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BY ANTHONY MARTINEZ

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During a mix of prison riot and the city’s uproar against Gadhafi’s lost reign, Matthew VanDyke, escaped Monday from notorious Libyan prison Abu Salim, after being held in solitary confinement for nearly six months—and now, he’s speaking out. Here’s NBC Nightly—

VANDYKE: “I was blindfolded when I was brought to the prison.”
REPORTER: “Inside was 32-year-old American Matthew Van Dyke. So they never ever let you out?”
VANDYKE: “No.”
REPORTER: “It was just meals, came in? We returned with him to his cell. Which one was your actual cell?”
VANDYKE: “This one.”
REPORTER: “Van Dyke’s cell was so small, he could touch both walls. He was locked in prison for six months. No visits to the yard, no exercise. Just inside, sealed off, missing without a trace.”

One of the first phone calls VanDyke made was to his mother, Sharon, and Daily Mail has her reaction…

“..Sharon, said her son called her on a borrowed phone after being helped to escape by fellow prisoners.
'He was in the cell and heard men coming. He thought they were coming to execute or torture him,’
'He had a great respect for the people and the country, not the politics. I've always known he was OK.'”

CNN reports that in 1996, as many as 1,200 prisoners were killed at Abu Salim, giving rise to the February revolts of this year and despite the ongoing onslaught between Gadhafi and rebel forces—VanDyke isn’t ready to leave for home—just yet.

“And while plenty of danger remains…
REBEL: “The place is not safe. Sniper! Sniper! Sniper!”
VANDYKE: "I made a commitment to my friends when I came here that I would leave when Gadhafi’s gone and when Libya’s free, and I’m gonna keep the commitment.”

With VanDyke free, the question of other American captives being released stills needs answering. The Huffington Post reports…

VanDyke is one of at least six Americans being held in Libya, and State Department officials are working to secure their release, said agency spokesman Mark Toner.
"You know, they've done nothing. They should be released. And they're simply caught up in this conflict," he said.

 

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