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Nearly 150 killed in battle for Libya's Tripoli: WHO
[AlAhram] At least 147 people have been killed and 614 maimed in the offensive launched on April 4 by Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar ...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, 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...to take the capital 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... , the World Health Organization said Monday. The festivities have displaced more than 18,000 people, according to the latest figures from the United Nations ...an idea whose time has gone... Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Fighting broke out as Haftar's forces sought to take control of Tripoli from loyalists of the internationally-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) which is based in the capital. The rising number of casualties has prompted the World Health Organization to deploy surgical teams "to support Tripoli-area hospitals as they cope with the influx of trauma cases", the UN agency wrote on Twitter. At least eight ambulances have been hit during festivities in the southern outskirts of the capital, as both sides have defied international calls to halt the fighting. WHO urged "all parties to exercise restraint and avoid causing collateral damage to hospitals, ambulances and health workers". In addition to ground fighting, both pro-government forces and Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) carry out daily air raids and accuse each other of targeting civilians. Posted by: trailing wife 2019-04-16 |
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