Libya Through the Fire is a powerful first-hand account of the Libyan uprising, filmed in Benghazi during the early days of the Arab Spring. As pro-democracy protests spread across the region, Libya’s revolt was met with brutal force, leaving hundreds dead or wounded within days. Into this moment of fear and defiance, Libyan-born filmmaker Abdallah Omeish travelled to Benghazi to document a city that had declared itself liberated, yet remained under threat from snipers, bombardment and Gaddafi’s forces.
The film follows citizen journalist Mohammed “Mo” Nabbous, founder of Libya Alhurra TV, the first independent broadcast news organisation to emerge in Libya after decades of rule by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. Working under extreme danger, Nabbous moved constantly to avoid detection while streaming images from Benghazi to the outside world during an internet blackout. His camera became a lifeline between the revolution and the world watching from afar.
Libya Through the Fire was Abdallah Omeish’s first film, made with Eki Rrahmani, then a senior producer at Al Jazeera English, as part of a special Arab Spring series for the channel. The documentary went on to win a Rory Peck Award for Best Documentary Film, recognising both the courage of those who filmed Libya’s revolution from inside and the extraordinary sacrifice of those who risked everything to tell the truth.
