Reporting from Ghaaa military base, Libya--  Nothing but a flimsy barbed wire fence surrounds a massive arsenal of ammunition and weapons stockpiled here in the desert by Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi.

No further fortifications were necessary. Until it was seized and pillaged by rebels Tuesday, local people were too terrified of Kadafi's wrath to come anywhere near it.

"There was no need even for the barbed wire," said Mostafa Mohammad, a scholar in Britain who returned to his hometown of Zintan, about 15 miles to the north, after the uprising against Kadafi's rule began in February.

He was among hundreds of rebel fighters and onlookers from all parts of the opposition-held Nafusa mountain range visiting the military base after a quick battle that killed at least two opposition fighters and sent dozens of government soldiers fleeing.

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Though a lot of ammunition was stored at the site, there were few guns to fire it. Some said that was a result of Kadafi's mistrust of even his closest aides. "He's got missile parts everywhere, but no full missiles and rockets anywhere," said Dhaer Abdul Ali, a Ministry of Justice employee who has joined the rebels. "This makes it harder for us to use the weapons, but also harder for him to use them."