Rebels retreat from Libya oil port under attack

Rebels says opposition fighters are retreating from the key oil port of Ras Lanouf along the coastal road leading to the capital after they came under heavy shelling from ground forces loyal to leader Muammar Gaddafi.

NATO planes flew over the zone of the heaviest fighting Wednesday and explosions were heard, indicating a new wave of airstrikes against Gaddafi's forces. NATO has intervened in the Libyan conflict with near daily airstrikes to weaken the regime's superior military power vis-a-vis the poorly trained and equipped ragtag rebel army. (AP)