Fight for victory, says son of Libya hero

BENGHAZI: The son of Libya's first revolutionary can barely remember his freedom-fighter father, hanged 80 years ago by the Italians, but he has no doubt that today's rebels will prevail.

"They should hold themselves up and fill themselves with courage. God shall support them and give them victory," says 90-year-old Mohammed Omar al-Mukhtar, sitting slightly stooped in a black cloak, white scarf and red hat.

His father's 20-year guerrilla war against Italian colonial rulers made him a national hero, inspired generations of Libyans and was immortalised by Oscar-winning actor Anthony Quinn in the 1981 film "Lion of the Desert".

So powerful is his legacy, Mohammed said it was important for Moamer Kadhafi to declare the start of his revolution from Mukhtar's tomb.

More than 30 years later, rebels rising up in Mukhtar's eastern heartland, determined to oust the Libyan strongman, claim him as their own.

Like most Libyans living in the rebel-held east, the little old man with his wizened hands, sunken cheeks and stub nose, is delighted that eastern Libya has again become the font of revolution.

Since Kadhafi's forces fled his home city Benghazi, Mohammed has made rare visits outside the home, to which he is largely confined, to join the ebullient youth outside their headquarters on the blustery Corniche.

"I'm encouraging the youth to unite and have one voice," he said.

"The whole world knows what Omar al-Mukhtar did. That's where they get their energy from. Ask the youth, they'll tell you they are all the grandsons of Omar al-Mukhtar," he added. (AFP)