Gaddafi troops move into heart of key oil port

Tripoli: Forces loyal to the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi came to the oil port of Ras Lanuf in tanks and boats of the night as they stepped up their counter-insurgency in the heart.
Militant, Ibrahim al-Alwani said that he and his comrades still in Ras Lanuf saw government troops in the city center.
"I've seen, maybe 150 men and three tanks," he said. "I hear the collision."
Another rebel reported clashes with the troops who landed Gaddafi in Ras Lanuf on the boat.
To the west of Tripoli, the street battles reported in Zawiyah, which changed hands several times in recent days. Residents described scenes of carnage, with women and children among the dead.
Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam said the rebels on Thursday, they face a full-scale assault to crush their three-week-old uprising.
"It is time for action. We are moving now," he said in an interview. "The time right now ... We gave them two weeks (for talks)."
As a military momentum appeared to turn against the insurgents, foreign powers were divided over how to end turmoil and the force Gadhafi.
Gulf Arab countries said that Gaddafi's government is no longer valid and France and Britain jointly called on the European Union to recognize the rebel Council based in Benghazi.
Despite a flurry of meetings, foreign governments do not go closer to deciding on action. U.S. and NATO chief questioned the wisdom of introducing the no-fly zones without full international support and legal justification.
African Union rejects any form of foreign intervention, but said it was sending a delegation of five heads of state to Libya soon to try to arrange a truce in hostilities. (Reuters)