Libya rebels recapture key town

Libyan rebels backed by extensive allied air raids have seized control of the frontline oil town of Ajdabiya from Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's forces.

Insurgents have been celebrating amid the ruins of tanks and artillery pieces left behind after air strikes.

Gaddafi loyalists seized the town last week as they advanced east to quell an uprising which began in mid-February.

A Libyan minister said the army had left the town after the "heavy involvement" of Western forces.

The rebel breakthrough came after a seventh night of bombardment by allies enforcing a UN resolution against Col Gaddafi.

British RAF Tornado aircraft have been firing Brimstone guided missiles at his forces in recent days around Ajdabiya, a town of about 100,000 people.

The BBC's Ben Brown in Ajdabiya says those strikes seemed to be even heavier overnight.
Gaddafi 'promotes everyone'

He counted about two dozen Libyan government tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery pieces which have been either abandoned or destroyed at the eastern gate of the town.

"They [Western forces] were heavily involved, so the Libyan armed forces decided to leave Ajdabiya this morning," Khaled Kaim, a deputy foreign minister, told reporters.

Overnight strikes by international forces also reportedly hit an air base on the outskirts of Misrata, a rebel-held city further west which pro-Gaddafi forces have been shelling.

A rebel spokesman in the city told Reuters on Saturday that the government assault had eased as a result.

Large explosions were also heard in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Saturday morning.

Witnesses said a military radar site was set on fire in that city's suburb of Tajura, a previous target of the air raids.

In his weekly address, US President Barack Obama said that the "clear and focused" military mission in Libya was succeeding.

"Make no mistake, because we acted quickly, a humanitarian catastrophe has been avoided and the lives of countless civilians - innocent men, women and children - have been saved," he said.

Col Gaddafi is meanwhile said to have ordered a universal promotion for everyone in the army and police, and proposed arming civilian volunteers.

The BBC's Kevin Connolly in the eastern rebel stronghold of Benghazi says the administration's latest move smacks of desperation.