Libyan woman bursts into hotel to tell her story of rape

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Breakfast at a Tripoli hotel housing international journalists took a decidedly grim turn Saturday when a Libyan woman burst into the building frantic to let the world know she had been raped and beaten by Moammar Gadhafi’s forces.

Her face was heavily bruised. So were her legs. She displayed blood on her right inner thigh.

She was well-dressed and appeared to be a well-to-do middle-aged woman. She spoke in English and said she was from the rebel stronghold of Benghazi and had been picked up by Gadhafi’s men at a checkpoint east of Tripoli.

She sobbed and said she was held against her will for two days and raped by 15 men. She showed the journalists how she had been tied at her wrists and ankles. She had visible rope burns.

CNN could not independently verify her story but her injuries appeared consistent with what she said.

Government officials quickly closed in on her to try and shut her up. But she persisted, wanting the journalists, staying at the Rixos Hotel, to see Gadhafi’s brutality firsthand.

International journalists, including CNN’s staff, are not allowed to move freely in the Libyan capital and are escorted on organized outings by government minders. This was the first time a Libyan citizen had approached them inside the hotel.

Security forces tried to subdue the woman. Even a member of the hotel staff drew a knife. “Traitor!” he shouted at her in contempt.

One government official, who the journalists believed was there to facilitate access to their stories, pulled a pistol from his belt. Others scuffled with the journalists, manhandling them to the ground in an attempt to wrestle away their equipment. Some of them were beaten and kicked. CNN’s camera was taken away and smashed beyond repair.

Security men put a bag over the woman’s head and dragged her unceremoniously to a waiting car. They said she was deranged and that she was being taken to a “hospital.”

She kicked and screamed. She insisted she was being carted off to prison.

The incident served as stark reminder of Gadhafi’s pervasive grip on Libyan society. A woman who dared to speak against him was quickly silenced. Journalists who dared to tell her story paid a price.

It was one tale that perhaps went a long way in illuminating the need to protect Libya’s people.

CNN’s Nic Roberston and Khalil Abdallah contributed to this report.