You have commented 338 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Africa North
Benghazi car bomb death toll rises to 33 and wounds 71
2018-01-24
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The corpse count from a boom-mobile blast has risen to 33 people and maimed 71 others near a mosque in the Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday night, security officials told Al Arabiya.

The explosives-rigged vehicle blew up in front of a mosque in the central neighborhood of al-Sleimani, a security source said.

Sources have also confirmed to Al Arabiya that Libya's counter-espionage director at Libyan Intelligence, Brigadier Mahdi Falah is among the dead in the blast.

Spokesman of Central Security in Benghazi Tarek al-Kharraz earlier told Al Arabiya that the bombing left more than 40 maimed.

"Aid is still ongoing, while the criminal investigation teams and other security services are investigating the incident to reach the culprits," Kharraz told Al Arabiya.

He confirmed that the bombings were targeting civilians in the densely populated Sleimani area.

Libya has been rocked by chaos since a 2011 uprising that toppled and killed dictator Muamar Ghadafi, with two rival authorities and multiple militias vying for control of the oil-rich country.

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...
in July announced the "total liberation" of Benghazi, three years after his forces launched a military operation to seize the city from jihadists who had made it a stronghold following the revolution.

But festivities and attacks in the city have continued, including against diplomatic facilities and security forces.

Haftar supports a parliament based in the far east of Libya, while a rival United Nations
...boodling on the grand scale...
-backed unity government in the western 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...
has struggled to assert its authority nationwide.

Posted by:Fred

00:00