Tripoli, Feb 25 (IANS) Ten people were killed and dozens were wounded in clashes between Libyan security forces and protesters in the northwestern town of Az-Zawiyah, about 50 km west of the capital Tripoli, a media report said.

Pro-government forces attacked the town Thursday, while clashes between security forces and protesters continued in Tripoli, Xinhua reported.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam Gaddafi said some Arab media delivered distorted reports about the situation in Libya, and Tripoli invited a group of foreign journalists to come to the country Friday.

Gaddafi, in a televised address to Libyan people Thursday afternoon, accused Al Qaeda of being behind the protests in the country. He warned people of chaos if protests continued.

The Libyan government has reportedly seen defection of its security forces and resignation of diplomats since the protests broke out Feb 16. The state TV said a total of 300 people, including 111 soldiers and 189 civilians, were killed in the unrest in the past week.