Nato operations chief denounces Gaddafi snipers 'firing from mosque roofs'

The city has been under siege for seven weeks and hundreds of people have been killed or injured.

The situation has escalated into a humanitarian crisis as food, water and medical supplies ran out.

"The regime's forces have used snipers on top of mosques, they are hiding beside hospitals, they have got their armoured vehicles in schools and, in fact, they have even taken their uniforms off," Lieutenant-General Charles Bouchard told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Lt Gen Bouchard described the tactics as "immoral" and "underhanded".

But he added that he believed the suffering in Misurata would be much worse were it not for the presence of coalition forces.

Yesterday night, 1,000 wounded Libyans and foreign workers were evacuated from the city and taken to the relative safety of Benghazi.

Many were suffering from serious injuries including shrapnel wounds and limb amputations.

It is estimated that over 4,000 people are still awaiting rescue in a port area in Misurata.

The British government has announced it will provide funds to the International Organisation for Migration to charter ships to take collect them.

Yesterday, the UK's International Development Secretary, Andrew Mitchell, met leading UN bodies in New York to discuss Libya's deteriorating humanitarian situation.

He said: "These evacuations will take them to safety and help reduce the demand in Misratah for the very limited supplies of food, water and medical supplies available."

He added: "In conflict-affected areas across western Libya, there's a shortage of doctors - most have no training in war surgery - few nurses, overwhelmed staff, and weak or non-existent post-operative care.

"British support will mean medical supplies and highly trained teams get into the worse-hit areas, which could mean the difference between life and death for many people."

The UN has won permission from Libya's government to set up a humanitarian base in Tripoli to try and create a land route to Misurata and elsewhere.

But it has been given no guarantees of a ceasefire to get aid in.

Donatella Rovera, a researcher for Amnesty International UK, arrived in Misratah last week and said thousands of aid workers and civilians were stranded and under fire.

"Shelling is happening all around me," she said.

"There is very little help coming in and there is no way for the people of Misurata to get out of here. They are stuck. 

"There are only a few boats arriving, which can only take away a few of the most injured patients.

"It is so dangerous here, it is so unsafe. There is some aid getting through, some food and medicine, but it is not enough."

The Ministry of Defence said RAF Tornado and Typhoon planes destroyed five vehicles over the weekend, including three battle tanks, in the Misratah and Ajdabiya areas.