BENGHAZI, Libya – It took a while to get into the underground bunker. There were too many men in the way, hauling too many crates of machine guns, ammunition, and 30-year-old rockets. But eventually, there was a lull. I ducked past the steel-reinforced door to the bunker's entrance and moved down the debris-laden concrete ramp – trying very, very hard not to disturb the dozens of weapons-bearers bringing their arms to the surface.

Below, the ramp opened into a large room supported by cement columns. The air was dense and the only light came from small air ducts near the ceiling. The cases sat piled wall-to-wall, just one of many arms caches hidden away by Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi. But now the weapons are in the hands of his enemies here, a rebellious city of nearly 1 million people who, relatively unarmed, recently drove out Gadhafi's special forces and mercenaries. Today, the rebels are preparing for further battle – and maybe even an attack on Gadhafi's stronghold in Tripoli. But this time, they've got the weapons that the eccentric tyrant used to oppress his people for 41 years.

"We've found everything from bullets to rockets," the man in the headlamp and blue spelunking jumpsuit said as he climbed out of a nearby hole that led into a small, concrete room. He led me to a manhole that descended around 50 feet to a tunnel not unlike a large sewer system. "There is a huge network of tunnels underneath us. A few friends went in two hours ago and they haven't come out yet." Gadhafi's men torched the compound before they escaped in Land Rovers and through the secret tunnels.

The bunker and the tunnels form part of the Katiba, a vast, white-and green military and administrative complex from which Gadhafi could run the country. But only his inner circle and paid mercenaries were allowed inside. Until now.* *

One of the rebel tank commanders who helped lead the attack on the compound, Colonel Mohammed Samir al-Abar, told me how he rammed his tank through the outer wall. That allowed soldiers and civilians armed with rocks, swords and Molotov cocktails to storm the fortress. (The embattled Libyan leader didn't trust the regular army, soldiers said, so he never equipped them with anything more than a uniform.)

Since Feb. 21, the city has been combing Gadhafi's fallen military compounds for the weapons that he reserved for his special forces and his guns-for-hire. And since the base's liberation, it has become a tourist attraction for Benghazi citizens who once prayed to Allah that they would never see the inside of it. Security forces used bunkers similar to the arms depot and the tunnels to hold and abuse political prisoners. Most of the weaponry at the Katiba has been removed and handed over to the army, although more arms were found in the Razma, a series of hills around Benghazi where Gadhafi built another base.

On Tuesday at the Salmani weapons maintenance depot, soldiers were organizing the anti-aircraft weapons found in the bunkers. Most of them date from the 1970s and 1980s, so everything had to be stripped, scrubbed, and reassembled before testing. Only a few shots, though, the commander ordered. They need to save their ammunition for Tripoli.

"It's dirty, outdated equipment, but it works," said reserve-soldier-turned-rebel Adel Mustafa, a jovial man with a salt-and-pepper beard. "Ninety percent are Russian made, but there's a Chinese 107 mm multiple rocket launcher behind you. Before the people captured these cannons, the regime was using them against people. Take a look at the size of the ammunition. They were designed to be used against planes, but Gadhafi used them to kill Libyans. When this bullet hits a human being it shatters him."

Colonel Abdel Salam and several soldiers launched a few rounds from their Russian Dushka, making a few unaware bystanders jump. First used by the Red Army in 1939, this 12.7 mm cannon was popular in World War II and production lasted until 1980. A staple in the Soviet Union's Afghan campaigns, the Dushka can fire 600 rounds per minute and can pierce 15 mm armor plate at 500 meters.

Soldiers were also getting ready a ZPU-1 and a Shilka ZSU-23, both Soviet-made. The former made its debut following World War II, was decommissioned by the Soviets in the 1970s, but was popular with local wars in Southeast Asia and the Middle East due to its ability to be dismantled into pieces suitable to transportation over rough terrain. It uses the 14.5mm Vladimirov (KPV) heavy machine gun. The Shilka is a self-propelled, 23 mm anti-aircraft gun capable of tracking and hitting low-flying aircraft and mobile.

The rebellion's total arsenal is unknown, but it appears that the rebel army is planning to march on Tripoli. Officers sign up civilian volunteers to join the fight next to the anti-aircraft station on the basketball court of a high school. Noting their names, ages and blood type, the army drills them in marching techniques and soon will give them basic weapons training. According to one officer, this recruiting station has assembled about 4,000 people, while at a larger army base outside of Benghazi, the total volunteer force numbers around 10,000.

"I think there will be massive fighting if we go to Tripoli," said Salem Abdelhassid El Dressy, a 41-year-old accountant who volunteered on Tuesday. "I hope to god I am wrong, but I am ready to fight. We all want to go to Tripoli to get rid of Gadhafi."

Photos: Mike Elkin

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