Battle of Misrata The Battle of Misrata ( ) , also known as the Siege of Misrata , was a battle of the 2011 Libyan civil war . It was fought between troops loyal to the government of Muammar Gaddafi , and anti - Gaddafi rebels who held Misrata , the third largest city in Libya . Following the initial stages of the uprising , the Libyan government took back most towns in the west of the country , leaving Misrata the only major city under rebel control in Tripolitania . The city soon became the site of one of the war ' s major battles . The suffering of Misrata ' s citizens gained worldwide attention . The intensity of fighting , and its importance both strategic and symbolic , earned the battle notice as ' Libya ' s Stalingrad ' . During the siege , the city saw very heavy fighting , came under daily assaults and shelling , and was at times cut off from its seaport , leaving no escape route for Misrata ' s inhabitants . Following UN military intervention in the civil war , NATO declared that breaking the encirclement of the city was its top priority . It ranks as one of the longest and bloodiest battles of the entire war . In late April and early May , rebel counterattacks successfully retook the city , culminating in the fall of the airport and nearby military airbase on 11 May . Anti - government demonstrators numbering a few dozen began staging protests on 17 February ( other reports indicate 19 February ) . Several protesters were arrested , triggering larger protests , which government forces responded to by opening fire on demonstrators . These confrontations soon escalated into general armed violence . By 23 February , the opposition had driven government forces out of Misrata , and were in full control of the city . Six to 14 protesters were killed in the clashes , and another 200 wounded . The battle . Rebels capture the city ; battle at the air base . On 24 February , Gaddafi loyalists armed with rocket - propelled grenades and mortar s fired at a group of opposition fighters guarding the airport . As the fighting began , officers from an air force school near the airport mutinied and helped the opposition attack an adjacent military air base . The officers then disabled fighter jets at the base to prevent them from being used against the uprising . The rebels also used a captured ZPU - 4 anti - aircraft gun against the loyalists . On the evening of the second day of the battle , Gaddafi ' s forces , supported by tanks , succeeded in retaking part of the military air base . Fighting at the base continued until after midnight , leaving 22 dead . At least one loyalist tank was destroyed during the two days of fighting at the airport . On 28 February , it was reported that opposition forces had shot down and captured the crew of a government helicopter which had been attacking the rebel - held radio station . Also , a new attempt by government troops to advance on the air base was repelled by opposition fighters . No casualties occurred during the fighting , although eight loyalist soldiers were captured . On 3 March , two Libyan Red Crescent medics were wounded by loyalist fire while trying to retrieve the body of a man killed near a government base three days earlier . It was reported that the rebels were running low on food and ammunition , and that government troops had secured the air base and the military air academy on the outskirts of Misrata . Rebel ambush in the city center . 6 March On 6 March , pro - Gaddafi forces attempted to retake Misrata , and sent soldiers supported by seven tanks and 25 technicals into the city . The rebels allowed the government forces to enter the city , so that they could be surrounded and captured . Three tanks penetrated to the city center and became trapped as fighting began . According to local witnesses , the rebels fended off the attack , with twenty - one rebels and civilians killed , including a 3 - year - old boy . Twenty - two of Gaddafi ' s soldiers were reported killed , and another 20 captured . Khamis Brigade arrives ; inter - loyalist fighting . 12 – 13 March On 12 March a new government attack got underway , and loyalist forces were reported to be 10 - 15 kilometers from the city center . The attack was led by the Khamis Brigade , which had won the First Battle of Zawiya two days earlier , but their advance came to a halt when 32 soldiers , one of them reportedly a general , broke off from the rest of the force and joined the rebels in the city . The next day , government tanks were still advancing , fighting rebels on the outskirts of the city . Tank shells had struck inside the city , hitting a mosque and an apartment building . On 16 March , artillery pounded Misrata as a new round of fighting commenced . The rebels claimed to have destroyed 16 loyalist tanks and captured 20 government soldiers . None of the claims were independently confirmed . Eighteen opposition members were killed and 20 wounded during the clashes , while doctors in Misrata reported that 60 - 80 government soldiers had been killed in the day ' s fighting . Artillery and tank attacks . On the night of 17 March , government troops began an artillery and tank attack which continued well into the next day . On 18 March a cease - fire was announced by the government , following the United Nations Security council resolution on authorisation for military intervention by foreign countries ; the attack on Misrata , however , continued for at least another four hours . It was not known if this was deliberate , or if orders had simply not gotten to the troops in the city yet . By the time the cease - fire was ordered , government troops had already breached rebel defenses on the outskirts of the city and were in Misrata itself , with , according to the rebels , tanks firing randomly and troops conducting house - to - house searches for opposition fighters . Video from the city itself showed heavily damaged streets and at least six destroyed tanks and armored personnel carriers . City is breached and fighting continues . On the morning of 19 March , loyalist sniper and artillery fire left nine dead in the city . The same day , Tomahawk cruise missiles launched by US and British naval vessels struck a government - held air base and military academy outside the city , causing an undetermined amount of damage . On 20 March , Gaddafi ' s armour drove into the city center , and heavy fighting continued throughout the day . Four loyalist tanks were seen patrolling the city . On 21 March , 40 people were reportedly killed and 300 wounded by gunfire and artillery shelling as loyalist forces attempting to clear the city of opposition forces . The city ' s main road , Tripoli Street , leading from the highway on the southwestern outskirts to the city center , was secured by 200 government troops supported by three tanks . The center of the city was cleared of rebel forces . During the day , unarmed rebel supporters attempted to stage a demonstration , but were fired upon as soon as they approached government troops . That night , a government spokesperson stated that the city was under control of forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi . There was no independent confirmation , and the claim was denied by an opposition spokesperson in Misrata . Video from fighting during the previous days showed six destroyed government tanks and armored personnel carriers . On 22 March , artillery shelling and sniper fire in Misrata continued . In the earlier hours of the day , five people , including four children , were killed by an artillery round as they tried leaving their home . Gaddafi ' s forces concentrated around an abandoned hospital which they used as a base . Overnight , Gaddafi ' s forces managed to capture the main hospital in Misrata , and positioned snipers on top of it . The opposition requested a hospital ship to be sent to Misrata ' s port , the only part of the city still in firm rebel control , to treat the injured , as the injured no longer had a place to go . In the early hours of 23 March , coalition forces began launching air - strikes against pro - Gaddafi forces in and around Misrata . According to witnesses , Gaddafi ' s forces stopped shelling the city after two NATO air - strikes . Opposition members claimed that the strikes destroyed numerous loyalist tanks near the captured hospital and on the outskirts of the city ; the next day , however , witnesses confirmed that only tanks on the outskirts had been bombed , the damage being unknown , while those in the city had not been hit . Coalition air - strikes ; tanks continue to advance . Gaddafi ' s forces left the main hospital , then returned in the evening with tanks and artillery weapons , and began bombarding the surrounding area . Troops were said to be advancing on the hospital where most of the opposition wounded were being treated . That night , the regime sent warships to capture Misrata ' s port . The next day there were unconfirmed reports that the warships had retreated from the port , which had then been re - secured by the rebels . The same day , a Libyan Air Force Soko G - 2 " Galeb " was destroyed by French fighter jets at an air base near Misrata . A French armed forces spokesman confirmed that the plane had been destroyed by an AASM air - to - ground missile just after it had landed . Rebels in Misrata also claimed to have killed 30 pro - Gaddafi snipers , and to have reached the town center . On 25 March the city was hit by more shelling . That evening , about a dozen loyalist tanks appeared on Tripoli Street and fired on rebel positions before retreating to avoid Coalition planes . There was ongoing confusion as to whether the port had been recaptured by the rebels or was still being blocked by loyalist ships . On 26 March , Gaddafi ' s forces launched a large - scale attack on Misrata , bombarding the city with mortars and tanks and allegedly sending in foreign mercenaries . Witnesses described the situation as " very , very dire " . As on previous days , firing stopped and the tanks pulled back to cover when coalition planes appeared overhead . The French Ministry of Defense claimed that their fighters destroyed five G - 2 Galeb ground attack jets and two Mi - 35 attack