Inside Story

Crushing Libya’s revolt

The unrest in Libya started as a series of protests, but was met by a fierce security crackdown.

Across Libya, protesters are still calling for Muammar Gaddafi to leave.

More than 200 anti-government protesters were killed during the last few days of violence in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

Witnesses from Benghazi say that dozens of people were killed on Saturday when troops opened fire on anti-government protesters in the city.

They also spoke of snipers firing at protesters from rooftops and a number of foreign mercenaries from sub-Saharan Africa being brought in to attack protesters.

Some of those mercenaries were caught by protesters and confessed that they had received instructions to fire live bullets at demonstrators.

Will Muammar Gaddafi’s regime prevail where others fell to the will of the people?

Joining us to discuss these issues are: Aly Khan Satchu, a financial analyst and the CEO of Rich Investment; Ian Black, a Middle East editor of The Guardian; and Ashur Shamis, a Libyan opposition activist.

This episode of Inside Story aired from Sunday, February 20, 2011.