ZINTAN, Libya – Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi on Wednesday retook a village south of the capital seized by rebels a week ago, delivering a set-back to rebel plans for a march on Tripoli.
The loss of the village of Qawalish, about 100km (60 miles) from the capital, underlined the faltering pattern of the rebel advances that has led some of the rebels' Western backers to push for a political solution to the conflict instead.
Fighters who pulled back to the nearby town of Zintan said pro-Qadhafi forces had swept through Qawalish from the east and reached as far as the checkpoint on the western edge of the village.
"We are fuelling up, preparing and, God willing, we are going to take it back," said one fighter in Zintan, who was at the wheel of a pickup truck with a heavy weapon mounted on the back.
Earlier, a Reuters team in Qawalish heard small arms fire and explosions from shells landing on the eastern edge of the village.
Several truckloads of rebel fighters sped west out of the village, away from the attacking government forces, with one shouting: "Go, go, it is not safe here!"
One rebel fighter said the fighting started after a rebel unit tried to advance east from Qawalish in the direction of the town of Garyan, which controls access to the main highway leading north into the capital Tripoli.
Another fighter, on the western edge of Qawalish, said: "We ran out of bullets and we had to pull out."
The conflict in Libya started out as a rebellion against Qadhafi's 41-year-rule. It has now turned into the bloodiest of the "Arab Spring" uprisings convulsing the region and has also embroiled Western powers in a prolonged war they had hoped would swiftly force Qadhafi out of power.
The Libyan leader is refusing to quit and the rebels have been unable to make a decisive breakthrough toward his stronghold in the capital despite support from Western warplanes.
DEAL "TAKING SHAPE"
France said on Tuesday a political way out of the conflict was now being looked at, and that Qadhafi's emissaries have been in contact with NATO members to say he is ready to leave power.
"A political solution is more than ever indispensable and is beginning to take shape," French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said in Paris.
But it was not obvious how negotiations could persuade Qadhafi to change his mind and relinquish power, especially at a time when the Western alliance ranged against him is showing signs of wavering.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is under pressure to find a quick solution. He gambled by taking a personal role in supporting the rebels, but is now anxious to avoid costly military operations running into the start of campaigning for the April 2012 presidential election.
Washington expressed doubts about peace overtures from Qadhafi emissaries. A State Department spokeswoman said the "messages are contradictory" and there is no clear evidence "Qadhafi is prepared to understand that its time for him to go."
"PATHETIC" CONTRIBUTIONS
Revealing fresh strains inside NATO about the cost and duration of the Libyan operation, British Defense Minister Liam Fox said other alliance members were not pulling their weight and described some states' contributions as "pathetic."
"The United States is willing to spend on defense, Britain is willing to spend on defense and deploy. Far too (many) of our European partners inside NATO are still trying to get a free ride, and they should regard Libya as a wake up call," Fox said.
"If they want the insurance policy, they should perhaps think about paying the premiums," he said at the Royal United Services Institute defense think-tank in London.
The rebel National Transitional Council, based in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, received a diplomatic boost on Wednesday when Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands recognized the council as Libyans' legitimate representative.
The Benelux countries join more than 20 countries who have already granted the council recognition.
