Forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi bombarded rebel positions in the Western Mountains region Wednesday, after rebels made advances toward the capital, Tripoli.

Rebels say Libyan forces fired Grad rockets at towns in the region, but have not confirmed casualties from the attacks.

Rebels have made advances from the port city of Misrata toward Zlitan, about 135 kilometers east of Tripoli. Fighting quieted down Wednesday as rebels held their positions.

Meanwhile, Libyan state television said 12 people were killed in a NATO airstrike in the town of Kikla, southwest of Tripoli. The alliance has not confirmed the report.

NATO has been carrying out airstrikes on command centers and forces loyal to Mr. Gadhafi since March.

In other news, the African Union called for an immediate “humanitarian pause” in Libya. The head of the AU's committee on Libya, Mauritania's Hamady Ould Hamady, told the U.N. Security Council Wednesday a cease-fire linked to a political solution is needed to end the “indescribable suffering” of Libyan civilians.

He emphasized that all Libyans should agree to a political solution that meets their democratic goals and respects their human rights.

In London, British Prime Minister David Cameron insisted his country could sustain its operations in Libya, saying “time is on our side.” He spoke prior to a meeting with the head of NATO, Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, on the alliance's operation in Libya.

Earlier this week, the head of Britain's Royal Navy warned his British fleet might not be able to sustain the scale of its operations off the Libyan coast in the long term, without cutbacks elsewhere.