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| Africa North |
| Libya: secret police arrest hundreds in sweep of Tripoli |
| 2011-03-04 |
| Secret police loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi have staged sweeps of the Libyan capital, arresting hundreds of opponents and protesters in advance of demonstrations planned for prayers on Friday. There have been night-time arrests across the capital Tripoli during the week, according to exile groups. Many were identified through photographs of last Friday's protests in which an unknown number of people were shot dead. Precise figures are impossible to confirm – friends of those arrested say it is not known where those who have been arrested have been taken. According to rumour, they have been taken to Bab al-Azizia, the regime's command-and-control centre in the south of Tripoli, which includes the Gaddafi compound bombed by US jets in 1986. Despite the planned protests, there was little sign that Col Gaddafi's hold on power was weakening in those parts of the country, including Tripoli, still under his control. |
| Posted by:lotp |