 In August, the Arab League recognized the NTC as "the legitimate representative of the Libyan state".Aided by NATO air cover, the rebel militia pushed westward, defeating loyalist armies and securing control of the centre of the country.Gaining the support of Amazigh (Berber) communities of the Nafusa Mountains, who had long been persecuted as non-Arabic speakers under Gaddafi, the NTC armies surrounded Gaddafi loyalists in several key areas of western Libya.