 Gaddafi's legitimacy waned as his regime failed to benefit those of most need in the state.Although Libya has the world's ninth-largest known oil deposits and a population of only 6.5 million, in 2010, Gallup polls showed that 29% of young Libyans were unemployed, and 93% of young Libyans described their condition as “struggling” or “suffering.” As protestors took to the streets, Gaddafi dispatched tanks, jets, and mercenaries to attack them, inciting a string of defections and so further eroding his legitimacy as a ruler.The actual death count of these attacks is not known, as Gaddafi's regime shut out and shut down both world and local media and communications.