Rebels and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi battled Thursday over control of a key border post, fighting on both sides of the Libya-Tunisia frontier. Rebels recaptured the Dehiba border post after heavy fighting killed eight soldiers of forces loyal to Gaddafi, just hours after the strongman's troops took control of the crossing. On the Libyan side of the border, the rival camps exchanged artillery fire in the early evening, causing panic among civilians, a witness told AFP. Several ambulances came from Tunisia into Libya to evacuate the wounded. According to a security source, five pro-Gaddafi fighters were wounded in the clashes and taken to a hospital in Tataouine in Tunisia.
A senior Tunisian military officer described the situation as 'extremely tense'.
Earlier in the day, Gaddafi's fighters had for a few hours taken control of Dehiba which rebels seized a week ago, causing the insurgents to flee into Tunisia pursued by their enemies for about one kilometre.
Some of them managed to return to Libya while others, as well as Libyan soldiers, were arrested by Tunisian forces, said a witness on the border who asked not to be named.
'The situation is very confused, and there is fighting on both sides of the border' at Dehiba, a military official told AFP.
A witness said Tunisian troops had arrested fighters on both sides of the conflict but this could not be confirmed independently or by Tunisian officials.
The insurgents' success in capturing Dehiba on April 21 resulted in thousands of Libyans crossing the border into Tunisia in anticipation of a counter attack as forces loyal to Gaddafi started amassing in the area.
Fighting between rebels and Gaddafi loyalists intensified in the west of the country in the last week.
Sources said the rebels also managed to retake Wezen, the first Libyan village after crossing the border at Dehiba from Tunisia, with about 5000 inhabitants.
Tunisia warned late on Thursday of a 'dangerous military escalation' following the border clashes and said they led to a 'violation of Tunisia's territorial integrity'.
In a statement the foreign ministry said it was 'deeply concerned' about the escalation at Wezen.
'Shots fired at a populated area on Tunisian territory (are) a violation of Tunisia's territorial integrity and a violation of the security of the residents of this region', said the statement.
'Because of the seriousness of these activities the Tunisian authorities have protested with the Libyan authorities and expressed their deep concern.'
Tunisia also asked Libya to immediately take steps to put an end to these violations, respect the country's territorial integrity and see to it that its armed forces do not endanger the lives and equipment on Tunisian territory.
The rebels also control Nalut, the last big town before the Dehiba crossing as well as the highway leading to the town of Zintan, nearly 200km east.
Gaddafi troops fired rockets on Zintan on Sunday evening, killing four and wounding nine, according to residents.
On Wednesday, thousands of insurgents defending the city managed to drive Gaddafi's forces back several kilometres after a day of fighting and bombardments.
Massive protests in February - inspired by the revolts that toppled long-time autocrats in Egypt and Tunisia - escalated into war when Gaddafi's troops fired on demonstrators and protesters seized several eastern towns.
The mountainous area of Zintan, southwest of Tripoli, was one of the first to rise up against Gaddafi's regime. Rebel reinforcements were on Thursday reported to be moving towards Kabao and Nalut in anticipation of new attacks. Foreign military officials, meanwhile, said the Tunisian army was sending reinforcements to Dehiba, with members of the national guard and armoured vehicles converging in the area on Thursday afternoon.
