Young Libyans in Benghazi inspired to battle, bear wish for future

Rusted and broken-down Russian machine guns were stacked inside the corner of a rebel training camp in Libyan opposition bastion Benghazi. Most of them were twice or even triple as old as the young men who are repairing them.

The weapons, some dating back to the World War II, used to be so far away from and secret to the 20-year-old university student who gave his name as Mohammad. But now he is increasingly experienced in assembling and refurbishing them.

As his friends are heading to the battlefields against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's troops, Mohammad decided a shift from a main of chemical science to understanding the art of arms. Fixing damaged weapons is actually a skill that is as important as that of making use of them as the supply from the rebel's couple of makeshift arsenals falls short of the demands in the front line.

"I get all the understanding about every part of these weapons from the internet. Nobody can teach me and I've to find out by myself," said Mohammad.

"This is my favorite," he pointed at a repaired Russian 23-mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled gun inside the workshop, "It can hit targets far more than two kilometers away specifically."

"The weapons are old, but we cannot throw them away. We're badly in want of arms. Each repaired piece might lead us to victory, " he stated.

Though the on-going war inside the North African country has left thousands of deaths and far more to come, the hope for victory is inspiring much more young men to sign up for military training supplied by veteran soldiers. In among the numerous training camps in Benghazi, officer Mufta al-Bargaty told Xinhua that about 1,500 trainees have taken courses within the camp because Feb. 27 when the rebels took up arms against the Gaddafi forces.

Now it normally takes six weeks to go through physical training, making use of light weapons too as understanding special skills such anti- tank, anti-aircraft and explosion, he said.

"Now we can kill Gaddafi," 21-year-old Akram Adam smiled, wearing a hat with the rebel colors of green, black and red, "the first time I went to the frontline, I had no military expertise. But now I've been trained for three weeks and after yet another three weeks, I is going to be ready to fight again."

There's no good answer to when the chronic war would end, as the opposition finds it still hard to break the deadlock whilst Gaddafi has shown great staying power regardless of the growing pressure from the West.

The youths, who say their country could not create future for them, are determined to create the next generation for the country' s future. Therefore, some university students volunteer to work in youngsters care centers since schools have been shut down and officials say there is certainly no plan to reopen them until Gaddafi leaves.

Other people are volunteering to help the refugees. University graduate Farah stated he is tired but happy to cook at a refugee camp for practically 400 Libyans from the western cities for example besieged Misurata and battle-hit Brega.

Throughout the interview with Farah on Monday, a baby was born at the camp, and the family members began distributing sugars amongst the young volunteers, which includes Farah, to share the rejoicing.

"I know the refugees are worried about the future since they could not go back until their hometowns are freed. But we need to stand firm throughout the challenging period to hope for the most effective within the new era," Farah stated.

Even some kids are reluctant to remain idle at residence. Each and every evening at a main junction, a team of children in white traffic police uniforms blow whistles to direct the visitors in a way they learned in the course of a two-week training. The youngest 1 is 10 years old.

Ahmed, 15, stated he was on shift every day from five p.m. to 10 p.m. "For 3 months, we work happily and we succeed."

When asked about no matter whether he wanted to go back to school, eighth- grade Ahmed said "of course. I desire to read."

A security officer standing beside him said the army of kids is liked by drivers and each resident. "They are our pride and they deserve a significantly far better future."

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