Tripoli, May 02: Libyan government forces bombarded the port of rebel-held Misrata with rockets and shellfire on Monday, disrupting operations to bring supplies in by sea to the besieged city.
A rebel spokesman complained that NATO forces, charged with protecting civilians caught up in the uprising against Gaddafi’s rule, had failed to act in defense of Misrata.
“The port is under heavy shelling today too, they have fired around 100 rockets so far. The shelling on Misrata has not stopped in the past 36 hours,” the spokesman, who identified himself as Hassan al-Misrati said.
“It seems that NATO have forgotten about us and this has emboldened the Gaddafi forces.”
The renewed bombardments followed a NATO air strike on a Gaddafi compound in Tripoli on Saturday night which killed his son Saif al-Arab and three young grandchildren, triggering attacks by angry crowds on the British and French embassies and the U.S. diplomatic mission.
Funerals were expected to be held on Monday, an occasion that might bring an appearance by Gaddafi, who authorities say was in the Tripoli house when it was destroyed by at least three missiles.
Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim denied allegations in some media that the deaths had been fabricated to discredit NATO. The alliance said it hit a command and control center.
Any appearance of an assassination attempt against Gaddafi is likely to lead to accusations the British and French-led strikes are exceeding the U.N. mandate to protect civilians. French surgeon Gerrard Le Clouerec, who does not work for the Libyan government, was asked to independently identify the bodies of Saif al-Arab, 29, and two children. He said all three had died due to a blast but the children’s faces had been obliterated so they were difficult to identify.
Le Clouerec said he also saw the body of a young man of about 30, with a beard and a thin mustache whose face matched a photograph he had been shown of Saif al-Arab.
There was no immediate reaction from Libyan officials to news that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden had been killed by U.S. special forces in a raid in Pakistan, an event that may rattle Gaddafi as he faces strong international condemnation over the tactics he is using to suppress the uprising.
Misrata, which has become a bloody symbol of resistance to him, was subjected to renewed bombardments on Monday.
“Shelling the port is disastrous for us because it will sabotage all the humanitarian aid we are getting,” rebel spokesman Ahmed Hassan said. “God help us if this happens.”
Rocket barrages had hit the port area on Sunday as an aid ship was trying to unload and forced two other vessels to wait offshore.
Libyan state television said the port was shelled to stop NATO from delivering weapons to the insurgents. The rebel spokesman said that allegation was a lie.
Rights groups say hundreds of people, including many civilians, have been killed in Misrata, about 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli. Officials in Tripoli deny targeting civilians, and say they are fighting armed gangs and al Qaeda sympathizers.
Rebels have repelled government troops from the center of Libya’s third largest city in recent days and now say they have gone on the offensive to try to capture Misrata airport.
—-Agencies