arrested close to 50 militiamen. At a news conference, officials claimed the fighters constituted a fifth column of Gaddafi loyalists masquerading as rebels, but journalists were unable to independently confirm these assertions. Three NTC soldiers were killed and eight injured, while the rogue militia suffered four dead and twelve wounded, according to the NTC. Rebels reportedly captured Al-Josh in the Western Mountains. However, loyalist forces did not retreat far from the city. Hours later, the village was retaken by loyalist forces and the rebels were driven out. Reuters reported that an estimated 5,000 residents of Ghezaya, supporters of Gaddafi, were transported to Tripoli during the rebels' advance against the town before they have seized it, leaving behind a ghost town. Gaddafi has always maintained supporters in Ghazaia and other places in the plains below the Western Mountains, despite international pressure on him to step down. Contrary to earlier reports that rebel authorities in Misrata had split from the NTC in Benghazi, Misrata's top military commander said there were no divisions in the anti-Gaddafi forces over Abdul Fatah Younis's death, adding, "This will not hinder the revolution." Early August (1–15 August) 1 August According to The Guardian, opposition fighters claimed to have captured Zliten, west of Misrata. However, Al Jazeera reported that the situation was still "fluid" and said heavy fighting was still taking place in and around the city. The Norwegian government announced it had completed withdrawing its six fighter jets from Operation Unified Protector. Norwegian F-16 Fighting Falcons carried out 583 missions out of a total of 6,493 flown by NATO warplanes since 31 March, a military spokesman said. 2 August Early in the morning rebel forces managed to push westwards, reaching the civilian populated areas of Zliten, sparking clashes with Gaddafi's forces in the town. While in the town's centre, the rebels waited for an approval of Zliten's Fowater tribe to take control of the town, but they did not immediately agree. Several hours later, the rebels were flanked in a surprise attack by loyalist forces along the entire line they had on the outskirts of the town and they were forced to withdraw, sustaining heavy casualties in the process. Reuters reported that at least seven rebels were killed and 65 wounded during a loyalist counter-attack. An Al Jazeera correspondent reported that rebel fighters from Misrata are reluctant to go into Zliten again, because they could be perceived