Libyan rebels

Euronews correspondent Mustafa Bağ spent the night with one group of rebels at their makeshift camp on the frontline. They sang and chanted around the campfire, cooked and smoked narghile. They slept in their cars or on mattresses on the open ground. There was plenty of bravado – but little evidence of hi-tech equipment or detailed military planning.

If the coalition do decide to arm the rebels, groups like this could be among those to benefit. The rebels need not only weapons but training as well – a potentially long-term task. Some experts say that the lessons of wars such as Bosnia and Afghanistan are either that backup from foreign professional troops is necessary – or that weapons supplied may end up in the wrong hands. There was no evidence of it in this group, but US intelligence is said to have detected signs of al Qaeda sympathisers within the ragtag rebel army.

Source : EuroNews