Libya's rebel national council has complained for weeks of dwindling funds, and has been desperately seeking to secure loans and financial backing from its Western supporters to help shore up its finances. Tuesday's agreement with Italy marks a major step forward for the opposition in addressing those needs.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, visiting the rebel stronghold of Benghazi in eastern Libya, said Italy would provide "for the needs of the Libyan people with a huge quantity of fuel and huge amount of money."
