Columns of
anti-Gaddafi forces have renewed assaults on Sirte and Bani Walid, two of the
last strongholds of the ousted Libyan leader.
Fighters say they
have entered northern parts of Bani Walid but have since been met with fierce
resistance.
Trucks and tanks are
also approaching Sirte, hours after an advance was forced back by Gaddafi
loyalists.
Meanwhile the UN
General Assembly has given Libya's seat to the ruling National Transitional
Council (NTC).
Earlier, Turkish
leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan met the country's new rulers in Tripoli, as he
continues a regional tour asserting Ankara's regional influence.
His visit comes a
day after British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas
Sarkozy became the first Western leaders to visit since Col Muammar Gaddafi was
ousted.
Mustafa Abdul Jalil,
leader of the interim authority, is to meet US President Barack Obama during
the UN General Assembly meeting in New York on Tuesday, US officials said.
The BBC's Ian
Pannell, in Tripoli, says the latest attacks suggest the battle for the
remaining contested areas of Libya could be entering a decisive phase.
It's been impossible
to confirm whether a new offensive is under way, but what is clear is that
pro-Gaddafi forces still have the capacity to respond. But concern is
growing for the tens of thousands of civilians still believed to be living in
both cities, and who have been surviving for weeks with limited access to food,
water and electricity, our correspondent adds.
Fighters loyal to
the NTC claim to have gone into northern areas of Bani Walid.
Reuters reports that
streets in the northern outskirts of the town were deserted and houses were
riddled with bullet holes.
Earlier, an unnamed
NTC commander told the BBC they had met some resistance but that his forces
were now advancing "to the heart of Bani Walid".
"As we were
about to advance, a clash took place with a surveillance crew made up of two or
three enemy vehicles. They shot at us but thank God, we were able to stop them
and defeat them."
Last week the
anti-Gaddafi forces said they were hours from taking Bani Walid, which has been
under siege for several weeks. But they were driven
back after encountering fierce resistance from Gaddafi loyalists. The BBC's Peter
Biles, outside Bani Walid, says soldiers at a checkpoint told him that the
driver of Col Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam has been captured.
Our correspondent
says smoke can be seen and explosions heard from the town. A number of
ambulances have been coming from Bani Walid carrying wounded.
One NTC fighter
described the centre of Bali Walid as a "ghost town", adding that 500
families were seen leaving in the last two days.
The fighters are
facing resistance in a handful of pro-Gaddafi bastions, including the southern
outpost of Sabha and Sirte, Col Gaddafi's birthplace.
'Ghost town'
Scores of trucks
mounted with machine guns and four tanks were seen on the road leading into
Sirte on Friday, Reuters reported. Anti-Gaddafi sources said that Sirte airport
had been taken from loyalists.
On Thursday evening,
fighters breached defences south and west of the city, about 8km from the
centre, but met heavy resistance, the NTC said.
An NTC spokesman
told the BBC that fighters had been forced to retreat about 2km to treat
casualties following their incursion into the outlying areas of the city, where
they reportedly clashed with snipers in a high-rise tower and an elite unit of
pro-Gaddafi troops.
The anti-Gaddafi
fighters advancing on Sirte - made up of battalions from Misrata, 200km to the
west - suffered at least four deaths and seven wounded, although a report
quoting the Misrata Military Council said 11 were killed and 34 hurt.
The UN General
Assembly has voted in favour of giving Libya's seat to the NTC, despite some
opposition from Latin American governments.
The 193-member
assembly voted 114 to 17, with 15 abstentions. Some African nations called for
a decision to be postponed.
The move allows
Libyan interim PM Jalil to attend a UN General Assembly meeting in New York
next week.
US officials said
President Obama would meet with Mr Jalil on the sidelines of the gathering on
Tuesday to discuss the NTC's plans for the post-Gaddafi era.
The meeting would
allow Mr Obama to "congratulate chairman Jalil on the success of the
Libyan people of ending the Gaddafi regime", US deputy security adviser
Ben Rhodes told AFP news agency.
Nato raids have
continued over Libya, striking against pro-Gaddafi military targets. Britain's Ministry
of Defence said aircraft had attacked sites in and around Sabha on Wednesday. The ministry said
targets included a military vehicle depot and a group of buildings which Nato
surveillance had confirmed were used by Gaddafi loyalists. And on Thursday the
RAF destroyed a tank, four rocket launchers and four armed vehicles around
Sirte, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, on
Friday, the NTC is to send a delegation to neighbouring Niger in an effort to
recover gold and cash believed to have been taken out of Libya by fleeing
Gaddafi loyalists.
At least 36 members
of the fugitive leader's inner circle, including relatives and generals, have
fled to Algeria and Niger since Tripoli fell to NTC forces last month.
Mr Abdul Jalil said
Libya would also ask for the handover of individuals wanted by the
International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC has indicted Col Gaddafi, his son
Saif al-Islam and his intelligence chief for crimes against humanity.
SOURCE: BBC
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