helicopters at the Misrata airbase while they were preparing to take part in offensive operations against rebels in the city . Gaddafi ' s forces resumed artillery , mortar , and tank shelling of the city the next day , 27 March . Nine people were reported killed and 23 wounded as loyalist troops advanced on the city from the west . In the evening , as previously , the fighting stopped so loyalist forces could avoid coalition air - strikes . On 28 March , at noon , Gaddafi ' s forces began bombarding the city again . Later , a rebel source confirmed that loyalist troops had gained control of part of the city , effectively dividing Misrata into government - held and rebel - held areas . During the fighting , rebels damaged two loyalist tanks . Just before evening , international journalists arriving from Tripoli confirmed that Misrata ' s suburbs , including Tripoli Street , were under government control . A military officer stated that there were still about 100 rebels left , and that fighting was concentrated around the center of the town . CNN ' s Nic Robertson reported that the streets of Misrata were largely empty , except for about 100 pro - Gaddafi supporters demonstrating , and a strong military presence . Al Jazeera ' s Anita McNaught said that the furthest point in Misrata that she and other international journalists were taken to was the south side of Tripoli Street , one and a half miles from the city ' s center , from where gunfire could be heard . The British Ministry of Defense claimed that their planes hit and destroyed two loyalist tanks and two armored vehicles near the city . On 29 March , loyalist forces , including the Khamis Brigade , swept through the city , securing the western and northwestern parts . Witnesses reported that government troops were forcing people from their homes en masse . A member of the rebel command in the city claimed that loyalist forces were killing and wounding civilians indiscriminately . During the night , heavy street fighting occurred in the city ' s Az - Zawaabi district , in which nine rebels were killed and five wounded . Battles for the city center and port . On 30 March a CNN news crew managed to get into Misrata , and recorded scenes of heavy fighting in the city . Their report showed heavily damaged streets , a destroyed government armored personnel carrier , a government tank being hit by an RPG , and wounded civilians in the main hospital . On 31 March a local doctor , who was a member of the opposition , claimed that Gaddafi ' s forces only retained control of Tripoli Street ; this claim , however , could not be confirmed . Gaddafi forces were using artillery to bombard Misrata , according to a rebel spokesman , who further stated that 20 civilians had been killed the previous day when houses were hit by shells . On 1 April , Gaddafi ' s forces attempted to advance toward the city center via Tripoli Street . Their attack was repelled , after which heavy mortar , artillery , tank , and RPG fire hit the center . A doctor in the city stated that the port had come under loyalist control , and that the rebels were holding out only in the center of the city ; nevertheless , it seemed part of the port was still in rebel hands , as a fishing trawler from Malta was able to unload much needed supplies for the besieged city . During the day , a Coalition air - strike hit and destroyed a loyalist ammunition convoy consisting of a tank and several military trucks . On 2 April , spokespersons from the rebels ' side gave a comprehensive report via video . Due to the difficulty of getting journalists into Misrata , little in their report could be independently confirmed . The rebels said that NATO airstrikes that day focused mainly on the Abdul Raouf neighborhood , in the southern part of Misrata . They also said they had fought Gaddafi ' s forces in Souwa , the western part of Misrata , where they claimed to have destroyed one tank and killed six loyalist soldiers . According to the rebels , snipers had left the insurance building , from which they had been sniping for days , and relocated to the courthouse . The rebels had clashed with the snipers as they tried to move , reportedly killing two of them . The rebels then surrounded the courthouse from three sides . At 3 : 30 PM ships from Qatar docked at the port to deliver supplies ; a Turkish ship also docked , and took approximately 250 wounded people from Misrata to be treated in Turkey . The arrival of the Turkish ship was the only piece of information to be independently confirmed . On 3 April , according to a witness in the city ' s Al Qalaa section , the rebels attacked Gaddafi ' s forces in the Taghma area at around five in the morning , forcing them to retreat to the Jfara district after a five - hour battle . Subsequently , Gaddafi ' s forces in Jfara fired Grad missiles into the Al Qalaa neighborhood , destroying civilian structures and causing residents to flee . The rebels claimed to have killed 26 loyalist troops in the fighting , among them 9 snipers . A rebel spokesman was quoted as saying that the central city hospital had been bombarded , resulting in one person being killed and 22 wounded . Meanwhile , 250 of the 450 + wounded waiting at Misrata ' s hospital were taken from the city aboard the ship M / F " Ankara " , which had also delivered medical supplies . A ship belonging to Doctors Without Borders also managed to take 71 wounded from Misrata to Tunis for treatment . In the evening , Gaddafi ' s troops shelled the port , as they had done on the previous few days , in an attempt to destroy the rebels ' last lifeline to the outside world . Around 3 : 00 AM on 4 April , a loyalist tank entered the city ' s outskirts and headed for the port area . The rebels confronted it , and after a two - hour battle the tank turned back . On this day , at least five people were killed and five critically injured by artillery shelling . On 5 April , Interior Minister and Major General Abdul Fatah Younis , who had defected to the rebels , criticized NATO , saying it was not doing enough while civilians were dying every day . Younis stated that sewage was being re - routed into water wells by Gaddafi ' forces , and that water supplies were running desperately short . On 7 April , loyalist artillery caused the port to be temporarily closed by the rebels for all incoming ships . By this point , the rebels were only in firm control of the northern and eastern parts of the city , and the port area . British relief and humanitarian aid ships carrying vital supplies for Misrata managed to dock and unload at the port . At the same time , rebels battled snipers on Tripoli Street , where they claimed to have been able to drive some of them back . On 8 April , loyalist forces conducted an attack against the eastern part of the city , advancing into the Esqeer district . After heavy fighting , they pulled back . At the same time , rebels said , they had cut off government snipers in the city center from the rest of their forces by barricading Tripoli Street with large shipping containers filled with sand and stone . They also claimed to have blown up the lower levels of the multi - storey Ta ' ameen building , thus trapping dozens of loyalist snipers in the upper levels . According to the rebels , the loyalists responded to the attempted blockade of Tripoli Street by deploying one or two tanks on the main road . Later in the day , loyalist troops conducted another attack , this time attempting to take full control of the Nakl al - Theqeel road , which links central Misrata to its port on the northeastern outskirts of the city . The fighting for the road continued well into the evening . UNICEF confirmed that children had been targeted and killed by pro - Gaddafi snipers throughout the battle . The European Union stated that it was prepared to launch a humanitarian mission in Misrata which might require deployment of ground forces , but only with UN backing . On 9 April , loyalist forces continued their assault on the city , advancing from three directions . Tripoli Street , the port road , and the Kharouba neighbourhood came under attack . The loyalist offensive was ultimately repelled , at the cost of a reported 18 - 30 opposition fighters killed . The same day , a government - minded tour of international reporters to Misrata came under rebel sniper fire , in which one military officer guiding the reporters was wounded . On the outskirts of the city the reporters saw at least two tanks which appeared to have been destroyed by RPG fire . An anonymous NATO official claimed that coalition forces had destroyed 15 loyalist tanks and damaged nine more in and around Misrata over the previous two days , of which five were destroyed by British planes . There was no independent confirmation of the claims , though footage of one tank being destroyed had surfaced . The next day , witnesses confirmed more tank fire in the city . On 11 April , rebels reported that the city was under heavy attack , with more than 140 shells landing in an area near the city center . They also stated that Gaddafi ' s forces were , for the first time , using Grad multiple rocket launchers in the city . Heavy fighting took place at the eastern entrance and in the city center . Libyan state TV showed a pro - Gaddafi rally on the outskirts of the city , and six people were killed during the day by shelling , including a child . On 12 April , news outlets aired video of the destruction on Tripoli Street , showing a destroyed tank , buildings heavily damaged or destroyed , and the road on fire . The rebels announced that they had repelled two attacks by Gaddafi ' s forces and continued to hold their positions , notably on the road in the direction of the port . On 13 April , rebels claimed to have pushed Gaddafi ' s forces on the western front 10 km back to Abu Ruwaya , although these reports couldn ' t be verified due to the lack of journalists . Rebels also claimed to have captured 12 loyalist soldiers in fighting on the main street . On 14 April , rebels claimed that pro - Gaddafi forces had fired dozens of Grad rockets on a residential area near the port , killing at least 23 civilians and wounding 100 ; they also said that five