She claimed loudly that troops had detained her at a checkpoint, tied her up, abused her, then led her away to be gang-raped. Mother 'very happy, very proud' Her mother, Aisha Ahmed, told The Washington Post by telephone from Tobruk that she was ''very happy, very proud'' about her 26-year-old daughter, who she said was a law student. ''Inshallah [God willing], I will see her again,'' she said. 'We will force Gaddafi down. France, Obama, America, please come and save my daughter.''

Hasan Modeer, a rebel supporter who was with Ahmed in Tobruk, told the Post a government official had told her to tell her daughter to change her story. ''They said they will give her a new house and a lot of money and anything she wanted,'' Modeer said. But Obeidi refused, saying: ''I will die rather than change my words.'' Obeidi's father, Atiq Saleh al-Obeidi, also contradicted Libyan officials' statements that the young woman's family was not allowing her to speak to the media to verify her story. We will force Gaddafi down. France, Obama, America, please come and save my daughter ''The only communication we've had was when they called us at three in the morning to offer money," he told the Post.

'Arrested after taking part in a protest' Wadad Omar, who said she was her cousin, told Reuters Obeidi was originally from east Libya and was first arrested after taking part in a protest in the early days of the uprising in the western city of Zawiyah. The revolt in Libya erupted in mid-February. Omar said Obeidi was detained on her way back from Zawiyah to Tripoli, along with other women with her at that protest. "There were other lawyers with her, and we don't have any information about them," Omar said, naming the three other women arrested as Naimaa, Amal, and Mona.

Omar said Obeidi was from the eastern city of Tobruk and was working for a tourism company in Tripoli when she was arrested. Omar said the family did not know what had happened to Obeidi except for the little information they were able to glean from her sister's appearance on Libyan television yesterday. "[Obeidi's] sister went on television to say her sister is crazy," Omar said. "Muammar wants to prove to the world that she is insane. She [Obeidi's sister] is certainly under pressure from the government." Rally in support of Obeidi Residents in Benghazi staged a demonstration in support of Obeidi yesterday, waving monarchy-era flags - the adopted symbol of rebels - and chanting as they marched through the city centre.

"Iman, you are not alone," one placard read. Before she was dragged out of the hotel, Obeidi managed to tell journalists that she was detained by a number of troops who were drinking whiskey. She said a number of others who she said remained in custody. She said she was detained on Wednesday but didn't tell how she escaped this morning. She said she was raped by 15 men. "They defecated and urinated on me and tied me up," she said, her face streaming with tears. "They violated my honour, look at what the Gaddafi militiamen did to me."

Journalists who tried to protect Obeidi were punched and knocked to the ground, while a government drew a gun and another smashed a CNN camera. "Look at what happens - Gaddafi's militiamen kidnap women at gunpoint, and rape them ... they rape them," Obeidi screamed before government minders pushed her into a car and drove her away. AP/Reuters with Glenda Kwek

