Libya has witnessed more intense fighting as forces loyal to defiant Muammar Gaddafi continue to attack opposition positions across the country at the time Gaddafi vowed to continue fighting

Libya has witnessed more intense fighting as forces loyal to defiant Muammar Gaddafi continue to attack opposition positions across the country at the time Gaddafi vowed to continue fighting.
  
In a brief public appearance from Bab al-Azizia residential compound near the capital, Tripoli, Gaddafi railed at the US-led military assault only minutes after heavy anti-aircraft fire and loud explosions rocked the capital, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday. Two dozen more Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched from US and British submarines, bringing the total number of missiles targeting Libyan military equipment and air defense systems to 161 since the onset of military operations in the country.

"In the short term, we'll beat them, in the long term, we'll beat them," Gaddafi told his supporters. "We will win this battle."

Overnight, anti-aircraft fire erupted over the Libyan capital, Tripoli for the fourth successive night.

Pro-Gaddafi forces have pressed ahead with their assaults on the towns of Misrata, Ajdabiya and Zintan in the past 24 hours.

Pro-democracy fighters ranged against him are finding the going tough. Mostly outgunned and with little command structure, they have been left to run sporadic raids against Gaddafi's troops, before falling back to their original lines.

Around 106km south of Tripoli, Libyan pro-democracy fighters forced government troops to withdraw from the outskirts of Zintan, breaking a siege of the town.

A resident of Zintan told the Reuters news agency that at least 10 people were martyred in the bombardment by Gaddafi's forces.

In the previous night's operations, the coalition air campaign suffered its first loss with the crash of a US fighter jet in the rebel-held east. Both crew ejected safely.