Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- At first glance, "Mahmoud" would seem the perfect candidate to be a supporter of Moammar Gadhafi. 

He has prospered during the Libyan leader's 41-year reign, first as a professional and later taking care of his deceased father's businesses. 

But, as with many things in Tripoli, a first glance can be deceiving. 

"Ninety percent of the people in Tripoli hate Gadhafi," Mahmoud told me over sips of espresso at a corner coffee shop this weekend. "All his people do is tell lies. If anyone tells you different they are just afraid." 

CNN is withholding his real name for his own safety. 

On an almost hourly basis, regime officials and government minders tell foreign journalists that Tripoli is a stronghold of Gadhafi and that dissent has vanished in recent months. 

CNN, like other media here, is under severe government restrictions. But I recently managed to slip away from government minders to talk directly to several Libyans. 

And according to several eyewitness accounts, major demonstrations were held against Libya's strongman as recently as last week. 

And in the Souq al-Juma neighborhood of the capital, where anti-Gadhafi protests first erupted in February, the government's propaganda bubble is quickly burst. 

While international journalists including me were ferried by government minders to a pro-Gadhafi rally at Green Square on Friday afternoon, multiple sources tell CNN that several Tripoli neighborhoods were wracked by running battles between protesters and security forces. 

"They were protesting right around the corner. They streamed out of a mosque and onto the small square," said Mahmoud. "Almost immediately Gadhafi forces fired at them with live rounds." 
What is a neighborhood in Tripoli?
the Souq al-Juma neighborhood