* FTSEurofirst 300 index down 0.6 percent
* Libya political unrest hits oil stocks
* Merck gains as outlook beats expectations
* For up-to-the minute market news, click on By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - European shares fell on Monday on political unrest in oil producer Libya, led by energy stocks such as ENI and OMV, which have exposure to the country.
By 1228 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 0.6 percent at 1,180.15 points, despite a strong reading for private sector activity in the euro zone and business sentiment in Germany.
Dozens of people were reported killed in Tripoli overnight in anti-government protests, while one of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi sons warned of civil war as the turmoil spread.
"Unease in the Middle East is the issue today. Unless anything dramatic changes, I cannot see us trading out of the range we are in," said Yusuf Heusen, senior sales trader at IG Index.
"There has been a shift of funds out of stocks with an exposure to the Middle East and into other areas."
The STOXX Europe 600 Oil & Gas index fell 0.8 percent, while oil prices jumped to a 2-1/2 year high on supply disruption fears. Libya exports around 1.1 million barrels per day of crude.
Italian oil and gas company Eni fell 4.1 percent on the Libyan unrest, but a spokesman said Libyan output had continued normally in the last 24 hours. Energy group OMV lost 3.2 percent, but the company said none of its operations in Libya had been affected, though it was withdrawing expatriate staff from the country.
Italy's benchmark fell 2.1 percent as the North African country is the country's main oil supplier.
Other Italian stocks with interests in the country were under pressure; builder Impregilo lost 5.4 percent, bank UniCredit slipped 3.2 percent, and aerospace company Finmeccanica was down 1.2 percent.
VOLATILITY INDEX JUMPS
The VDAX-NEW volatility index, a barometer of investor anxiety, rose 7.4 percent to its highest level in 2-1/2 weeks.
The higher the volatility index, based on sell and buy options on Frankfurt's top-30 stocks, the lower is investors' appetite for risky assets such as equities and commodities.
Elsewhere, Dutch mail and delivery firm TNT slipped 2.7 percent after the company said postal volumes could worsen this year.
"The main thing is a little bit of disappointment on the short-term outlook both in mail and express," Keijser Capital analyst Nico van Geest said.
On the upside, Merck, the world's biggest maker of liquid crystals for flat screens, rose 3.8 percent after it said it was aiming for a 35-45 percent rise in 2011 operating profit and an unspecified gain in 2012, which was above analysts' expectations.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was down 0.2 percent, Germany's DAX fell 0.7 percent, and France's CAC 40 lost 0.7 percent. (Reporting by Joanne Frearson; Editing by Will Waterman)