1989 Tiananmen Square protests front of tanks." In February 2011, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, in response to an uprising in Benghazi against his rule, held up China's 1989 military assault on Tiananmen Square as an example of how to deal with popular unrest. Chinese media censored Gaddafi's reference to Tiananmen Square. Since Tiananmen, the iconic "Tank Man" image has become a worldwide symbol for civil disobedience. What happened to the "Tank Man" following the demonstration is not known. Some say he was pulled away and went into hiding, others say he was executed by the authorities. "Time" dubbed him "The Unknown Rebel" and later
1989 Tiananmen Square protests were also outraged by "Beijing Daily's 1" June article "Tiananmen, I Cry for You", written by a fellow student who had become disillusioned with the movement, as he thought it was chaotic and disorganized. In response to the articles, thousands of students lined the streets of Beijing to protest against leaving the Square. Three intellectuals, Liu Xiaobo, Zhou Duo, Gao Xin and a Taiwanese singer Hou Dejian declared a second hunger strike because they wanted to revive the pro-democracy movement. After weeks of occupying the Square, the students were tired, and internal rifts opened between moderate and hardliner student groups.