|
Intense fighting in Benghazi continues
[Libya Herald] There has been intense fighting throughout much of the day in Benghazi's Buatni and Leithi districts as bully boyz attacked the Saiqa Special Forces...Libya's elite army unit, insofar as they have one, formed from a mixture of paratroopers and commandos. The group emerged from a militia with the same name in 2010. It now numbers a few thousand and reports to the Ministry of Defence. It deployed in Benghazi in an attempt to control the carnage. As a result, it has been attacked and several of its officers murdered. The force is popular in Benghazi for its stance against Ansar al-Sharia group... ' headquarters with missiles and were attacked in turn by air and counter missile strikes. There were massive kabooms and smoke rising into the sky. Benghazi Medical Centre (BMC) report at least 10 bodies being brought in as well as 50 injured. The hospital also put out an appeal for blood, saying it was desperately short. Doctors and nurses at the hospital have been working round the clock to deal with the injured. Because of the intensity of the fighting, residents in the Musakam area near Leithi have been fleeing their homes in fear. "We tried to stay but a missile hit our building. We left instantly, but there was heavy street fighting nearby," one resident told the Libya Herald. Much of the city is also suffering from power cuts as a result of an electricity station being hit yesterday. It has affected the mobile phone service and the internet. Both are down. The festivities in Benghazi have been almost non-stop over the past few days. The number of dead taken to the BMC today was much the same today as Wednesday, when it received nine bodies and 20 injured, again because of fighting in Buatni. Others have been taken to the hospital in Marj, the operational centre of the Hafter's forces. It too has reported shortages not only of equipment and medications but also of doctors and other medical staff. For its part, the 17 February Battalion ...aka February 17th Martyrs Brigade is considered the largest and best armed militia in eastern Libya. It is financed by the defense ministry and consists of at least 12 battalions. Its membership is estimated between 1,500 and 3,500. The group is active in eastern Libya and Kufra in the south. Some of its members are also believed to be fighting against Pencilneck in Syria.... , which is allied to Ansar al-Sharia ...a Salafist militia which claims it is not part of al-Qaeda, even though it works about the same and for the same ends. There are groups of the same name in Libyaand Yemen, with the Libyan versions currently most active. Tunisia's Shabaab al-Tawhid started out an Ansar al-Sharia and changed its name in early 2014. It still uses the old name now and then, probably because the stationery's not all used up and the web site hasn't expired yet... , said yesterday that six of its members had been killed. At Benina, over the weekend, missiles have also hit Benina airport. According to the airport management, at least six went kaboom!there in the past 24 hours. Cars belonging to airport staff were destroyed in one of the attacks. Meanwhile, ...back at the alley, Bugs Moroni was holding Slats from behind while his brother Greasy Thumb was pounding his face into paste ... Benghazi Joint Security Room (BJSR) has denied social media reports that its head, Colonel Abdullah Al-Saiti, had stopped supporting Operation Dignity led by retired General Khalifa Hafter. In a statement, BJSR said the rumours were "unfounded" and a "cheap attempt" to discredit the Security Room in the person of its president and to confuse its members.
Commando forces regained control of four military camps captured by Islamist militias in the past few days, the official said. The fighting killed eight militia fighters, including the brother of an alleged leader of an al-Qaeda-inspired group, the official and a militia website statement said. The statement published on the website of the powerful Islamist militia Rafallah Sahati confirmed the death of Ahmed al-Zahawi, brother of Mohammed al-Zahawi, the leader of Ansar al-Shariah. US officials believe Ansar al-Shariah was behind the Sept. 11, 2012, attack in Benghazi that killed US Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. Posted by: Fred 2014-07-28 |
|
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=396508 |