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Libyan rebels round up black Africans

Men suspected of being mercenaries for Moammar Gadhafi, are held in a district sports center next to the medina, set up as provisory jail in Tripoli, Libya, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011. Libyan rebels are demanding that Algeria return Moammar Gadhafi's wife and three of his children for trial after they fled, raising tensions between the neighboring countries. Algeria's decision to host members of the Gadhafi clan is an "aggressive act against the Libyan people's wish," said Mahmoud Shammam, information minister in the rebels' interim government.(AP Photo/Francois Mori)
TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Rebel forces and armed civilians are rounding up thousands of black Libyans and migrants from sub-Sahara Africa, accusing them of fighting for ousted strongman Moammar Gadhafi and holding them in makeshift jails across the capital.
Virtually all of the detainees say they are innocent migrant workers, and in most cases there is no evidence that they are lying. But that is not stopping the rebels from placing the men in facilities like the Gate of the Sea sports club, where about 200 detainees — all black — clustered on a soccer field this week, bunching against a high wall to avoid the scorching sun.
Handling the prisoners is one of the first major tests for the rebel leaders, who are scrambling to set up a government that they Read more…