Second Battle of Benghazi
This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. (March 2011) |
Second Battle of Benghazi | |||||||
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Part of 2011 Libyan uprising | |||||||
File:Libyan MiG-23BN shoot down.jpg An anti-Gaddafi MiG-23 crashing to the ground during the Battle of Benghazi. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
Thousands of volunteers and militia | Unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
120 killed (including civilians),[4] 1 MiG-23 shot down (possibly by friendly fire)[5] |
25-28 killed,[6] 8-11 tanks and 2 APCs destroyed,[7] 1 tank captured[8] |
The Second Battle of Benghazi was an armed battle as part of the 2011 Libyan uprising between army units and militiamen loyal to Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi and Anti-Gaddafi forces.[9]
On March 18, Gaddafi's forces bypassed Ajdabiya by using the coastal roads instead of the roads directly linked with Ajdabiya, avoiding the need to capture Ajdabiya to proceed. By night the loyalist troops had positioned themselves within miles of Benghazi's two southern entry points, the western southern gate being called the west gate.
At 7:30AM local time on March 19, Gaddafi's forces began artillery shelling the city. At around 9:00AM local time they entered the city from west and south with tanks. However, by 2:30 PM local time the opposition fighters had repelled the first wave of loyalist forces out of the city.[10]
During the daytime battles, a rebel fighter jet crashed to the ground in the outskirts of Benghazi. The pilot remained in the plane until moments before the crash before ejecting, possibly to ensure it did not crash into a populated area, but was reported not to have survived the crash.[11] The cause of the crash is unclear, but may have been a catastrophic engine failure or friendly fire from rebel air-defences that had mistaken it for a loyalist plane.[5]
At around 4:00PM local time, French fighter jets entered Libya airspace to enforce the United Nations Security Council Resolution, including Benghazi. The fighter jets were being used for reconnaissance, and this was the first step in establishing a no fly zone and military strike operation.[10]
At 4:45PM local time, a French fighter jet fired the first shots of the foreign intervention, hitting a Gaddafi loyalist armored vehicle and destroying it.[10] Later, Al Jazeera reported that it believed French fighter jets had destroyed four of the regime's force's tanks; however, this was not confirmed by France.[12]
According to Al Jazeera, some citizens of Benghazi were leaving the city and moving northwest to other anti-Gaddafi held towns. New reports from Al Jazeera/Pentagon relations tell that American warships have launched cruise missiles at Libyan airfields, a multi-phase operation called Odyssey Dawn. After that, the US plans to focus on the skirmishes on the ground.[13]
On the morning of the next day, air attacks were conducted against a loyalist tank coloumn from 5:30AM for two hours. It was confirmed by a Reuters reporter that seven tanks and two armored personel carriers were destroyed in the French air strikes.[14]
Admiral Mullen of the United States announced on March 20, that they had stopped the regime's progression on Benghazi.[15]
Notable deaths
- Mohammed Nabbous, journalist and founder of Libya Alhurra TV[16]
References
- ^ "Libya live blog: U.S. poised to launch cruise missiles, Defense official says – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs". News.blogs.cnn.com. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Battle for control rages in Libya - Africa". Al Jazeera English. 2011-03-15. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Libye : "une vingtaine d'appareils" engagés" (in French). Europe1. 2011-03-19. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Gadhafi vows 'long war' after US, allies strike Libyan targets from air and sea". StarTribune.com. Retrieved 2011-03-20.
- ^ a b Natalie Fahy (19 March 2011). "Allied Forces Begin Military Action Against Libya". Sky News. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
- ^ 2 mercenary infiltrators killed,[1] 9[2]-12[3] killed in street fighting, 14 killed in tank coloumn[4], total of 28 reported killed
- ^ "Gadhafi vows 'long war' after US, allies strike Libyan targets from air and sea". StarTribune.com. Retrieved 2011-03-20.
- ^ "The Battle of Benghazi: City seemed lost to Gaddafi forces but was retaken by rebels". 2011-03-20.
- ^ "Allied planes fly over Libya as Gaddafi hits Benghazi - Yahoo! News". News.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ a b c "Libya Live Blog - March 19 | Al Jazeera Blogs". Blogs.aljazeera.net. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Gaddafi forces approach Benghazi". Al Jazeera English. 19 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
- ^ "French jets attack Gaddafi targets - Europe". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Live Blog Libya". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Gadhafi vows 'long war' after US, allies strike Libyan targets from air and sea". StarTribune.com. Retrieved 2011-03-20.
- ^ http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/africa/libya-live-blog-march-20-0
- ^ "Online journalist Mohammed Nabbous killed in Libya". The Spy Report. Media Spy. 20 March 2011. Retrieved 20 March 2011.