A Libyan rebel fighter loads his vehicle-mounted rocket launcher at a checkpoint in Bir Ayyed July 1, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]

On the battlefield, both sides continued to slug it out in a fight which has seen many casualties but, for the past few weeks, only small parcels of land changing hands.

A rebel spokesman in Misrata, about 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli, said two rebel fighters had been killed on the outskirts of the city, where they are struggling to push back government forces and advance on the capital.

"The (pro-Gadhafi) brigades heavily bombarded Dafniyah and Bourouia last night. Two revolutionaries were martyred and 12 others wounded," the spokesman, who identified himself as Oussama, said from Misrata.

On the front closest to Tripoli, in the Western Mountains region, NATO aircraft dropped leaflets on the government-controlled town of Garyan, warning residents to stay in their homes, said a rebel spokesman called Mohammed.

The alliance last week launched air strikes on the town, which lies on the edge of rebel-held territory.

The rebel spokesman also said there was fighting with heavy weapons on Saturday between rebels and government forces around the village of Ghezaya, in the mountains near the border with Tunisia.

African peace plan

Western governments and the rebels had hoped that African Union leaders would use a summit this weekend to join international calls for Gadhafi to quit.

But they did not do that, and also agreed that the African Union's 53 member states would not execute the international arrest warrant for Gadhafi, according to a document seen by Reuters.

While that may irk the West, it does leave open the possibility that Gadhafi could end the conflict by opting for exile somewhere in Africa.

Libyan rebel fighters rest in a culvert near the road which runs from Bir Ayyed to Bir Ghanam July 1, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]