As if the protests in Egypt a few weeks ago weren't enough.

The Libyan government launched new efforts Monday to crack down on protests, after apparently losing control of the city of Benghazi and facing defections from prominent officials inside leader Moammar Gadhafi's regime.

Libyan state television reported that government security forces had raided "nests of destruction and horror." A leader of the opposition group National Front for the Salvation of Libya said Monday evening that helicopter gunships were firing into crowds. Earlier, protesters apparently set fire to a government building in Tripoli. A witness reported seeing the building ablaze.

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