step up discussions about imposing a no-fly zone over the North African country. U.S. military and diplomatic officials have said such a zone would be complicated and risky, and international support for it is not strong.
"If it's ordered, we can do it," U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said earlier this week, but imposing a no-fly zone "begins with an attack on Libya to destroy the air defenses."
The Arab League has rejected international intervention, saying Libya is facing "an internal affair that is decided by the people and their governments." However, the league cannot ignore the suffering of civilians and would consider the imposition of a no-fly zone in coordination with the African Union if fighting were to continue, said Hisham Yousef, chief of staff of the Arab League, on Wednesday.
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, one of Gadhafi's sons who has spoken on behalf of his father's regime in recent days, told CNN on Friday that international efforts to persuade his father to give up power are "a big mistake" and that his father remains a popular figure in the country.
"Even if we were to hold tomorrow an election, my father would win with a big majority," he said.
The fierce fighting has sparked the flight of Libyans and foreigners out of Libya, with nations across the globe scrambling to help people leave.
Almost 200,000 people have fled Libya with nearly equal numbers going to Tunisia and Egypt, the United Nations refugee agency said.
The United States announced Saturday it is contributing $3 million to the International Organization for Migration to help return home thousands of non-Libyans who fled to Tunisia. Four U.S. military flights Saturday were taking hundreds of Egyptians home to Cairo, the U.S. State Department announced.
Thursday and Friday, about 1,800 people crossed from Libya to Tunisia, and about 3,000 crossed on Saturday, said Firas Kayal, spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
He said the situation at the border is "very calm."
A few thousand Egyptians are in Tunisia awaiting travel home, and more than 10,000 Bangladeshis are there awaiting evacuation with hundreds more still arriving, Kayal said.
The agency confirmed that a Bangladeshi migrant worker died after a heart attack from the exhaustion of walking to the border. Many migrant workers told aid workers they had to walk to the border because soldiers took their money and they couldn't afford paying for a taxi.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/05/libya.conflict/index.html?hpt=T1
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