Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Abdul Hakeem Belhaj, one of the most effective commanders among anti-Gadhafi forces in Libya, has seen plenty of combat in his 45 years. A well-built, bearded man with dark, serious eyes, he fought against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan -- and alongside al Qaeda in the dying days of the Taliban regime. Now he is commander of the anti-Gadhafi forces in Tripoli, and swears loyalty to the National Transitional Council, describing himself as an "ordinary Libyan" fighting for a common cause. But there's not much ordinary about Belhaj. As a young man in the late 1980s, he was one of scores of jihadists in the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group that went to fight in Afghanistan. His military prowess soon made him a commander among his fellow fighters. After the fall of the Taliban, Belhaj left Afghanistan and was arrested in Malaysia in 2004. After some questioning by the CIA, he was sent back to Libya and jailed.
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Abdul Hakeem Belhaj is one of Libya's top anti-Gadhafi rebel commanders
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Some western analysts are concerned with his prominent role, given his past association with Islamist forces
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Belhaj was part of a group of Libyans that fought alongside al Qaeda against the Soviets in Afghanistan
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Belhaj says the fact that he fought alongside al Qaeda doesn't mean he agrees with the aims of the organization
But sitting in an air-conditioned room in one of Tripoli's most exclusive hotels, Belhaj was keen to dispel the notion that he is part of an @placeholder fifth column preparing to make a power grab in the new Libya.