As with many a tyrant before him, Muammar al-Qaddafi's cruelty
was given perhaps its freest rein in his political prisons: dark
corners like Tripoli's Abu
Salim prison, where 1,200 prisoners were massacred in just two hours in June
1996. These jails were by no means a relic of Qaddafi's younger days. Over the course of the past six months, the exposure of a series of underground
jails in Benghazi haunted rebel militias based there, a terrible
reminder of what could happen if they lost. It's been reported that during this year's uprising, thousands
more have been packed away -- prisoners held in the regime's network of secret bunkers.
But Abu Salim, and the violence perpetrated there, has gone from a symbol of defeat to a rallying cry for the rebels. In February, families of those killed in the 1996 massacre led some of the initial protests in Benghazi this February that sparked the war. When Tripoli fell, the rebels liberated Abu Salim and freed the inmates lodged there in cruel anonymity, finally opening up Qaddafi's abuses to the world's eyes. Said one activist who had been jailed for 14 years, "There is no way to describe how great it felt to be free."
Above, two men look on, aghast, over the burned bodies, numbering more than 50, that were discovered in a construction site shed near the base for the infamous Khamis Brigade on Aug. 27 in Tripoli, Libya.
Benjamin Lowy/Getty Images
The remains of charred, burnt bodies found on a warehouse floor on Aug. 27 in Tripoli.
Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images
Citizens tour an underground jail that opposition supporters excavated at a Qaddafi palace compound on Feb. 24 in Benghazi.
John Moore/Getty Images
Workers clean the floors of layers of blood in the abandoned Abu Salim Hospital after numerous dead bodies, some executed on hospital grounds, were found on Aug. 27, 2011.
Benjamin Lowy/ Getty Images
A charred prison cell sits covered in ash at the Benghazi Central Prison on March 1o. Inmates broke free during the uprising and set fire to the facility.
John Moore/Getty Images
Numerous bodies, some victims of execution, lie dumped in the Abu Salim Hospital morgue on
Aug. 27 in Tripoli.
Benjamin Lowy/Getty Images
A rebel militiaman opens a burned file cabinet in the ashes of a Libyan secret police office on Feb. 27, in Brega.
John Moore/Getty Images
A young boy peers into an underground jail cell at a Qaddafi palace compound on Feb. 24 in Benghazi.
John Moore/Getty Images
The main entrance to the Abu Salim Hospital on Aug. 27 in Tripoli.
Benjamin Lowy/Getty Images
U.S. filmmaker Matthew VanDyke shows journalists his former cell in Tripoli's Abu Salim prison on Aug. 30.
FRANCISCO LEONG/AFP/Getty Images
A Libyan man displays passport photos of political prisoners believed to have been recently killed by Qaddafi loyalist forces in Tripoli, on Aug. 27.
Photograph by Benjamin Lowy/Getty Images
A rebel militiaman stands in the ashes of an alleged torture
chamber of the former Libyan internal security force on Feb. 28 in Benghazi.
John Moore/Getty Images
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BEDAVAO
2:43 AM ET
September 7, 2011
Picture itself speaks
Dictatorism at this age only hurts people. Education and expanding democracy is only the way out. It's good to know such activists and bravehearts always exists. I plan to share this at my facebook page.
EZONLINEATM
4:29 AM ET
September 7, 2011
<a href="http://HealthyWeight4u.com">When will this end?</a>
You wonder whether dictators and demons like Qadaffi are human?! And when will these people stop following violence and opt for peace instead? The world would be a better place if these demons were all thrown into the sea and forgotten!
DAVU91
12:26 PM ET
September 7, 2011
I plan to share this at my page
Thank you it was very interesting to read.
TONY RAMEED
7:26 PM ET
September 15, 2011
Amazing photos. Let's hope
Amazing photos. Let's hope that now Qaddafi and his regime has fallen, the people of Libya can put their country back together. Hopefully a government can be formed that will last longer than most formed by rebels
OPTICNORTH
1:47 PM ET
September 29, 2011
Qaddafi's Libya
Muammar al Qaddafi, said recently, "The Everyone is the master" Rather this has to be the reality while he has several supporters whilst still being the support from the Army. The fact is he have more supporters you also have Rebels'. The federal government forces moved east and word is the fact that oil fields in Garza have been in Government hands again.
No matter what, Qaddafi could last for many years if your UN isn't going to share forces to help you the rebellion, a prospect that isn't planning to be held soon. Some NATO, countries are preaching about starting a no fly zone over Libya, This is usually a very fine idea. However, a no fly zone isn't as simple as it seems, and would involve several difficult issues, not the lowest amount of ones is, who is financially responsible because of it?
TAYFA34
3:10 AM ET
September 30, 2011
qaddafi o.ç
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YARINSIZ
2:32 PM ET
October 6, 2011
Muammar al Qaddafi, said
Muammar al Qaddafi, said recently, "The Everyone is the master" Rather this has to be the reality while he has several supporters whilst still being the support from the Army. The fact is he have more supporters you also have Rebels'. The federal government forces moved east and word is the fact that oil fields in Garza have seslichat been in Government hands again.