Cairo: An attack by Libyan military forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi on a weapons dump near Benghazi in rebel-controlled eastern Libya killed 17 people on Friday, Al Jazeera television reported. There were no further details.
Libyan warplane strikes outside military base
Ajdabiyah: A Libyan warplane bombed just beyond the walls of a military base used to store massive amounts of ammunition and now held by rebels in the eastern town of Ajdabiyah on Friday but did not hit it, rebels said.
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"We were sat here, heard the jet, then the explosion and the earth shook. They fell outside the walls," Hassan Faraj, who was guarding an ammunitions store at the Haniyeh base, told reporters.
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's air force attacked the facility earlier this week, hitting in and around the base but not striking anything of significance.
Warplanes raided eastern towns on Thursday after launching a ground assault on Brega on Wednesday that rebels repulsed.
'Damage for miles around'
Protesters guarding the base have expressed fears that a hit on the weapons dumps there would cause damage for miles around.
Ahmad Jabreel, an aide to ex-justice minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil who heads the council now based in Benghazi, said air strikes to set up a "no-fly" zone were needed to help rebels topple Gaddafi, who has refused to step down despite a revolt.
The council has called for UN-backed air strikes against what they say are African mercenaries fighting for Gaddafi.
Libyan officials denied air force warplanes had bombed civilians.
Saif Al Islam, Gaddafi's son, has said an air attack earlier this week on Brega, another rebel-held town, was designed to scare off militia fighters and gain control of oil installations.
The Pentagon has said there was evidence that Gaddafi forces were dropping ordnance but it was not clear if warplanes were bombing rebel forces.
Gaddafi troops deploy ahead of Tripoli protests
Fighters loyal to Muammar Gaddafi are setting up checkpoints around the capital ahead of planned anti-government protests Friday.
Internet services, which have been spotty throughout Libya's upheaval, appeared to be halted completely in Tripoli and Benghazi, the opposition's stronghold in the east.
Gaddafi opponents have called for protests in Tripoli after noon Friday prayers. Last Friday, protesters were attacked by pro-Gaddafi militiamen.
Several hours before prayers, streets were eerily empty, with few residents out.
In the restive district of Tajoura, one police vehicle was parked several blocks away from the main mosque and several militiamen manned a checkpoint at the district's entrance, searching passing vehicles.
