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In Pictures: Battle for Libya

Photojournalist George Henton provides Al Jazeera with an intimate look at the war in Libya.

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A cartoon in Benghazi depicts Muammar Gaddafi, who, despite his own occasional claims to the contrary, has ruled Libya since his own revolution in 1969. Today(***)s revolutionaries portray their hitherto leader as a man determined to take the country down with him.
Published On 28 Jun 2011
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Medics at prayer, during a lull in the fighting, at the field hospital near Dafniya. Religion plays a major role on both sides of the Libyan divide. Cries of "Allah Akbar" accompany most acts, from the firing of the ubiquitous Kalashnikov to standing amidst incoming artillery barrages.
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Volunteers walk through a minefield, scratching in the dirt to unearth hundreds of anti-personnel mines. Around Misurata, stockpiles of weapons sit by the road, with the largest collections on Tripoli Street.
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Fighters, referred to in Arabic as thawar or revolutionaries, prepare to fire at a training area to the east of Misurata. Those on the frontlines are mostly civilians with little military training.
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West African migrants load a lorry with their belongings, having just disembarked in Benghazi from a boat coming from Misurata. Like most, Libya(***)s economy relied heavily on migrant workers, thousands of whom were trapped when the revolution began.
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Children sit in a mosque in Misurata as prizes are presented to those who have memorised sections of the Quran. It is the most vulnerable who suffer most in times of war, and thousands of children who lived through the brutal siege of Misurata for months will now be affected adversely for life.
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Black African migrants stand alone on a dock in Benghazi having managed to escape from Misurata, where they faced attacks from residents who claimed they were mercenaries.
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A burned out, destroyed car sits in front of the burned out, destroyed Tripoli street, the scene of intense fighting at the height of the battle for Misurata. Amidst all the destruction in Libya, there is an abundance of engineers.
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A destroyed aircraft sits on the tarmac at the military airfield in Misurata, the scene of heavy NATO bombing. Western intervention has played a key role in this conflict and revolutionary forces say they would not be in the position they are today without such assistance.
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New recruits stand to attention at a graduation ceremony in Misurata, having completed the standard two-week training course. They crawl under barbed wire, swing along ropes, and smash pieces of burning wood while instructors fire guns into the air. Much more is required but time pressures do not allow.