Discord in the rebel capital

BENGHAZI, Libya — In the streets of Benghazi, change is afoot. Previously shuttered shops are tentatively opening their doors. Tiny coffee bars are selling paper cups of thick Turkish blends, the waiters brushing away the dust and rubble from outside their storefronts. More women venture out, dressed in designer sunglasses and vividly patterned headscarves. Even the celebratory ...

SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images
SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images
SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images

BENGHAZI, Libya — In the streets of Benghazi, change is afoot. Previously shuttered shops are tentatively opening their doors. Tiny coffee bars are selling paper cups of thick Turkish blends, the waiters brushing away the dust and rubble from outside their storefronts. More women venture out, dressed in designer sunglasses and vividly patterned headscarves.

BENGHAZI, Libya — In the streets of Benghazi, change is afoot. Previously shuttered shops are tentatively opening their doors. Tiny coffee bars are selling paper cups of thick Turkish blends, the waiters brushing away the dust and rubble from outside their storefronts. More women venture out, dressed in designer sunglasses and vividly patterned headscarves.

Even the celebratory bursts of gunfire are waning. The waterfront no longer throbs with the blasts of dynamite lobbed into the water by exuberant young men, jubilant with newfound freedom.

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Portia Walker is a British journalist covering the Middle East. She has written for the Economist, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, and The Washington Post.

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