civilians had been killed and 37 wounded in rocket attacks the previous day . Rebel spokesmen expressed fear of a massacre in Misrata if NATO did not intervene strongly . Also on the 14th , artillery fire prevented a Qatari ship from docking in the port . The harbor was later closed , due to extensive damage from some 200 Grad missiles hitting the port area . On 15 April , loyalist forces began their heaviest attack on the city yet . Rebels said that government forces shelled the road to the port during the morning , killing at least eight people . From dawn to dusk government troops pounded the city with tanks , artillery , Grad rockets , mortars , and , allegedly , cluster bombs . ( The use of cluster bombs , which are banned under international law in civilian - populated zones , was also claimed by Human Rights Watch . ) Troops and tanks entered the city and heavy street fighting raged . For three hours during the day a loyalist helicopter was seen flying over the city , in defiance of the no - fly zone , spotting targets for the artillery . The loyalists battled their way to the city center and took control of it , while the rebels clung to the port area and set up checkpoints around one neighborhood where a net of government snipers was positioned . Rebel - held neighborhoods were becoming increasingly crowded with civilians fleeing advancing loyalist troops . In all , 16 people were reported killed during the day . Heavy shelling continued on 16 April , with rockets hitting the industrial area close to the port killing six people , including three rebels , and wounding more than 48 . More video from the city showed rebels using a mobile anti - tank gun against loyalists , a street in flames , and a loyalist combat engineering vehicle destroyed . Rebel gains , loyalist withdrawal . On 17 April , street fighting and shelling by Gaddafi forces killed 25 people , both rebels and civilians , and wounded 100 . During the day ' s fighting , the rebels managed to evict loyalist forces from the shoe factory , from which they had been bombarding residential areas in the city , and later burned it down so that it couldn ' t be used again by government troops . They attempted to expand their territory around a central produce market , and claimed that they had destroyed several tanks and pushed Gaddafi ' s forces from Tripoli Street to the Al Gharyan neighborhood in southern Misrata , leaving most of the nearby main road in rebel hands . Meanwhile , video emerged of 22 loyalist T - 55 tanks destroyed or damaged , presumably by NATO air - strikes , at a compound in Misrata . Given that the tanks in the video were bunched together , and were old models , the possibility exists that they were non - operational before the strikes . On 18 April , the European Union was contemplating the deployment of up to 1 , 000 troops for a non - combat ground mission in Misrata , and was reportedly waiting for a non - resolution UN approval . The death toll of 17 April ' s artillery attack had risen to 25 , as some of those injured died from their wounds . Four civilians also died on 18 April from artillery attacks . In the meantime , killings of unarmed migrant workers by rebels were being reported . A British reporter ( Kim Sengupta of " The Independent " ) , who had just arrived at Benghazi by sea from Misrata , described the sufferings of large numbers of migrant workers trapped in Misrata in a broadcast on BBC Radio 4 . After mentioning casualties during attacks by government forces , he said that some migrant workers " have also died in clashes with the rebel fighters . They were protesting about their conditions , demanding that they be repatriated , and on a couple of occasions this has led to the rebels opening fire and people dying . " During the day ' s fighting , at least one loyalist Shilka armored anti - aircraft vehicle was destroyed . By 20 April , half of Tripoli Street was reported to be under loyalist control while the other half was in rebel hands . Later in the day it was reported that the rebels from the east had managed to insert a ten - man team with 164 anti - tank weapons into the city . Rebel Kamal Hodaifa reported that the team ' s purpose was to train rebels in anti - tank tactics . Two photojounalists , Tim Hetherington ( known for co - directing the Oscar - nominated documentary " Restrepo " ) and Chris Hondros , were killed in a mortar attack on 20 April while photographing rebel soldiers close to the front lines . In addition to the two journalists , seven Libyan civilians and one Ukrainian doctor were killed on the 20th . On the morning of 21 April , three rebels were killed and 17 wounded by mortar fire . The rebels managed to take the local insurance building , the tallest building in the city , which snipers had been using as a platform . Of the seven snipers that were in the building , two were killed , three were captured , and two escaped . Several destroyed government tanks were around the building . Al Jazeera Arabic reported that the rebels were in control of most of the western part of Misrata . The Guardian and the BBC could