West talks, Libya keeps fighting

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces have pushed into the rebel-held city of Benghazi, defying world demands for an immediate ceasefire and setting his troops on a collision course with nations allied against him.

As leaders gathered yesterday in Paris for an international summit to decide on immediate steps, a defiant Gaddafi warned that any Western military intervention would be an act of "clear aggression". "You will regret it if you take a step towards interfering in our internal affairs," Gaddafi said.

A Libyan rebel spokesman said that Gaddafi's forces had entered Benghazi yesterday - and a Reuters witness saw at least one explosion near the rebels' headquarters in Libya's second-largest city.

"They have entered Benghazi from the west. Where are the Western powers? They said they could strike within hours," said rebel military spokesman Khalid al-Sayeh.

The fighting came despite a claim by Libya's government that it was observing a ceasefire.

A government spokesman said Gaddafi's administration was observing the ceasefire and blamed rebels - which it accused of being al-Qaeda supporters - for breaking the agreement.

But Benghazi residents were angry at the West's delay.

Hassan Marouf, 58, said: "Europe and America have sold us out. We have been hearing bombing all night, and they have been doing nothing. Why? We have no one to help us but God. We men are not afraid to die, but I have women and children inside and they are crying ... help us."

Hours before the Paris summit to discuss military intervention, a French government source said: "Everything is ready (to act), but the decision is now a political one. It's clear we have to move quickly."

As explosions shook Benghazi, rebels said they were being forced to retreat from the outskirts of the city where the revolt against Gaddafi began a month ago. However, the fighters later claimed victory after holding back the advance - as they have in other towns they eventually lost to government troops.

"We revolutionaries have taken control of four tanks inside Benghazi. Rebel forces have pushed Gaddafi's forces out of Benghazi," said Nasr al-Kikili, a lawyer who works for the rebel media centre in the city. Crowds celebrated by firing guns in the air and parading on top of a tank.

The rebels said Libyan jets had bombed the road to Benghazi Airport and elsewhere on the outskirts.

Libya had declared a unilateral ceasefire on Friday after the United Nations Security Council authorised a no-fly zone over the oil-rich North African country.

Elsewhere in the city, there was an apparent firefight between rebels and men they claimed were mercenaries.

The two paid soldiers, who were wearing civilian clothes, were believed to have infiltrated the city, driving a car carrying a crate of hand grenades.

The alleged mercenaries were shot dead, and rebels produced blood-soaked identity papers they said showed that the pair were Nigerians.

"We were sitting here and we received gunfire from this vehicle, then we opened fire and, after that, it crashed," said rebel fighter Meri Dersi.

There were also unconfirmed reports that government forces were arriving by sea.

Within hours of US President Barack Obama saying the terms of the UN resolution meant to end fighting in Libya were non-negotiable, his UN envoy, Susan Rice, asked by CNN whether Gaddafi was in violation of these terms, said: "Yes, he is."

Gaddafi, meanwhile, said there was no justification for the UN decision. "This is blatant colonialism. It does not have any justification. This will have serious consequences on the Mediterranean and on Europe."

Obama made it clear that any military action would aim to change conditions across Libya - rather than just in the rebel-held east - by calling on Gaddafi's forces to pull back from the western cities of Zawiyah and Misrata, as well as from the east.

"All attacks against civilians must stop," Obama said. He also demanded that water, gas and electricity supplies be restored in all areas.

"These terms are not negotiable ... If Gaddafi does not comply ... the resolution will be enforced through military action." -