Libyan rebels win battle in west, push on from east

Libyan rebels who are part of the forces against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi hold a pre-Gaddafi flagas they celebrate after fighting against troops loyal to Gadhafi and capturing the oil town of Ras Lanuf, eastern Libya, Saturday, March 5, 2011. Rebel fighters have captured the key oil port of Ras Lanouf from the forces of Muammar Gaddafi, in their first military victory in a potentially long, westward march from the east of the country to the capital Tripoli hundreds of miles to the west.

Zawiyah: Libyan forces closed in on the western town of Zawiyah on Saturday after rebels drove them from the centre in fierce fighting, while in the east, opponents of Muammar Gaddafi pushed towards his home town.

"They entered Zawiyah at six in the morning with heavy forces, hundreds of soldiers with tanks. Our people fought back ...We have won for now and civilians are gathering in the square," said Yousuf Shagan, the rebel force spokesman in Zawiyah, west of the capital Tripoli.