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Benghazi still burning as car bomb kills six including TV host Mohammed Bougages
[ALBAWABA] The kaboom occurred in the al-Kesh district of Benghazi late Saturday, killing TV host Mohammed Bougages, who was close to controversial General Khalifa Haftar... served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all... Local officials said at least 10 people were also injured in the incident. Some reports say the kaboom was caused by a bomb that had been planted in the car. Even if confirmed, it would be hard to know whether it was targeted specifically against Bougages. He hosted a daily talk show aired on state TV, during which he voiced views supportive of Haftar; but it is not clear how much weight he carried and whether he could constitute enough of a threat to Haftar’s opponents for them to plan his liquidation. Haftar and a faction of loyalist army personnel have taken it upon themselves to fight holy warrior holy warriors in Benghazi. In so doing, they have been defying the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya. The renegade general used to be an ally of Libya’s long-time dictator, Muammar Qadaffy ...a proud Arab institution for 42 years, now among the dear departed, though not the dearest... . He, however, joined the Libyan revolution against Qadaffy in 2011. He has refused to profess allegiance to the internationally-recognized GNA in Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... Haftar and his forces have been fighting in Benghazi since 2014. They describe the operations as a "correction to the path of the revolution" and a "war on terrorism." The rebel general claimed to have liberated Benghazi from holy warriors earlier this year but violence still continues in the city. The opponents of Haftar say he is essentially involved in a struggle for power. Posted by: Fred 2016-10-31 |
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