Maybe Libya Should Fear The Rebels As Much As It Fears Qaddafi

[David__77]

No residents remained in the town after the rebels ousted Qaddafi soldiers. But stores packed with fresh fruit and bread indicated that some civilians at least hadn't fled until the last possible—a clear sign that the rebels aren't quite being "greeted as liberators" as they move towards Tripoli.

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"The rebels began helping themselves to the fuel in Qawalish’s only gas station. Then an armed rebel wheeled about the road on a children’s bicycle he had apparently just taken from a home. A short while later rebels were shooting padlocks off the metal doors to shops, and beginning to sweep through them. At the time, rebels said they were carefully searching and securing the town. But their behavior soon raised questions, including: Was something besides military necessity taking hold?

"The next day the questions became more pressing. Houses that had not been burning the previous day were afire, and shops were being aggressively looted by armed men in rebel attire. Every few minutes, a truck would pass by on the road, headed back toward Zintan loaded with what seemed to be stolen goods. Animal feed appeared to be a favorite item to carry off. Several trucks an hour carried away bales of hay and sacks of grain. The rebels at the checkpoints at the town’s edge did nothing to stop any of this. The town, in short, was being looted by the rebels, and vandalized, and worse. The destruction was not total — five of the town’s scores of houses were on fire. But what would their owners think? And what kind of message was being sent to the people of this town?"

http://www.businessinsider.com/maybe-libya-should-fear-the-rebels-as-much-as-it-fears-qaddafi-2011-7