confirm that northwestern Misrata was under rebel control , but said the southwestern part was still in loyalist hands . Later in the day , rebels attempting to attack a building occupied by loyalist soldiers were ambushed by government troops in the surrounding buildings , leaving four rebels dead . In all , nine rebels were killed during the day . On 22 April , the deputy foreign minister of Gaddafi ' s government stated that the Libyan army would be withdrawing from Misrata . He was quoted as saying that " the situation in Misrata will be dealt with by the tribes around Misurata and Misurata ' s residents and not by the Libyan army " . This came after the rebels managed to eliminate Gaddafi ' s forces from several locations near the city center , which loyalist forces had been holding for several weeks . On 23 April , the Libyan army began withdrawing from Misrata amidst sporadic fighting . Rebels captured the overpass bridge at the city ' s western gate , after a battle in which 13 rebels were injured and 12 wounded loyalist soldiers were captured . One injured government soldier brought to the hospital confirmed that they had received orders to retreat . The captured soldier said the rebels ' victory on the bridge was due to an ambush on government soldiers as they were busy retreating , indicating that they had lost control over Misrata . The rebels initially claimed to have seized the abandoned hospital , which Gaddafi ' s forces had been using as a base , but an Al Jazeera correspondent later confirmed that the hospital , though being attacked by opposition forces , was still under loyalist control . Twenty - eight people were killed during the day and more than 100 wounded , due to both street fighting and booby - traps left behind by the retreating soldiers . 25 of the dead were rebels . On 24 April a rebel spokesman said : " Gaddafi ’ s brigades started random bombardment in the early hours of this morning . The bombardment is still going on . They targeted the city centre , mainly Tripoli Street , and three residential areas . " NATO planes had been flying over , but there was no indication of air strikes . Later in the day , rebel forces captured the main hospital , where 300 - 400 loyalists had been holed up for weeks . Pro - Gaddafi forces had retreated to the outskirts of the city . At least five tanks , hidden from NATO attacks in the loading bays of the hospital , were burned by the rebels after they captured the building . Twenty people were killed in artillery strikes and fighting on the 24th , leaving a total of 48 rebels and civilians killed in the previous two days . On 25 April the bombardment of the city continued , with another 30 people being killed and 60 wounded . Rebels reported the following day that Gaddafi forces bombarded the port and launched a new assault in an attempt to take control of it . As a large loyalist force was approaching the port , NATO planes struck . They hit six military vehicles and seven technicals , stopping the advance . Bombardment of the city , partial port blockade , rebels re - take airport . On 27 April , for the first time in two months , civilians were able to enter the vegetable market , where loyalist forces had been stationed for the better part of the battle . Five tanks , one mobile anti - aircraft system , and one fuel tanker were left destroyed at the market following NATO air - strikes . During the day , a NATO air - strike mistakenly hit a salt factory on the road to the port where rebels were holding a blocking position . A dozen rebels were killed and five wounded in the attack . The next day , a local doctor confirmed that during the night seven rebels had been killed and four wounded when rocket and artillery fire hit their checkpoint . On 29 April , after securing the port and driving Gaddafi ' s forces back to the outskirts of Misrata , rebels began attacking the airport . However , loyalist tanks conducted an assault against the southwestern outskirts of the city , particularly the village of Zawiyat al - Mahjoub , where some 50 rebel fighters were concentrated . Fifteen people were killed and 80 wounded in the day ' s fighting , the majority of them rebels . During the day , pro - Gaddafi forces planted sea mines in front of the harbor in an attempt to blockade the port . NATO ships managed to remove two of them , but a third drifted free and NATO forces were not able to find it , which resulted in the port being closed for all maritime traffic . On 30 April , several callers speaking to journalists reported heavy shelling of residential areas . One caller said the shelling likely came from the Air Force academy . Another caller counted over 50 explosions . Misrata came under renewed attack late at night and in the early hours of the following morning . Gaddafi ' s troops were seen for the first time wearing gas masks , leading to speculation that they were preparing to use chemical weapons . On the morning of 2 May tanks tried to enter the city from al - Ghiran , a southwestern suburb near the airport . It was stated by medical sources in the city that since 24 April 