The Battle of Zliten followed an unsuccessful uprising in Zliten, Libya, during the Libyan Civil War. It began on 21 July 2011 when elements of the National Liberation Army, part of the anti-Gaddafi forces seeking to overthrow the government of Muammar Gaddafi, moved into the city of Zliten after struggling over the course of the past several months to extend the frontline westward from Misrata, the second-largest city in rebel hands.
Background
The siege of Misrata ended in mid-May 2011 when rebel forces succeeded in breaking out of the city. However, the outskirts of Misrata continued to face bombardment from loyalist artillery. Loyalist forces attempted to push back into Misrata in June, but fierce fighting in the suburb of Dafniya and a rebel-assisted uprising in Zliten itself forced them to retreat. By 20 July, rebel fighters said they were just from Zliten.
The battle
Between 21 and 22 July, 16 rebels were killed and 126 wounded in fighting on Zliten's outskirts as opposition forces attempted to make a breakthrough toward the city center. However, loyalist forces stood firm. Government troops, backed up by tanks, managed to cut-off rebels in Suq Al Thulatha from the main opposition force and surround them. In more fighting on the outskirts of Zliten on 23 and 24 July, another 23 rebel fighters were wounded.
On 25 July, the Libyan government and local witnesses stated that a NATO air-strike targeted a small clinic in Zliten, causing the death of 11 civilians. Food storage buildings were also hit. The government showed the destroyed clinic and storage buildings to the international media. NATO claimed that these targets were a command and control node and a vehicle storage facility containing military vehicles. The same day, government forces destroyed a giant fuel tank in Misrata with Grad rockets causing most stations to close. Between 25 and 26 July, three rebels were killed and 11 others wounded in fighting on the frontline.
On 31 July, the rebel forces broke through the loyalist lines and captured abandoned Grad rocket launchers, as well as some 155mm artillery guns, cars and light weapons left behind by retreating loyalist forces. The rebels claimed to have entered Zliten but left the town shortly afterwards at the request of residents who feared artillery attacks by loyalist forces if the rebels took the area. 14 rebels were killed, with a further 20 injured. At least 40 loyalists surrendered to rebel forces the same day. The rebels, who were positioned at Suq al Talak, were considering bypassing Zliten and heading to Khoms, as they claimed to want to avoid fighting in the urban areas of Zliten itself. Overall, the rebels had advanced by 3 km, with an overall total of 27 killed in action, in the two days of fighting.
On 1 August, rebels claimed to had managed a 9 km incursion into Zliten, reportedly taking the town center and hospital. According to a rebel commander, the rebels were trying to convince the local Fowater tribe to allow them to stay and occupy the town. However, no other independent media reported on the claimed rebel victory. Al Jazeera stated that the situation in Zliten remained "fluid" and that there was heavy fighting in and around the town. Footage of Zliten with its inhabitants, denying that the city fell to the rebels, was aired on Libyan state TV.
On 2 August, Gaddafi forces attacked the rebels, reinforced by a brigade from Benghazi, in the farms north of Zliten, taking them by surprise and killing at least eight rebels and wounding 65. The local Fowater tribe has not agreed to let rebels take the town. Rebel commander Colonel Ahmed Omar Bani based in Benghazi said that fighting was taking place in Zliten's center, and they had not yet taken it. One of the opposition commanders leading the assault stated that earlier in the day rebels had made some gains on the eastern outskirts of Zliten, but following the loyalist counter-attack they were pushed back to their starting positions.
On 3 August, the Libyan government said that they pushed back the rebels to Dafniya after having beaten the rebels at the entrance to Zliten. The rebels denied these claims and stated that they had repelled the attempted offensive and had not retreated. Still, fighting appeared to be mostly centered in the eastern suburbs of the town, contradicting earlier rebel reports that they reached the city center.