Rebels Rout Gadhafi Mercs in Failed Attack on Brega

Regime Attack on Key Central Oil City Fails

Though early reports from the city indicated that the attacks were a serious threat, more recent reports indicate that rebel forces have totally routed the mercenaries loyal to Moammar Gadhafi who attacked Brega.

Indeed, the attack on the central oil city was seen as one of the first major counterattacks by the regime, which have lost virtually the whole country at this point, and the hundreds of Gadhafi troops were chased out of town to a nearby university campus, which was quickly surrounded by rebel troops.

Rebels celebrated the repelling of the attack on the city, and reports from the ground indicate that the city has been entirely cleared of regime forces. The victory appears to have reinforced the belief amongst the protesters that the regime is on the way out.

The protest movement controls most of the oil producing regions in Libya, and has even restored some oil exports in the far east. Gadhafi’s forces control most of Tripoli, and is contesting rebel control in the west.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.