For four days, rebel forces have maintained their positions around the city of Ajdabiya, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) to the east, allowing airstrikes to weaken government forces, said Hassy. But on Friday, the fighters pushed in to reach Brega's university campus, just outside the town's oil port. He said that if rebels retake Brega, they will bring engineers to repair any damage to the refinery and oil facilities there.
I was frustrated when the loyalists hit Ajdabiya and penetrated into the city. I wrote that if the rebels couldn't at leas hold the perimeter of the city to keep loyalists exposed to the NATO air campaign, how could they win? It seems the rebels held firm enough to allow NATO to savage the loyalist spearhead. The loyalists may have decided that the price of taking Ajdabiya isn't worth it while Misrata hold out against loyalist attacks.
So the loyalists pulled back? But to where? Are they in Brega? Further west?
And won't the rebels simply get their nose bloodied again if they advance west into the teeth of loyalist defenders dug in waiting for them?
But for now, Ajdabiya is secure.
If I was moving loyalist pieces on the board, I'd prepare for a long civil war (which doesn't preclude a ceasefire to get NATO out of the picture) and focus on capturing Misrata and the rebel oil fields in the deep southeast which are outside of NATO's no-fly zone.
