Muammar Gadafy today challenged fellow Libyans to quell the protests bringing chaos to the country.
An estimated 1,000 people have died in the uprising so far.
In a rambling phonecall to state television earlier today, Col Gadafy called on the people of Libya” to get out of their houses and confront this bunch of people”.
He added: “If they are not brave enough to go out and face this enemy on the street, maybe they should let their women and their daughters go out.”
He appeared to link the protesters with al-Qaeda’s Osama bin Laden and Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood.
"Our youths have been drugged and they have been misled to wage war against our country. Shame on you,” he said. “We have devout religious people in the country, devout Muslims... but they shouldn’t give their allegiance to bin Laden. We have always proclaimed the youths on the street are our children and they need help. Whoever is pulling the strings has to be apprehended and detained.
“People who have taken to the streets are just a bunch of youths. They have been misled and lied to.”
Col Gadafy accused the Muslim Brotherhood of involvement in what he branded “this tragedy”, accusing them of being as bad as al-Qaeda. “They were known for their atrocities in the past and being involved in military activities.”
Meanwhile, army units and militiamen loyal to Col Gadafy today struck back against protesters, attacking a mosque where many had taken refuge and opening fire on others protecting a local airport. A resident near the airport reported piles of bodies left behind and a “swamp of blood.”
The assaults aimed to push back a rebellion that has moved closer to Col Gadafy's bastion in the capital, Tripoli.
The revolt has already split off much of the eastern half of Libya.
In the latest blow to the Libyan leader, a cousin who is one of his closest aides, Ahmed Gadhaf al-Dam, announced that he has defected to Egypt in protest against the regime’s bloody crackdown against the uprising, denouncing what he called “grave violations to human rights and human and international laws”.
In the city of Zawiya, 50km west of Tripoli, an army unit attacked a mosque where protesters had been camping inside and in an area outside for several days, a witness said.
The soldiers opened fire with automatic weapons and hit the mosque’s minaret with anti-aircraft missiles, he said. Some of the young men among the protesters had hunting rifles.
Twenty-three people were killed and 44 wounded in the clashes according to the country's Quryna newspaper said.
Quoting medical sources, Quryna said "intense exchange of fire" was preventing people wounded in the clashes from reaching hospitals.
It also said some men were removing their wounded relatives from hospitals for fear of them falling into the hands of what it called security battalions, in an apparent reference to Gadafy loyalists.
Quryna, based in the eastern city of Benghazi, is Libya's most reliable media outlet. The town of Zawiya is a key city near an oil port and refineries.
“What is happening is horrible, those who attacked us are not the mercenaries; they are sons of our country,” said one witness. After the assault, thousands massed in the city’s main Martyrs Square, shouting “leave, leave,” in reference to Col Gadafy, he said.
“People came to send a clear message: we are not afraid of death or your bullets,” he said. “This regime will regret it. History will not forgive them.”
The other attack came at a small airport outside Misrata, Libya’s third largest city, where rebels claimed control yesterday. Militiamen today attacked a line of residents who were protecting the facility, opening fire with rocket-propelled grenades and mortars, said a resident who saw the assault
“They left piles of human remains and swamp of blood,” he said. “The hospitals are packed with those killed and injured.” But he could not provide exact figures.
After the attack ended before noon, another Misrata resident said the local radio, now in opposition hands, urged people to march on the airport in support of the protesters. Both residents said the rebels continue to control the city, about 180km east of Tripoli. They and other witnesses around Libya spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
Col Gadafy’s crackdown has so far helped him maintain control of Tripoli, a city that holds about a third of Libya’s six million population.
But the uprising by protesters, backed by army units that joined their ranks, has threatened to push the country toward civil war.
The leader’s cousin, Gadhaf al-Dam, is one of the most high level defections to hit the regime so far, after many ambassadors around the world, the justice minister and the interior minister all sided with the protesters.
Gadhaf al-Dam belonged to Col Gadafy’s inner circle and was officially his liaison with Egypt. He also served as the leader’s envoy to other world governments and frequently appeared by his side.
In a statement issued in Cairo today, Gadhaf al-Dam said he had left Libya for Egypt “in protest and to show disagreement” with the crackdown.
Agencies