Forces loyal to Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi attacked the main rebel-held city in eastern Libya last night.

The Gaddafi forces shelled and bombed Benghazi as world leaders met in Paris to discuss the possible immediate start of military action against the regime.

Before the ground assault that witnesses said included tanks, jets bombed the outskirts of the city in defiance of the United-Nations-declared no-fly zone.

The BBC reported thousands of people were fleeing the city, east towards the Egyptian border.

Last night US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was at the Paris summit to discuss the imposition of the no-fly zone.