Reply #50: NATO: Gaddafi's forces to blame for oilfield fire [View All]

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NATO: Gaddafi's forces to blame for oilfield fire
Thu Apr 7, 2011 12:32pm GMT

BRUSSELS, April 7 (Reuters) - NATO blamed forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi for a fire in an oilfield in Libya on Thursday, and denied the Western military alliance had launched air strikes in the area.

The Libyan government's Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim told reporters that British planes had damaged an oil pipeline in a strike against the Sarir oilfield that killed three guards.

But rebels blamed Gaddafi forces, saying government attacks on three different installations in the east of the country had halted production of the oil they need to finance the eight-week uprising against Gaddafi.

"We are aware that pro-Gaddafi forces have attacked this area in recent days, which resulted in at least one fire at an oil facility north of Sarir," Canadian Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard, commander of NATO's operations in Libya, said in a statement.

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http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFBRU01143720110407