The Battle for Libya: Pro-Gadhafi Forces Retake Libyan Town

Gadhafi may be long gone, but his legacy lives on. Libya’s ersatz government is falling apart at the seams, as remnant pro-Gadhafi forces took back the town of Bani Walid today.

Protests have been raging for some time now, though not in the anti-Gadhafi way that we have come to expect. Rather, these protests are aimed at the interim government that took his place. After months of demonstrations across the country, government offices in Benghazi were ransacked yesterday prompting the resignation of deputy chief Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga, who said it was “for the good of the country.”

Council chief Mustafa Abdul Jalil, who was in the office during the raid, was less apt to personal or professional resignation, saying, “We are going through a political movement that can take the country to a bottomless pit,” he said. “The people have not given the government enough time. … Give them a chance, at least two months.”

Today, Gadhafi loyalists fought government forces, taking back the town of Bani Walid, a fight that injured 30 pro-government soldiers. Said pro-government forces are currently pinned down with no sign of help to come.

“We’re out of the frying pan into the fire,” said the spokesman for the Bani Walid council. “We’ve been warning about this for the past two months.”

Roughly 150 pro-Gadhafi soldiers carried out the highly-organized attack , and government reinforcements are on route with orders to stay until they know whether or not the fight represents rival clan fighting, or comprises a greater threat to the Libyan transitional council.

Is Libya on the right track to stability, or is there too much conflict for functional peace and rebuilding?