Rival Libyan militias clash near military base

Rival militias clashed on the outskirts of the Libyan capital for a fourth day Sunday in the deadliest and most sustained violence since the capture and killing of Moammar Gaddafi last month.Fighters attacked each other with rockets, mortars and machine guns, witnesses said. The fighting, which has killed at least 13 people since late last week, raised new concerns about the ability of Libyas transitional government to disarm thousands of gunmen and restore order after an eight-month civil war.Libyas interim leader, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, said his National Transitional Council brought together elders from the feuding areas the coastal city of Zawiya and the nearby tribal lands of Warshefana over the weekend and that the dispute has been resolved. I want to assure the Libyan people that everything is under control, he said Sunday.However, as he spoke, fighting continued.Heavy gunfire and explosions of rocket-propelled grenades were heard over hours Sunday in the area between the Warshefana lands, about 18 miles (30 kilometres) west of Tripoli, and Zawiya, another 10 miles (15 kilometres) to the west. White smoke rose into the air.At one point, the two sides were battling for control of a major military camp of the ousted regime, said a fighter from Tripoli. The camp, once a base of elite forces commanded by one of Gaddafis sons, Khamis, is located on a highway midway between Tripoli and Zawiya.In all, at least 13 people were killed in the fighting, including four from Zawiya and nine from Warshefana, according to gunmen and a hospital doctor in Warshefana. More than 100 people from Warshefana were wounded since Saturday, said Dr. Mohammed Sawan, adding that casualties stemmed from gunshots as well as shrapnel from rockets and mortar shells.