Libya rebels report fierce fighting in Misrata

MISRATA, Libya (Reuters) - Rebels said they fought fierce clashes with pro-government troops in the besieged Libyan city of Misrata on Wednesday, and eight people had been killed the previous day, mostly civilians.

Libya's third-largest city, the insurgents' last major stronghold in the west of the country, has been under siege for more than seven weeks.

Hundreds of people are believed to have been killed in the city of 300,000, where aid groups say the humanitarian situation is worsening with a lack of food and medical supplies. Thousands of stranded foreign migrant workers are awaiting rescue in the city's port area.

"Fierce fighting is taking place now on Nakl el Thequeel road which leads to the port. Gaddafi forces have been trying to control this road to isolate the city," Abdelsalam, a rebel spokesman, said.

"NATO warplanes are flying over Misrata but I do not know if there are strikes," he said by phone from the city. "NATO has been inefficient in Misrata. NATO has completely failed to change things on the ground."

He said "violent fighting" had also erupted on Tripoli Street, a main thoroughfare and another key battleground, in the morning.

"I'm hearing explosions now. A large number of snipers are positioned there," Abdelsalam said. "Civilians can not come out for fear of being shot dead."

Libyan officials say they are fighting militia with ties to al Qaeda bent on destroying the country, and deny government troops are shelling Misrata and its civilians.

MIGRANTS EVACUATED

Rebel claims of gains on the ground in recent days -- despite heavy shelling by government forces at times -- have not been verified independently.

The rebels "are now controlling 50 percent of the street. The other 50 percent is controlled by Gaddafi soldiers and snipers," another rebel spokesman, Reda, said, referring to Tripoli Street. Like Abdelsalam, he only gave his first name.

Reda said the area near the city's port -- a rebel-held zone that is a lifeline for trapped civilians and for badly needed food and medical supplies -- was calm on Wednesday morning and ships were able to dock.

"A Turkish ship carrying humanitarian aid arrived there about 30 minutes ago. Two Qatari ships were in yesterday. They evacuated around 1,500 Africans," Reda said, referring to migrant workers desperately trying to flee Misrata.

A said a ship bringing humanitarian aid to Misrata arrived in the port on Wednesday aiming to evacuate more stranded migrants, estimated to number around 5,000 in the port area.

"We don't know whether we will be able to reach them, however," said Jeremy Haslam of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in a statement. "If they are not close to the port, then it will be extremely hard to access them given the security conditions in the city."

The Geneva-based aid agency -- which said it had evacuated 2,100 people from Misrata in two earlier such missions -- said the Ionian Spirit ship carried 500 tonnes of food, medical supplies, and other aid as well as a team of 13 doctors.

(Additional reporting by Hamid Ould Ahmed in Algiers; Writing by Fredrik Dahl; Editing by Giles Elgood)

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