--- title: Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations | TIME description: In Zawiyah, an oil-refining town in western Libya, pro-Gaddafi victory celebrations appear to be created for the benefit of the foreign press, and truth is hard to come by canonical: https://time.com/video/PUSb6UrR/ og:title: Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations og:description: In Zawiyah, an oil-refining town in western Libya, pro-Gaddafi victory celebrations appear to be created for the benefit of the foreign press, and truth is hard to come by og:url: https://time.com/video/PUSb6UrR/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/PUSb6UrR/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations twitter:description: In Zawiyah, an oil-refining town in western Libya, pro-Gaddafi victory celebrations appear to be created for the benefit of the foreign press, and truth is hard to come by twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/PUSb6UrR/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Subscription: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923, reporting on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world. A TIME subscription provides full access to that journalism in print and digital, from $20 a year, and can be cancelled at any time. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations [Watch (HLS stream): Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/PUSb6UrR.m3u8) (3:19)  _Published 2011-03-13. In Zawiyah, an oil-refining town in western Libya, pro-Gaddafi victory celebrations appear to be created for the benefit of the foreign press, and truth is hard to come by_ --- Jul 27, 2023 3:11 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda](/video/xmXKZXli/) ### Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda [TIME's Exclusive Interview with Gaddafi's Son Saif](/video/J1nlyZwp/) ### TIME's Exclusive Interview with Gaddafi's Son Saif [Col. Gaddafi Greets Reporters in Tripoli](/video/DOqHoDOx/) ### Col. Gaddafi Greets Reporters in Tripoli --- ## Transcript >> There's a party in the Libyan city of Zawiyah celebrating Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's defeat of rebel forces. A local stadium swells with an outpouring of joy from a few hundred people. Zawiyah is important. It was the rebels' last stand in the west. Its capture was strategic for morale and propaganda, but on a closer look there's more to this celebration than what meets the eye. The government tightly controls journalists trying to manipulate what they see. Aside from the professional fireworks show that kicked off upon arrival of the journalists, there were many signs of a well- orchestrated event. As the press entered, state media was well- placed to being pictures of them across the country. A crowd surged the field eager to talk to journalists. As if following a script, they blame the violence in the city square on foreign fighters. >> We were from out-- they're from out, from I don't know from Syria or Egyptian or somewhere. >> Outside. >> Yes. And they make trouble here. -[ Foreign Language ]. >> Eventually the crowd's focus shifted to trucks packed with goods at the end of the field. " These are gifts from Gaddafi ," this man says. Loaded up, the revelers quickly scurried off into the night. The press handlers tried to stop journalists from filming the food grab. Fast forward 2 days later, the government organizes a strip to Zawiyah's city center, the heart of the fighting. Green sheets cannot conceal bullet holes on bombed out buildings. State TV already positioned to further spread images of celebrations around the country. A piece of land is hastily bulldozed over to erase what was a cemetery for rebel fighters. In a town of roughly 50, 000 only a couple of hundred showed up to celebrate. Those who did turn out again seemed to be reading from the same script. >> All people here in Libya love Gaddafi. >> Off- camera though some bystanders talk of despair after the rebellion was crushed. Even in the square the government tried to restrict journalists reporting. >> Yes. Just start from the first. >> But why can't-- >> We were there. >> We were there. >> Yes. I think so. Yes. >> In other words, we're not allowed to be here. Why? >> No, not to be, not here, but my-- >> But we were there. There are a lot of people there. >> We did not see you there. I did not see you there. >> After a while, the once empty streets are filled with more cars and supporters. -[ Foreign Language ] >> It's easy to see that this event is also well- orchestrated. What's not easy to see is the true. For TIME video, Ian Lee, Zawiyah. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Col. 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