Loyalists of Muammar Gaddafi have attacked an oil refinery near Ras Lanuf killing 12 fighters who were guarding it, a spokesman for the country's new rulers said.

"So far, we have a figure of 12 dead in the ranks of the revolutionaries," National Transitional Council military spokesman Mohammed Zawawi told AFP.

"A group (of loyalists) travelling in five vehicles tried to enter the refinery but were unable to," he added.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.