Following are excerpts from a TV report on a training camp for Libyan rebels in Benghazi, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on March 24, 2011.
To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/legacy/clip/0/0/0/0/0/0/2879.
Reporter: "The 'February 17 Camp' has become a familiar name these days. It is the meeting place for all the people who want to defend Benghazi, and the other cities under rebel control."
Libyan rebel: "There are hundreds of volunteers. Some of them are preparing to defend Benghazi and its institutions, such as factories and banks. Some, with military experience, head towards the frontline, and others deploy along the defense lines of Benghazi, and the military posts defending the city."
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Reporter: "The hundreds of volunteers undergo training in the use of all types of weapons – both light and heavy."
Uniformed Libyan rebel: "We get a general idea about the weapons we have, and we undergo specialized training on a weapon – on RPGs, rocket launchers, 106 mm [recoilless rifles], and so on. After that, we go armed to the front."
Young Libyan rebel: "I came from the city of Darnah to Benghazi. I am of the fidayeen youth, and I want to sacrifice everything I have. I don't have anything, but Allah be praised, with my courage and strong faith, I have come to help the young [rebels], along with my brothers. This is all I have to offer, Allah be praised."
Reporter: "The fervent cries are heard loud and clear from the young volunteers. The weapons in the camp range from personal rifles to anti-aircraft weapons.
"The advanced age of some volunteers has not prevented them from joining the camp, which includes all sectors, including university lecturers. They have all come to this place, which has become the main transit stop for anybody who wants to join the battlefront."
Elderly Libyan rebel: "What is fear to a man who has reached the age of 60? This is our present and our future. [Al-Qadhafi's forces] are fighting our young men in the most despicable ways."
Reporter: "Many of the rebels have come to the camp to arm themselves with weapons, on their way to the frontline. These rebels stress that Al-Qadhafi's recent attacks only make them more determined and resolute to defend the liberated areas, whatever the cost and the sacrifice may be." [...]
