Snipers, shells, tanks terrorize key Libyan city

[There Is No Spoon]

msnbc.com news services
updated 13 minutes ago 2011-03-22T20:02:15

TRIPOLI, Libya — Moammar Gadhafi's snipers and tanks are terrorizing civilians in Libya's third-largest city, and the U.S. military said Tuesday it was "considering all options" in response to dire conditions that have left people cowering in darkened homes and scrounging for food and rainwater.

Heavy anti-aircraft fire and loud explosions sounded in Tripoli after nightfall, possibly a new attack in the international air campaign that so far has focused on military targets. But conditions have deteriorated sharply in Misrata, a major city held by the rebel force trying to end Gadhafi's four-decade rule. Residents of the coastal city 125 miles (200 kilometers) southeast of Tripoli, say shelling and sniper attacks are unrelenting. A doctor said tanks opened fire on a peaceful protest on Monday.

"The number of dead are too many for our hospital to handle," said the doctor, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals if the city falls to Gadhafi's troops. As for food, he said, "We share what we find and if we don't find anything, which happens, we don't know what to do."

Neither the rebels nor Gadhafi's forces are strong enough to hold Misrata or Ajdabiya, a key city in the east that is also a daily battleground. But the airstrikes and missiles that are the weapons of choice for international forces may be of limited use.

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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42216979/ns/...tn_africa/

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Gaddafi is one rotten SOB.

[Cha]

Oh man, that sounds so unbelieveably horrid for those poor people. What the hell is going to happen?