110 civilians and rebels had been killed , and more than 350 wounded . On 4 May , five people were killed by shelling in the port area . " The bombing has caused many casualties among Libyans and people of other nationalities waiting for evacuation , " Gemal Salem , a spokesman for the rebels , told Reuters . " So far we have five killed and ambulances are rushing to the scene to evacuate the casualties . " On 5 May , loyalist forces dropped 20 rocket - borne anti - tank land mines onto the port , which landed via a parachute after they were released from the rockets . One patrolling rebel pick - up detonated a mine while investigating the landings , wounding two rebel fighters . On 7 May , Gaddafi ' s troops used converted cropdusting planes to bomb rebel controlled oil tanks , successfully destroying all eight of them . NATO also confirmed that Gaddafi ' s forces had been using helicopters to drop mines into the harbour . On 8 May , heavy fighting was reported near the airport and at the resort area of Burgueya on the city ' s western outskirts . Meanwhile , the rebels confirmed that for two weeks the port had been receiving only one supply ship per week , down from the previous two to five per week , due to the constant artillery shelling , sea mines floating at the entrance to the harbour , and land mines dropped on the port area . They stated that food , water , and medical supplies were reaching critically low levels , and that fuel reserves were already dangerously low due to the destruction of fuel tanks by loyalist forces the day before . By 9 May , AFP reported that rebels had taken control of the coastal road from Misrata to the village of Dafniya , 20 km east of Zliten , and had expanded further into the southeastern areas of Misrata . On 10 May , rebels reportedly advanced further into the Al Ghiran neighborhood , where they isolated the airport and air academy , nearly surrounding both installations . By mid - day 11 May , the AFP confirmed that the rebels had won control of the airport after a fierce fight with loyalists who were holed up in the terminal buildings . Pockets of fighting continued at the military airbase , adjacent to the civilian airport , which had come under full rebel control . The same day rebels claimed to have advanced to within of Zliten ; later , however , it would be confirmed that they were still from the city . Rebels stated that in two days of fighting for the airport five of their fighters had been killed and 105 wounded . Hours after the airport battle , NATO stated that the HMCS Charlottetown , the HMS Liverpool , and a French warship had engaged a number of small , fast loyalist boats attacking the port , and that " the [ loyalist ] boats were forced to abandon their attack and regime forces ashore covered their retreat with artillery and anti - aircraft cannon fire directed towards the allied warships " On 12 May at least one loyalist tank was disabled in fighting on the western outskirts of Misrata . On 13 May , according to the opposition , all of Misrata proper was under rebel control , with clashes still occurring in the southern suburb of Hizam , the southeastern farmland of Zameena , and west of Dafniya . The next day , AFP reported that the rebels had advanced 20 km in the east to the gates of Tawergha . It also relayed rebel claims that they had reached the gates of Zliten in the west . However , there was no independent confirmation of the advances , with rebel spokesmen later backtracking on their statements of victories during the claimed two - day advance . On 15 May , opposition forces stated they would not launch an offensive in the direction of Zliten because of the high risk of heavy casualties being sustained . The same day , rebels declared the battle for Misrata over , and that they were in full control of the city , with no more combat taking place . On 16 May , a rebel spokesman from Benghazi claimed that opposition fighters had forced two brigades of Gaddafi ' s forces , based in Zliten , into open battle on the highway and defeated them . However , he contradicted himself by saying the fighting was still ongoing , and no reporters who were in the area or other independent sources confirmed the claim . It was reiterated by rebels on the ground that they would not advance on Zliten due to the possibility of a defeat , such as those sustained by the eastern rebels during their attempted advances earlier in the war . NATO Strikes . According to NATO ' s daily " Operational Media Updates " , the NATO strikes in the Misrata vicinity during the offensive hit : Aftermath . Sporadic fighting continued for several weeks after the rebels established control over the city . Although there was no further combat in Misrata itself , government troops still surrounded the area on all sides , and occasionally directed artillery and rocket fire at the city . For more than a month , heavy frontline fighting and shelling raged nearby at Dafniya and Tawergha . On 21 June , loyalists fired four Grad rockets into the centre of Misrata . It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties . On 16 August , Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim announced that the Libyan government had retaken Misrata , although no independent media followed up the claim . Rebel controlled radio within the city of Misrata on 17 August claimed that rebel forces were advancing southwards to the town of Bani Walid , proving the Gaddafi regimes claims of capturing Misrata from the rebels to be untrue . Casualties . Numbers of killed and wounded . Reports on the numbers of people killed in the three - month siege vary . The chief of Misrata ' s hospital , Dr . Mohammed Fortia , stated that by 30 March 398 rebels and civilians had been killed . However , Fortia also said , at a later time , that 257 rebels and civilians were killed by 10 April . Just four days later , on 14 April , another doctor said 700 rebels and civilians died in the two - month siege . There was no explanation for the discrepancy in the numbers . The numbers of civilians killed in comparison to the numbers of rebels killed have also varied , with one doctor in the city claiming that 80 percent of those killed were civilians , while a member of Misrata ' s medical committee stated that up until 21 April 365 people were killed , of which at least 85 were civilians . Based on various reports during the battle , roughly three - quarters ( of the lower number ) to a fifth ( of the higher number ) of those killed were rebels , while the rest were civilians . Loyalist forces had also suffered at least 358 dead , a number based on rebel reports . The numbers of wounded had also not been consistent , with Fortia reporting 949 wounded rebels and civilians ( only 22 of them being women and eight children ) by 10 April , while earlier reports had put the number at around 1 , 400 . By 21 April , the city ' s medical committee stated that 4 , 000 people had been wounded . On 9 September , the NTC health minister said that at least 2 , 000 rebels and civilians had been killed in the Misrata area since the war began , with at least 900 injuries that had resulted in loss of limbs . Evacuation of the wounded and stranded . After the NATO - enforced no - fly zone was established , an international effort was underway to evacuate 14 , 000 stranded migrants and hundreds of rebels and civilians wounded in the fighting . On 18 March , a Moroccan ferry unloaded 1 , 800 migrants in Tanger , most of them Moroccans , after it evacuated them from Misrata the previous week . On 2 April , a Turkish ship had evacuated 250 wounded from the city . The next day , a Tunisian ship took another 71 wounded . On 9 April , two Qatari ships evacuated 1 , 800 Egyptians from the city and on 11 April , a Turkish ship evacuated another 1 , 000 . On 14 April , a Qatari ship and a ship sent by Doctors Without Borders were scheduled to dock in the port . The Qatari vessel was to take on at least 800 of the migrants while the other ship was to evacuate 165 of the wounded . However , the ships couldn ' t dock because of heavy rocket shelling of the port and extensive damage to the harbor . Still , in the evening , a Greek ferry did dock with the purpose of transferring the foreigners to Benghazi from where they would move on to Egypt . The next day , after unloading 400 tonnes of aid supplies , the ship left with 1 , 182 migrants on board , mostly Bangladeshis and Egyptians . Later , the Doctors Without Borders ship had also managed to dock and evacuated 99 people , 64 of them wounded , to Tunisia . On 18 April , a ship evacuated 971 people , most of them migrants , including 650 Ghanaians and people of other nationalities like Filipinos and Ukrainians , but also 100 Libyans , including 23 wounded . Later during the day , a ship of the International Committee of the Red Cross picked up another 618 migrants . On 20 April , two Qatari chartered ships evacuated almost 2 , 500 people . They arrived the next day in Benghazi , with one of them carrying 1 , 500 people , including 150 wounded , while the other ship carried 950 people . Later during the day , the Greek ferry the " Ionian Spirit " also arrived in Benghazi with 1 , 000 people , including 239 Libyan civilians , and the rest migrants , mostly from Niger . Among those 1 , 000 were also 31 wounded , including four amputees . On 24 April , an aid ship evacuated 1 , 000 people , including migrants and some wounded people . A Qatari ship had also taken 90 wounded to Tunisia . On 25 April , nearly 1 , 000 migrants , most of them Nigerians , and 17 wounded people were evacuated . On 27 April , an ICRC and an IOM ship transported more people from the city . The ICRC ship evacuated more than 600 civilians while the IOM ferry took 1 , 091 people , including more than 800 migrants ( most of them from Niger ) and 30 - 55 wounded , from Misrata . On 4 May , the IOM ship docked in the port , despite a floating sea mine and heavy artillery shelling , and took on 800 - 1 , 138 people , again mostly migrants ( the last of them ) , among whom were at least 36 critically wounded people . On 12 May , a ship with 108 refugees from Misrata , including 25 wounded , arrived in Benghazi .