Fighting in key city as Gaddafi clings on

The forces trying to overthrow Colonel Muammar Gaddafi launched a surprise assault on the coastal city on Saturday, forcing the closure of the main road linking the capital Tripoli to the Tunisian border.

The rebels now claim to control 70% of the city, though there are reports that Gaddafi loyalists are still in the main square, and snipers are making it difficult for the rebels to gain more ground.

Loud explosions could be heard 50km away in Tripoli, as government troops fired Grad rockets at rebel positions.

The city is not only strategically important because of its proximity to the capital, it also contains the last major oil refinery still held by the regime.

Heavy gunfire could be heard around the refinery, but most of the city is now flying rebel red, green and black flags.

An Associated Press reporter in the town said that much of Zawiyah appeared quiet on Wednesday.

The city was largely deserted and shops were boarded up, with clusters of rebel fighters in the streets.

Medical workers at a hospital on the outskirts said three people had been killed and 35 injured on Tuesday, most of them civilians, as Gaddafi's troops shelled the town and snipers fired from its rooftops.

The advances mean that the National Transitional Council has little interest in peace talks.

In Tripoli, a news conference broadcast on state TV played down reports that the regime's days were numbered.

Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim told Libyan reporters: "Be aware of the media campaign which is trying to make the rebels bigger than they are.

"Some foreign politicians have said this regime's days are finished and it has weeks left. They have been saying this for six months and we are still here."