@sookga1Sookga
They were promised an escape from poverty if they fought forMuammar Gaddafi, but never saw the cash. Some, thrown into the frontline with no military experience, suggested that Gaddafi's forces were running short on resources and morale. Aged between 17 and 47, all said they surrendered meekly a week ago when Gaddafi's army was forced to retreat from a village in Libya's western mountains. They are detained in the rebel stronghold of Zintan at a school converted into a makeshift prison which now houses 147 inmates – of whom 25 are foreign nationals, officials say. The six men were black and said they all had roots in neighbouring Mali and Niger, although some had been born in Libya and had Libyan citizenship. They did not conform to widespread reports of mercenaries travelling from abroad specifically to serve the regime. Many were recruited from the southern Libyan city of Sabha, a Gaddafi stronghold. The youngest was Issa Yousef, 17, a student and steelworker of Malian origin who joined a month ago. Speaking through an interpreter, he said: "They said we'll give you money when this attack has finished: 1,000 dinars (£500) a month and Libyan citizenship." He never saw either.
