Thus far, Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) has been a Benghazi-based coalition of rebel leaders from across the country that has professed a desire to unify Libya, with Tripoli as its capital. But the council's leadership has largely been drawn from eastern Libya. The common bond among the people known as "the Libyan rebels" has been a desire to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi from power. Once that occurs, it is likely that differences previously viewed as minor among the rebels will become full-blown ruptures, especially as the rebels' varying expectations regarding their roles in the new Libya give way to reassurance for some and disappointment for others. Once the NTC attempts to move its headquarters to Tripoli, it will generate acrimony among rebels based outside of eastern Libya and among the Islamist militias in the east who bristle at the idea of NTC leaders having more influence in post-Gadhafi Libya. This will occur even if the NTC governs only during a transitional period. There were multiple front lines in the Libyan war, and as the country's political transformation occurs in the coming months, the roles these various rebel groups played will create friction among the victors.

Marsa el Brega/Benghazi Rebels

The rebel fighters who established a front line in Marsa el Brega and whose main base is located just south of Benghazi in Ajdabiya were the least effective, unable to hold any territory farther west than the residential areas of the eastern port town. However, due to their geographic proximity to the de facto rebel capital, they are the most politically connected to the NTC leadership, and will feel that their fortunes should be tied to those of the leading council members. The Marsa el Brega rebels also inhabit the areas abutting Libya's main oil fields, which are the most lucrative spoil of the war. (click here to enlarge image) Islamist militias participated in this front as well, but they suppressed their ideological differences with the NTC for the sake of the common mission. Several former Libyan Islamic Fighting Group members who became transnational jihadists in Iraq and Afghanistan live in eastern Libya, and many are part of militias that provide security in the east. Some believe they are responsible for the death of former NTC military commander Abdel Fattah Younis, though no one has been able to confirm this. NTC head Mustafa Abdel-Jalil on Aug. 22 expressed his concerns about the potential for these Islamist groups to create problems in the new Libya, saying, "There are extremist Islamist groups that seek to have revenge and to create turbulence in the Libyan society. I will not be honored to be the head of a National Transitional Council with such rebels working for it." NTC foreign affairs chief Mahmoud Jibril seconded these concerns by specifically calling on the rebels to show the world that Libyans are “religiously moderate people.”

Misurata Rebels

The Misurata rebels, who established a new front line to the west at Zlitan in recent weeks, became known for their localized insurgency against Gadhafi's forces. They experienced urban warfare on a scale that no other Libyan rebels experienced and view themselves as the most hardened fighters as a result. Misurata commanders have routinely criticized the attempts by Benghazi to issue orders, even though they would not have been able to hold out against Gadhafi had it not been for the regular supply of weapons, food, fuel, medicine and materiel delivered via tugboat from Benghazi. They will also feel entitled to a reward for their efforts following Gadhafi's fall, especially in light of their claims to have dispatched a ship of fighters to Tripoli to assist those who entered the city from the west on Aug. 21.

Nafusa Mountains and Zawiya

The Nafusa Mountains rebels were initially seen as a minimal threat to the Gadhafi regime but ended up contributing greatly in the fight over the regime's final stand in Tripoli. The final assault on the capital that eventually pushed forth from the western coastal city of Zawiya originally gained momentum during a series of rebel advances in the mountains. Using control of a direct supply line into Tunisia via the Wazin-Dehiba border crossing, the predominately Berber guerrillas were joined by Arabs from towns under Gadhafi's control on the coast during their advance into the coastal lowlands. Once they reached Zawiya, they were joined by those who had participated in an attempted uprising in the city in February that was crushed by Gadhafi's forces. The significance of Zawiya's fall — in addition to the nearly simultaneous seizure of the easternmost town in the Nafusa Mountains, Gharyan — was that it cut off supply lines for Gadhafi's forces from Tunisia. From Zawiya, these forces headed east into Tripoli virtually unimpeded. Though they did not by any means win the war on their own, as the forces to reach Tripoli first, they will undoubtedly feel that they deserve a large share of the credit. (click here to enlarge image)

Tripoli Rebels

The Western strategy for Libya for some time consisted of months of continuous NATO bombings and U.N.-mandated sanctions intended to steadily weaken the regime so that a series of uprisings from within would topple Gadhafi. This is what eventually transpired, though it occurred in concert with the rebel advance from Zawiya. There have also been several reports indicating that special operations forces from France, the United Kingdom and other countries played a role in the final assault (something STRATFOR surmised based on the speed at which the assault proceeded Aug. 20). At present, the majority of Tripoli has experienced civilian uprisings, which have led the NTC to proclaim that it maintains control of the majority of the city. Once the NTC tries to take over governance in Tripoli, the majority of the city’s residents will likely welcome them at first as a respite from the previous situation, but they will also most likely eventually come to view the NTC as outsiders attempting to establish control over a city that makes up about one-fourth of Libya's overall population.