Reply #105: Libyan leaders grapple with growing discontent among wounded

[tabatha]

(Here is some pro-NTC propaganda)

(Reuters) - Libya's interim leaders came under increasing scrutiny Wednesday from fighters who accuse them of not doing enough for combat-wounded troops dying of treatable injuries in the field and languishing in crowded hospitals.

The case of the war wounded -- estimated to number in the tens of thousands -- adds to a growing list of challenges for Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) as they try to restore order following the revolt that ousted dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Outside al-Jalaa Hospital in the eastern city of Benghazi, dozens of men gathered at the third day of a protest against the NTC's handling of veterans led by 28-year old Hamsa Saad Mohammed, a fighter shot in the thigh who says he needs complicated medical treatment abroad.

"They are trading with our blood -- they have luxurious cars and houses while we suffer," he said from his wheelchair, draped in Libya's new flag and flanked by a half dozen wounded men and children protesting on hospital beds.

"We spent six hours without antibiotics upon arriving here. Volunteer students from the medical schools are helping and they're doing an amazing job... but what about the NTC?"

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/19/us-libya-wounded-idUSTRE79I6XW20111019