Libyan rebels, residents quit Ras Lanuf, fear attack
Residents of the eastern Libyan town of Ras Lanuf, fearing assault by government forces, were leaving in cars laden with belongings on Monday and rebels said they had moved weapons into the desert for safekeeping.
Reporters evacuated Ras Lanuf's main hotel before dawn after staff warned they could not guarantee their safety, and came across only a small number of visibly agitated rebels at two checkpoints en route out of the oil port to the east. "We heard our positions would be bombed, so we took our weapons away," one rebel told Reuters on the dusty, windswept highway. Another said: "We took them out into the desert." (Reuters)
