U.S. Sen. John McCain - a strong proponent of additional U.S. military action in Libya - visited rebels in the city of Benghazi on Friday, calling them his 'heroes.'

Benghazi is currently under control by rebels opposed to the regime of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

They are my heroes, McCain said of the rebels while walking out of a local hotel in Benghazi, according to the Associated Press. He was traveling in an armored Mercedes Jeep and had a security vehicle, according to the report.

Thank you John McCain! Thank you Obama! Thank you America! We need freedom! Gaddafi go away! some demonstrators chanted among about 100 Libya's who greeted McCain, according to CNN.

McCain visited the city's Freedom Square. He was accompanied by Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, deputy chairman of the opposition Transitional National Council, according to the report.

The American people support you very strongly, and we know it's necessary to help as much as we can, McCain told a woman thanking him for U.S. support, according to the report.

McCain also stopped at a courthouse wall to see many pictures posted of people who had been allegedly killed by Gaddafi's forces and had gone missing since the uprisings began in mid-January.

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